Real Estate Plus Residency in Cyprus

When you buy real estate, you are acquiring a tangible asset that will not be affected by too many economic variables in addition to guaranteeing your retirement. A house, apartment, or land can generate a lot of value depending on its location and the possible development projects destined to that area.

In this case, we want to show you how real estate is widely considered one of the wisest investments you can make in Cyprus. Besides obtaining the benefits of having properties in such a beautiful country, you can obtain residency. And that’s without mentioning that Cyprus has the best non-dom regime in the EU, meaning you can optimize your personal taxes here.

On the one hand, if you choose correctly, a real estate investment in Cyprus can provide you with a steady flow of relatively easy passive income for decades. On the other hand, if you want to live in the country, you can do it considering that the cost of living on the island is among the lowest in the EU, especially when you compare it with the wonderful life and services the country has. Cyprus has the second largest percentage of resident foreigners in the EU, with almost 20%.

If this doesn’t seem enough for you, here you can find a list of reasons why you should consider obtaining a residency by investment in Real Estate in Cyprus:

This program is cheaper than others within the European Union. Holders of Cyprus permanent residency through real estate investment do not automatically become Cyprus tax residents and are under no obligation to stay in Cyprus. Gaining permanent residency in Cyprus through investment in real estate and then staying on the island allows you to receive Cyprus citizenship in seven years. Together with the main applicant, also members of his/her family will receive permanent residency, even those over 18, under certain conditions that we will detail here. Investing in Cyprus’s real estate sector is profitable considering the growth of this market during the past years. You may be eligible for the Cyprus non-dom regime and enjoy significant tax benefits by staying for 183 days on the island per year or 60 days over a year under certain conditions.

Why should you invest in real estate in Cyprus?

Real estate has seen significant growth in the last few years in Cyprus. This surge in the market was influenced by an increased trust from investors thanks to the pro-business reforms and also the residency and citizenship programs.

Cyprus has improved in the last seven to eight years, but mostly since 2018. This was generated by the influx of investment and pro-business reforms that we mentioned before. Those who took advantage of the distressed assets in the real estate market before that moment are now seeing top gains from their investments when prices are increasing. After eight years of housing price falls, the economy’s stabilization, and the influx of investment in the real estate market has led to a rise in construction activity and the prices. Only during the first half of 2019, property sales rose almost 25 %, continuing a five-year trend of increasing sales.

Something to consider is that, right now, there is a massive demand for highly valued property, especially villas worth around €2 million. This demand cannot be supplied if there is no investment in building them, which means there is a significant business opportunity for those willing to invest in this sector.

Likewise, Cyprus’s tourism sector grows day by day, thanks to its superb location in the Mediterranean and closeness to Europe. In that sense, you can purchase villas or small apartments to create resorts and obtain money from them. The opportunities are broad.

Nevertheless, the main advantage of making real estate investments in Cyprus is that you can obtain a residency by investment. In this program, you need a €300,000 investment, which you can obtain by combining the acquisition of a personal residency and another one that can be used for rental income.

What can you invest in?

The idea might seem attractive, but perhaps you don’t know where to begin. Do not worry, because we have got some offers and options here for you. First, we work with a top provider with over 35 years of experience in Cyprus real estate. This development group has delivered over 4000 properties and continues offering high net worth individuals excellent projects with state-of-the-art design on Cyprus’s Eastern coast.

Our partners offer tailored packages for high net worth individuals looking to apply to the Cyprus RBI program. We come here to offer you to join our club of Smart Investment Solutions. These are investment packages that qualify for the Cyprus RBI programs tailored to diversify your investment and provide you with serious investment returns.

Therefore, one of the most attractive options includes the purchase of villas. A purchase of villas of our partners’ lifestyle collection is a reliable investment option. Most villas are located within walking distance of blue flag beaches and built according to the most demanding specifications, with swimming pools included. Moreover, investing in one villa will allow you to apply to the residency by investment program.

Plus, we also have smaller villas and hotel rooms. This means you can invest in two of them, where one would be your residence and the other would generate rental income.

