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least 2.15 million euros, which includes the donations.
These companies need to employ at least five Cypriot
or European Union citizens. This minimum number of
employees may change in circumstances where there is
more than one investor in the same business.
The third option is investing in Cyprus alternative investment
funds, financial assets or organizations licensed by the Cyprus
Securities and Exchange Commission. The investor should
invest at least 2.15 million in the investment funds, provided
that the funds are registered and operating in Cyprus as well
licensed and supervised by the commission. Investments
under this option may also be in the financial assets of Cyprus
companies or organizations. Investment under this option
needs be maintained for a period of five years. The manager or
auditor of the alternative investment fund shall inform, in writing
and a yearly basis, the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of
Finance about the value of the initial investment.
A fourth option is combining all the previous options.
The investor may make a combination of the above
investments, provided that the total investment amounts to
at least 2.15 million euros. Investor may no longer invest in
Cyprus government bonds.
After looking at the various options available to the
investor, there are also certain terms and conditions
that need to be met. For example, one of the criteria is
that the applicant, prior to his or her naturalization as a
Cypriot citizen, must hold a resident permit in Cyprus.
If the applicant does not already hold a resident permit,
he or she may apply for an immigration permit, on the
basis of Regulation 6(2) of the Aliens and Immigration
Law, concurrently with the application for naturalization.
Besides the above requirements, there are also certain
documents that need to be presented by the applicant. For
example, there must be a clean criminal record and other
personal documentations.
CHANGES TO THE CYPRUS
INVESTMENT PROGRAM
The Council of Ministers approved changes to the Cyprus
Investment program, including:
Any applicant rejected by another member state will
not be eligible to apply for the Cyprus program and the
applicant has an obligation to disclose information
whether he or she has been previously rejected.
• The period of retaining any investment has been
increased to 5 years, which excludes the primary
residence of 500,000 euros, which still must be
held for life. During the 5-year period the investor
will be able to change his investment, provided
that a consent is granted in this regard by the
Ministry of Finance.