Overview
Cyprus Category 6(2) is a permanent residency permit issued to non-EU investors who make a qualifying investment and demonstrate sufficient secured income. The permitted source depends on the chosen investment category. It's the route most people mean when they say "Cyprus investor visa" — and it's worth being precise about what it is, because the route it most often gets confused with (the Cyprus "golden passport") was abolished in November 2020. That scheme offered citizenship. Category 6(2) offers residence, and the two are completely different instruments.
Category 6(2) grants permanent residence with no programme quota. The status can remain valid while the investment and other conditions are maintained, but it is not "set and forget": holders must keep the investment, file annual evidence, and avoid an absence of two years.
The route is relatively rule-bound by investor-program standards. There's no language requirement or points system. The core questions are: can you make a €300,000 qualifying investment, and can you show €50,000 or more per year in secured income from a source allowed for that asset class? If yes to both, the remaining review is documentary and compliance-driven.
Who Qualifies
Category 6(2) is open to non-EU nationals. EU citizens have free movement rights and don't need this route.
The applicant must be the investor — meaning the investment is made in their name (or jointly with a spouse). A spouse and eligible minor children can be included. The rules for unmarried, financially dependent student children aged 18–25 require their own application and evidence; independent adult children use a separate additional-investment structure. Do not assume every adult child is covered by the main €300,000 investment.
The permit comes with a hard restriction: holders sign a declaration that they will not take salaried employment in Cyprus. The investment the visa is built on needs to be in their own name or in a company they direct — that's allowed. But working for a Cyprus employer as an employee is expressly prohibited. Applicants who want to run an active business or work for a Cyprus company need to look at other permit categories.
Requirements
The €300,000 Investment
The investment must be at least €300,000, deployed into exactly one of four qualifying asset categories. Spreading across multiple categories doesn't satisfy the requirement; the full amount must go into a single qualifying asset.
The four qualifying categories are:
- New residential real estate purchased directly from a developer (not resale)
- Other real estate excluding houses and apartments — offices, shops, hotels, or related developments; resale is allowed in this non-residential category
- Shares in a Cyprus-registered company with substantive operations and at least 5 employees in Cyprus
- Units in an eligible Cyprus AIF, AIFLNP, or RAIF whose investments are held in Cyprus
The most common path is new residential real estate, partly because developers are geared to handle international investor clients and partly because the lifestyle proposition is intuitive. But the VAT situation on this option requires attention.
The Annual Income Requirement
In addition to the investment, applicants need secured annual income of at least €50,000. For the new house/apartment route, that income must derive from abroad. For the non-residential property, company-share, and fund routes, current policy allows part or all of the income to come from activities in Cyprus.
The income requirement scales with family size:
- Main applicant: €50,000/year
- Add €15,000/year per spouse
- Add €10,000/year per minor child
So a couple with two minor children needs €85,000/year (€50,000 + €15,000 + €10,000 + €10,000), with the permitted source depending on the investment category. Tax returns and independent-accountant evidence are central to proving it.
The VAT Gotcha on New Residential Property
If you're going the new residential real estate route — which most Category 6(2) applicants do — VAT is a significant line item that needs to be in your budget before you sign anything.
Additional Documents
Beyond the investment and income documentation, expect to provide a clean criminal record certificate from your country of citizenship (and country of residence if different), apostilled and translated where required. Health insurance covering you and your family in Cyprus is also expected.
Costs & Timeline
The official application fee is €500, plus €70 for each person who needs an Alien Registration Certificate. Legal fees vary by provider and complexity.
The Migration Department's published estimate is approximately 2 months from a complete application when the criteria are met and there are no criminal-record or public-security concerns. Complex or incomplete files can take longer.
After approval, you collect your residence permit card in person at the Civil Registry and Migration Department. Family members may need to collect their cards simultaneously or in sequence depending on how the application was structured.
For the common new-home route, the investment floor is €300,000 excluding VAT. The cash requirement is therefore at least €315,000 if the purchase qualifies entirely for the 5% rate, or €357,000 at 19%, before legal and government charges. A couple with no children must separately demonstrate €65,000 of annual income.
Tax & Residency
Holding a Category 6(2) permanent residency permit doesn't automatically make you a Cyprus tax resident. Tax residency is a separate status determined by actual presence in Cyprus. The standard rule is 183 days or more in Cyprus in a calendar year.
The 60-day rule can also apply if you spend at least 60 days in Cyprus, no more than 183 days in another single country, maintain a Cyprus home, and continue Cyprus business, employment, or an office such as a directorship. PR holders who serve as company directors should take specific advice on the full test and any treaty tie-breaker.
If you do become a Cyprus tax resident, the non-dom regime is worth understanding. Non-domiciled status — available to those who were not previously domiciled in Cyprus — runs for 17 years and exempts you from Special Defence Contribution (SDC) on foreign dividends and foreign interest income. Effectively this means foreign dividend income reaches you at 0% SDC, which is one reason Cyprus is genuinely competitive for people with investment income structures.
Two 2026 changes worth noting: corporate tax rose from 12.5% to 15% effective 1 January 2026, and crypto disposal gains became taxable at 8% flat under Article 20E of the Income Tax Law from the same date. These affect you if you hold or plan to establish Cyprus company interests or if you have cryptocurrency assets.
The path to citizenship through Category 6(2) follows standard naturalization rules: a continuous 12-month period immediately before applying, plus 7 cumulative years in the preceding 10, B1 Greek, civic knowledge, financial and accommodation evidence, and good character. A PR grant does not itself start or satisfy that physical-residence record. Dual citizenship is allowed under Cyprus law.
Common Mistakes
Thinking this is a citizenship route
The Cyprus CBI program that offered citizenship was abolished in November 2020. Category 6(2) is a residence permit. Standard citizenship requires the final continuous 12 months plus 7 cumulative years in the preceding 10, along with B1 Greek and the other conditions. Anyone telling you that the PR grant itself leads to citizenship in 2 or 3 years is describing a process that no longer exists.
Miscalculating the VAT
The 5% rate is conditional; 19% is the default. The qualifying investment and payment evidence are measured excluding VAT, so determine the actual VAT treatment before signing or filing.
Counting Cyprus income toward the €50,000 threshold
Foreign-source income is mandatory for the new house/apartment option. The other three investment categories may use Cyprus-source income under the current policy. Match the income evidence to the category you actually select.
Missing the 2-year visit requirement
An absence from Cyprus of two years can invalidate the permit. In addition, holders must submit annual evidence that the investment, income, health-insurance position, and clean-record conditions continue to be met.
Taking employment in Cyprus
The declaration signed at application expressly prohibits salaried employment in Cyprus. Director or shareholder roles in the company you invested in are fine. Working for a Cyprus employer as an employee is not. This is checked — Cyprus is a small economy and employment relationships aren't invisible.
Splitting the investment across categories
The €300,000 must go into a single qualifying category. Putting €200,000 into real estate and €100,000 into a fund doesn't satisfy the requirement. If you're trying to diversify, do it within a single category — for example, two properties totaling €300,000 both qualify as real estate, provided neither is resale if you're using the new-residential-from-developer category.
Sources
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