Property law in Cyprus FAQ

After you find the property you would like to buy, you should appoint a lawyer to do the due diligence and contracts. The lawyer will take care the transaction for you and make sure that you have a smooth process.

You do not need to come to Cyprus at all during the conveyancing process. We can deal with almost everything for you.

It depends on the reason why the property does not have title deeds. Read our article for more information on why property in Cyprus may not have a title deed and how to decide if it is ok to proceed.

There are a few considerations about this. The estate agent profession is regulated in Cyprus. A regulated estate agent’s fees are deductible from capital gains tax calculations (on the profits from the sale) as a recognisable expense. Other than that you should look for someone who has sold properties in the area where your house or apartment is situated before and you enjoy working with.

Typically, most conveyancing transactions in Cyprus take anywhere from 3 to 6 months. We conclude most of our straightforward transactions in around 30-45 days. With our innovative Fast Conveyancing Initiative, we can do the conveyancing in 10-15 days or even less on certain occasions. Timing depends on the availability of funds, the cooperation of the involved parties (buyer, seller and their lawyers) and the date on which the seller wishes to vacate the property.

Typically the Estate agents’ fees are 5% plus VAT and these are paid by the seller of a property. If you are a buyer of property it may not make a difference whether the agent you use is a registered estate agent or not. If you are a seller of the property, you must be aware that the commission paid to a registered estate agent is deductible from any Capital Gains Tax you may have to pay due to the sale if you are making a profit. Commission paid to a non-registered estate agent is not tax-deductible.

The reservation deposit usually takes the property off the market for a period of around 30 days (or as otherwise agreed) to allow for searches to be carried out and the transfer of further funds for the signing of contracts.

Typically, a property buyer who backs down after paying a deposit loses the deposit. The Seller however may agree to return the deposit back but this is unlikely in most circumstances.

The following is an indicative list of the things you may have to pay when you are selling your property in Cyprus:
-Legal fees, VAT and disbursements (e.g. for the certification of documents)
-Any outstanding mortgage
-Balances to utility authorities, local authority taxes (e.g. refuse and sewage) and management committee (if in a building block or project with communal areas)
-Agent’s commission
-Immovable Property Tax (IPT) if you held the property
In addition, the law provides that every seller of property must deliver an Energy Efficiency Certificate but some buyers don’t insist on this.

The following is an indicative list of the things you may have to pay when you are buying property in Cyprus in addition to the purchase price:
-The purchase price
-Transfer Fees (unless the property is new which has VAT instead of Transfer Fees)
-Legal Fees, VAT and Disbursements (for example stamp duty)
-Cost of connection of utilities

This makes the transaction much easier and faster as buyers or sellers don’t have to be in Cyprus for the duration of the transaction.

Yes, you can. We will explain how you can do this at the start of a transaction.

Depending on the specific bank’s requirements we have a list of documents that we will give you and we will assist you in the process.

Yes if both the seller and the buyer of the property agree.

Yes but this needs proper safeguards in place to ensure that money payments and related actions tied to the payments are executed safely/ simultaneously.

We will find out for you and make sure that the mortgage is lifted if the amount of the mortgage is less than the purchase price. If it is for more, then the bank would have to agree to remove the mortgage for less. We will make sure that your property. This means that the deed of the property will be clear when you take it over. There are some situations where the mortgage on the property may be an obstacle impossible to overcome and will inform you if this is the case.

Typically, through estate agents, developers or your own network.

There was a Law voted by the Cypriot Parliament allowing buyers of property to apply directly to the Land Registry to get their title deed transferred onto their names and to by-pass any problems/issues which the Developer may have had and which have been hindering the process of the transfer of the deed to the buyers. For more information, you can have a look at our blocked title deeds guide.

This is risky as you and the developer have conflicting interests; you wish to buy for less and with better terms for you while the developer wishes to sell for more and with better terms for him.

You should. Very often the legal terminology and drafting are not easy for a non-professional to understand. In addition to what is written in a contract, one should note that omitting important information can also be very detrimental.

The process of property development starts with an application for the division of the land in order to become a plot suitable for construction. Then planning and a building application must be obtained prior to start the building. As soon as the construction finishes, the authorities will examine that construction has been made according to the licenses and that all terms of the licenses have been observed and if everything is ok they will issue the final approval certificate. The separate title deeds for each property are issued after the final approval certificate. For more information as well as the reasons that complications may arise see our guide.

This depends on the reason the title deeds have not been issued, the price and the reason for purchase. For more information, you can read our guide