The well-known citizenship-by-investment program in Cyprus was officially suspended from 1 November 2020. As a result, investors won’t be able to purchase a Cypriot passport through investment directly.

 

Cyprus Citizenship: Descent or Birth

If you have one Cypriot parent and were born in Cyprus, you are a citizen of that nation by default. By exercising their right of family descent, people who were born outside of Cyprus but who have at least one parent who is a Cypriot can become citizens of the nation. To do so, they must present both their birth certificate and the certificate of their parents.

 

Naturalization 

Any foreign national who is at least 18 years old and has lived in Cyprus lawfully for 7 years, or 2,555 days, prior to applying for citizenship must have no felony convictions on their record. Additionally, they had to have lived there continuously for a year before submitting their citizenship application. If the applicant is a Cypriot citizen’s child or parent, the necessary time frame would be 5 years rather than 7.

 

Marriage

According to the Civil Registry and Migration Department of Cyprus, after 3 years of marriage and 2 years of residency in the Republic, people who are married to Cypriot citizens may become citizens. Those who want to become Cypriot citizens but do not currently reside in the Republic must have their spouse submit a letter with their application explaining why they want to become citizens of Cyprus. A marriage certificate must be provided to the appropriate officials at the Civil Registry and Migration Department in both situations.