Cypriot Cabinet Loosen Eligibility Requirements For Citizenship By Investment Program

The Government of the Republic of Cyprus has announced dramatic changes to the eligibility requirements for their popular Citizenship By Investment Program.

The wildly successful program previously allowed non-citizens to attain citizenship by forming a group of 5 or more investors and investing $5,000,000 or more. The new eligibility rules not only cut the required investment amount in half, they also make some other significant changes.

• Investment requirement changed from €5 million to €2.5 million
• No minimum investor requirement
• Main applicants can now secure citizenship for dependent parents
• Additional investor safeguards introduced

Although the requirements have been eased, the Republic of Cyprus is still quite committed to ensuring investors maintain true ties with Cyprus. Investors must maintain permanent housing in Cyprus at a minimum value of €500,000 + VAT. The home must be owned for the duration of their lifetime. As an additional courtesy, applicants are now given a Residence Permit until they have secured their passport.

The Republic of Cyprus has been quite successful in maintaining the exclusive nature of their passports. Constantly ranked among the most desirable passports in the world, Cyprian passports appeal come from the short processing time (3 months) and the ability to include dependent parents.

Cyprus has enjoyed a very quick economic recovery and employment rates are falling rapidly. Investors have already begun flocking to Cyprus recently as it has become an example of prudent economic management. With these new changes to the eligibility requirements for the Citizenship by Investment Program, experts expect to see a significant increase in the number of people utilizing this program to earn Cypriot citizenship.