Immigration Permit, Category C
Residency route facts
Identity
| Official name (local) | Άδεια Μετανάστευσης, Κατηγορία Γ as of 2026-08-07[2] The Greek-language Migration Department page names the instrument 'Άδεια Μετανάστευσης' and this limb 'Κατηγορία Γ'. |
|---|---|
| Official name (English) | Immigration Permit, Category C as of 2026-08-07[1] The department's own English rendering; English is not an official language of Cyprus. |
| Legal basis | Regulation 5 of the Aliens and Immigration Regulations (category C); procedure under Regulation 4 as of 2026-08-07[1][2] |
| Instrument type | residence permit as of 2026-08-07[1][2] |
Who can apply
| Nationals not served by this route | EU, EEA as of 2026-08-07[1][2] The Immigration Permit regime applies to third-country nationals. The pages do not enumerate excluded blocs; EU and EEA nationals are recorded as outside its scope on that basis. Whether Swiss nationals are likewise outside its scope is not stated. |
|---|---|
| Criminal-record condition | Not established from a qualifying source[1][2] Not stated for the ordinary Immigration Permit categories on either Tier-1 page. A criminal record certificate is listed among the documents for adding a spouse to an existing permit, which implies but does not establish a condition on the principal. |
Permit terms
| Initial duration | Recorded at the source, but not reducible to a single value[1][2] |
|---|---|
| Renewable | Yes as of 2026-08-07[1][2] The underlying residence right does not expire; the card is replaced on its ten-year expiry. |
| Work rights | none as of 2026-08-07[1][2] The Immigration Permit categories are defined by the activity the holder intends to pursue and the permit does not itself confer general labour-market access. This category is a self-employment category: the permit is granted for the specific self-employed activity described in Regulation 5. |
Permanent residence and citizenship
Requirements
| Minimum capital | EUR 260,000 as of 2026-08-07[1][2] |
|---|---|
| Business plan required | Not established from a qualifying source[1][2] Not stated. |
| Endorsement required | Yes as of 2026-08-07[1][2] |
| Innovation criterion | Not established from a qualifying source[1][2] Not stated; no innovation condition appears in the category definition. |
Process
| Where to apply from | Not established from a qualifying source[1][2] Applications are submitted at the Migration Department's offices in Nicosia, in person or through an authorised representative, and the permit lapses if a holder resident outside Cyprus does not take up residence within a year of approval. Neither Tier-1 page states whether the applicant must be inside or outside the Republic at submission, so no value is asserted. |
|---|---|
| Observed processing time | Not established from a qualifying source[1][2] No processing time is published for the ordinary (non-expedited) Immigration Permit categories. |
| Fees |
Physical presence
| maximum consecutive absence | 2 years · to keep the permit as of 2026-08-07[1][2] An Immigration Permit ceases to be valid if the holder and dependants acquire permanent residence abroad or are absent from Cyprus for a period of two years. Separately, the permit ceases to be valid if the holder and dependants, being resident outside Cyprus, fail to acquire residence in Cyprus within one year of the approval of the application. |
|---|
Family inclusion
| Family members may be included | Yes as of 2026-08-07[1][2] Regulation 8 of the Aliens and Immigration Regulations: the holder of an Immigration Permit may include the spouse and children under 18 as dependants. |
|---|---|
| Eligible relations | spouse, minor child as of 2026-08-07[1][2] Spouse and children under the age of 18. |
| Family may apply at the same time | Not established from a qualifying source[1][2] Not stated. Dependants may also be added to an already approved Immigration Permit on Form MIP2 with supporting documents, so addition after approval is possible; whether simultaneous application is required at first instance is not stated. |
| Family members' work rights | Not established from a qualifying source[1][2] Not stated on either Tier-1 page. |
Your next step
Read the requirements above considering your own situation: the income multiple, the absence limits, who you can bring. Check the country record for the reference figure those amounts are calculated from, and for anything that has changed recently.
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Verification
| Sources cited | 2 |
|---|---|
| of which official (tier 1) | 2 |
| Oldest as-of date | 2026-08-07 |
| Newest as-of date | 2026-08-07 |
| Reviewed on | 2026-08-11 |
| Schema version | 1.1 |
Sources
- [1] Immigration Permits
Migration Department, Deputy Ministry of Migration and International Protection · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2025-12-29 · Accessed 2026-08-07 - [2] Άδειες Μετανάστευσης
Τμήμα Μετανάστευσης, Υφυπουργείο Μετανάστευσης και Διεθνούς Προστασίας · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-07