Paphos info-file
The political, administrative, legal system
The Republic of Cyprus has a presidential system of government. The president is elected for five years directly by the people in a secret ballot with universal suffrage. Executive power is exercised by a cabinet of 11 members which is appointed by the president. In the case of the temporary absence of the president of the Republic, his functions are performed by the president of the House of Representatives.
Legislative power is exercised by the House of Representatives. The deputies are elected for five years by universal suffrage via a simple proportional representation system. The House has 80 deputies, of whom 56 (70%) are elected by the Greek Community and 24 (30%) by the Turkish Community. Because of the events which ensued after 1963 and of the Turkish invasion of 1974 the seats corresponding to the Greek-Cypriot community remain vacant.
The administration of justice is exercised by the Supreme Court of the Republic, the assize courts and the district courts.
The Central Bank of Cyprus is responsible for shaping and implementing the monetary and credit policies of the state. The Central Bank also manages the Republic’s currency reserves, supervises the banks and acts as the government’s banker and financial representative.
Under the constitution, the president of the Republic appoints a number of independent officers of state, such as the Attorney-General (who is the Republic’s legal adviser), the Auditor-General, the director of the Central Bank and the Commissioner for Administration.
Power at local government level is exercised by municipal and community councils and groupings of communities. There are 33 municipalities, of which nine are in the occupied area, and 483 community councils and groupings of communities, of which 131 are in the occupied area. The municipal councils provide services and have administrative powers in the cities and in two or three large rural areas in which municipalities have been established, and the community councils manage local government affairs in the villages. The councils are independent bodies, and their members are elected by universal suffrage every five years.
Other general information:
- As a result of the military invasion and occupation of 36,2% of Cyprus in 1974, the lawful government of the Republic of Cyprus can not exercise control over the northern part of the country. Under the treaty of accession to the European Union, the implementation of the Community acquis in that zone is suspended pending a settlement of the political problem.
- The official languages of Cyprus are Greek and Turkish. The majority of people speak at least one other language, mostly English.
- The currency of the CyprusRepublic is the Cyprus pound. On 1 May 2006 the exchange rate of the Cyprus pound against the euro was £1.00 = €1.7361 (€1=£0.5760). The Cyprus pound joined the Exchange Rate Mechanism 2 on 29 April 2005. The central rate was set at €1 = £0.585274, with a fixed range of + or – 15%.
- The Republic is obliged to provide representation by a lawyer where a plaintiff or defendant in a court case is unable to afford representation in court, and an application for the appointment of a representative is filed on a legal-aid basis (this happens most frequently in criminal cases).
Text last edited on: 06/2006
The political, administrative, legal system
Taxes and charges on income
Income and cost of living
Shopping
Cultural & Social Life
Births, weddings and death
Cyprus has an area of 9,251 square kilometres and is the third largest island in the Mediterranean. It has high temperatures from May to September. From October to March it has gentle winter weather with lower temperatures and some rain. The highest mountains are snow-covered from December to February.
Sights Worth Seeing
The history of the island from ancient times offers much to interest people from abroad. The island is full of cultural monuments, including Neolithic settlements, classical Geek and Roman monuments, Byzantine and Latin churches and monasteries, Frankish and Venetian fortresses and castles and mosques.
Cyprus has a number of museums (archaeological, folk and traditional craft museums among others), art galleries and other places of note, all of which are listed on the website of the Cyprus Tourism Organisation (KOT).
The KOT website carries details of a large number of sports that are available in Cyprus for those who are interested, and which visitors can watch or take part in. They include golf, car sports, air sports, lawn tennis, swimming, bowling, cycle racing, football, horse riding, and water sports. In winter, many Cypriots and foreigners go to the ski centres in the TroodosMountains, which are snow-covered at that time of year.
Entertainment and Night Life
Cyprus has a large number of tavernas (which offer traditional dishes and apéritif foods) and restaurants offering various cuisines (Greek, Chinese, Italian, European, Mexican and Japanese, etc.). The coastal summer resorts such as Agia Napa and all cities and areas have many entertainment and recreational centres, some of which stay open until the early hours. Many tavernas and entertainment centres have Greek music and dancing. There are also many clubs which provide entertainment until the early hours with modern music and DJs who are very good.