In other words, the Smart Investment Solution is a tailored program that our partners have created for investors like you. It includes a group of packages and collections for different types of investors and needs:

Signature collection

Eden Residence (Signature Apartments) Icon Beach Front Villas (Signature 3 beachfront villas) Pliades Beach Front Villas (Signature 2 beachfront villas) Semera Beach Front Villas (Signature 3 beachfront villas)

Lifestyle Collection

Almaria A consisting of 28 villas Almaria B consisting of 8 villas Halki consisting of 9 villas Hestia consisting of 15 villas Ikaria consisting of 1 villa Ionion consisting of 63 villas Malama Seaview consisting of 10 villas Meliades consisting of 5 villas Nissi Residence consisting of 8 villas

Resort Collection

Mythical Blue with a combination of 9 villas, 8 townhouses, and a building of 12 flats. Mythical Sands with over 400 units built, sold, and only a few units available. Mythical Spa with a spa center, gym, and cafeteria on the ground floor and basement, and with 24 flats for sale on the 1st and 2nd floors. You can obtain more details of these programs in our article. Here, our mission at Privatus Maximus is to make you feel comfortable when taking this decision. This only comes when you have the proper and accurate amount of information, and our team of experts in Cyprus can provide it to you.

 

How can investments get you residency?

As we have mentioned before, Cyprus has made several improvements in its economic growth by promoting investment and job creation in the country. Consequently, this Mediterranean jewel offers foreign nationals an opportunity to obtain permanent residence through investment. This is an incredible opportunity for non-EU foreigners that wish to live in the EU.

The process is quite fast, as the approvals can be granted in three months. This fast-track residency program offers a path for citizenship after seven years if the individual has spent at least 180 days per year in the country.

A great advantage of this option is that applicants do not need to live in Cyprus before or after residency approval. Also, there are minimum requirements conducted by banks of disclosing the source of wealth; there is no medical testing and no language requirements.

This residency program’s minimum investment is a €300k + VAT real estate investment (€200k paid before the application). Plus, the investor does not have to be personally present when making the purchase, as it can be conducted through a legal representative. Another requisite is that the applicant must keep a five-year fixed deposit account from foreign sources in a national bank of at least €30k and must prove he has a secured annual foreign income of the same amount. You must also add €5k for each dependent child and €8k for each dependent adult. Additionally, Cyprus demands a clean criminal record from the applicant and no frozen assets within the EU.

Some important notes to this RBI program in Cyprus are that you must visit the country at least every two years, and you can’t work in the country. Nevertheless, you can own a company and earn dividends.

In this program, the property purchased can be of four different types (the properties can be rented out after the process):

a. One residential real estate property

b. Two residential real estate properties

c. One residential real estate property and a commercial space up to 100 m2

d. One residential real estate property and an office up to 250 m2

You need to consider that the value of the properties must be at least €300k. Also, both real estate properties must belong to the same developer, and the purchased properties can be placed in different areas of Cyprus.

However, if you want a more detailed path of how to start, our partners have a streamlined eight-step buying process:

  1. Get in touch with us
  2. Register your interest so we can find a package for you.
  3. Select a group of properties among the options we offer.
  4. Reserve the property and pay a deposit.
  5. We prepare the sale contract.
  6. Sign the sale contract.
  7. We submit the sale contract to the land registry department.
  8. We complete the sale and arrange a key handover.

Finally, you need to know that the documents required when applying for an RBI depend on the type of investment you make and other specific factors, such as your nationality. However, in general, you will need the following:

Proof of the investment – purchase of the property, donation, etc. Proof of the availability, ownership, and transfer of the necessary funds. Your CV, detailing your professional and academic qualifications. Birth and marriage certificates (if applicable). Passport-sized pictures. Police records, showing you have no previous criminal history. Proof that your adult children are enrolled in college (if applicable). The process is simple. Our partners collect the documents, you make the investment and our partners will review and help you improve your application to submit it to the Cypriot authorities. Afterward, you must wait a couple of months and when we receive a positive response, you need to make the complete investment. You’ll need to go to Cyprus to receive your residency card and provide biometric data.

As you can see, the path to get real estate plus residency in Cyprus is not that complicated. With the proper guidance and orientation, this can become the opportunity of your life. Cyprus is with no doubt one of our favorite jurisdictions to live and invest in. Do not hesitate and dare to discover everything Cyprus has to offer in its real estate sector.

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