Visas, Permits and Licenses
steveinnortherncyprus
come and live. however there is great encouragement to invest in
businesses, especially within the tourism sector. This includes many
trades and businesses such as travel agencies, transport companies-
hotels, bars and restaurants. All foreigners coming to live and/or work
in the TRNC must apply for certain permits.
Temporary residency permits: are issued from the local police station.
this is a simple procedure involving a completion of a form and to
supply four passport sized photographs and costs £80 a year.
This permit is renewed annually. A full residency permit will not be
issued until the person has lived in northern Cyprus for five years.
If you are thinking of opening a limited company: you must instruct an
accountant to make applications on your behalf to the council of
ministers. The application must involver the trading intentions of the
company, directors etc.
Once the council of ministers have given permissions, you must apply to
Immigration for an annually renewable business permit. TB and AIDS
medical examination must be made. When clearances of the medical
examination are approved, you register the company with social security
and the tax authorities.
For retired persons: you can import a full household of furniture
which is virtually tax free normally between 2-3%. Retired peoples only
need a residency permit to reside on the island.
After the arrival of the goods, a full list of these furnitures,
appliances etc. should be presented to Customs & Excise Office of TRNC
together with the applicants' passport and a certificate form (local or
Village Authorities). In Customs and Excise Office in Nicosia will
issue an "Exemption Certificate" regarding Customs & Excise Duty.
For further information on the legal system, we would be pleased to
recommend English speaking first class lawyers.
Anyone wishing to live in Northern Cyprus for more than three months at
a time will require temporary residence status. Those who wish to
retire to North Cyprus or live permanently on the island can apply for
permanent residence status after five years.
Basically the first step on the road to residency is applying for the
visa as soon as you know you're going to be in the country for more
than three months. For every single day you reside in Northern Cyprus
after your three month visitor's visa is up you will incur a fine of
around YTL 66 a day, this fine will be incurred unless you have at
least applied for your temporary residence visa.
Once you've decided to apply for residency in Northern Cyprus get
about 6 or 8 passport photographs and a dozen one YTL stamps then go to
the local Muhtar (pronounced muk tar) will need to see proof of your
residence in the form of a rental or purchase contract as well as bank
statements showing that you have sufficient money available to sustain
you.
The Muhtar will provide you with a Resident's Certificate after
filling in a form with information about you, your parents, your place
of residence in Northern Cyprus etc. Then you should go to one of a
number of licensed clinics in Girne, Gazimagusa or Lefkosia for a blood
test. The names of clinics accepted by the immigration authorities are
available from the immigration offices in Girne and Lefkosia. A blood
sample will be taken then it's necessary to have a chest x-ray and
check-up done in a licensed clinic and the fees for all of these tests
comes to between £100 and £160 per person.
The clinics where the tests are done will provide the applicant with a
receipt. With the receipt, Resident's Certificate, proof of address
and income, passport, more stamps, pictures and photocopies of all
documents in hand the applicant should visit immigration and apply for
residency. Most offices involved in the whole process are only open
between 8.30am and 12 noon. A number will be written into the
applicant's passport by immigration officials and photocopies of all
documents will be taken.
After about 4 weeks or so all the medical tests will have been
completed and an applicant can pick up their results which will be in a
sealed envelope - do not open the envelope or break the seal.
The applicant should then hand deliver these results to immigration in
Lefkosia and sit back and wait for all police checks to be completed
and all medical results to be analysed. An applicant will have to
regularly visit immigration in Lefkosia until checks and tests are
finalised and a visa can be granted. The current fee for a temporary
residence visa in Northern Cyprus is YTL 214.