There are theatre and music presentations throughout the year, mainly in the cities. The frequency of events increases in the summer when the ancient tragedies and comedies are presented, operatic performances and classical music concerts are provided by Greek and foreign artists, and world-famous groups and artists give concerts.
Text last edited on: 06/2006
Shop opening hours are different in winter and summer. In the winter period from 1 November to 31 March they open at 09:00 and close, in accordance with the law, at 19:00, except on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays when they close at 14:00, 20:00 and 15:00, respectively. Sunday is not a working day. The supermarkets usually open between 07:00 and 08:00.
In the summer period from 1 April to 31 October the shops open at 09:00 and close, in accordance with the law, at 20:30, except on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays when they close at 10:00, 21:30 and 17:00 respectively. From 15 June to 31 August the afternoon rest measure applies, and the shops are usually closed between 14:00 and 17:00 Sunday is not a working day. The supermarkets usually open between 07:00 and 20:00.
All urban areas have kiosks which are open for longer than the shops or even for 24 hours a day. A large number of bread shops (bakeries) stay open until 23:00. The kiosks sell cigarettes, soft drinks, mineral water and magazines and newspapers, etc., and the bakeries sell bread, other bakery products and milk and dairy products, etc.
The official public holidays for shops are:
- 1 January
- 25 March
- 1 April
- Easter Monday
- 1 May
- 1 October
- 28 October
- 25 December
- 26 December
An order of the Minister for Labour and Social Insurance designates tourism areas, and in those areas the shops adhere to the tourism system of opening hours which allows for longer opening all through the week and for Sunday opening.
In the Christmas period, which begins on 12 December and ends on 30 December, and the Easter period, which begins 10 days before Easter Sunday, the shops are open for longer.
Text last edited on: 06/2006
The main items of taxable personal income are income from employment and income obtained by self-employed persons for their services.
Income from capital investments includes the following:
- receivable rents;
- receivable dividends.
Cyprus has indirect taxes such as VAT, for which the rate is 15%.
Other forms of taxable income include pensions, any one-off payment made as an end of service gratuity, compensation for death and bodily harm and unemployment income.
Cost of living
The inflation rate in Cyprus in 2003 was 4.1%. The unemployment rate was 3.5%.
Information on these matters is available on the websites of the Central Bank of Cyprus, the Statistical Service, the Ministry of Finance and the Cyprus Consumers’ Association.
Contact details about these bodies are available in lintv useful numbers.
Resident taxpayers in Cyprus are taxed on all income acquired or derived from sources in Cyprus and abroad.
Non-resident taxpayers in Cyprus are taxed on income acquired or derived from sources in Cyprus only.
Resident taxpayers are persons who live in Cyprus for a total of more that 183 days in the taxation year.
Tax rates (natural persons):
- 0 per cent for the first £10 000
- £10 001-£15 000, rate of 20 per cent
- £15 001-£20 000, rate of 25 per cent
- £20 000 and over, rate of 30 per cent
The calculation of taxable income takes account of deductible items and discounts such as: subscriptions to trade unions, professional associations or donations to approved charities, National Insurance contributions, Pension Fund contributions, Relief Fund contributions, Life Insurance fees, etc.
Spouses are taxed separately on the basis of separate annual income tax returns.
Profits from the sale of shares are not subject to income tax.
Proceeds from the sale of real estate within the Republic and from the sale of shares in unlisted companies whose assets include real estate within the Republic are subject to a capital gains tax rate of 20 per cent.
Dividends are subject to a defence levy of 15 per cent if the shareholder is a taxable resident of the Republic. Where the dividend is from a foreign company, the levy may be reduced by the amount of tax withheld in the foreign country as well as with the proportion of tax and profit if the dividend comes from an EU Member State company.
The income of persons who are resident in the Republic from a pension for services provided outside the Republic is subject to a tax rate of 5 per cent. The first CY£2 000 are exempt. There is the possibility to choose the method of taxation and either be taxed at the lower 5 per cent rate or at normal rates. The choice is stated in the income declaration. Those interested are advised to contact the Foreign Incomes Department via fax no +357 22 66 1243 or e mail.
The rates of VAT vary according to the legislation on the basis of the type of product or service. The following rates are applied:
- zero rate (0 per cent)
- reduced rate (5 per cent)
- standard rate (15 per cent).
The delivery of a house, apartment or business premise, etc. for which planning permission was applied for after 1/5/2004 is subject to VAT at 15 per cent. Plots and land are exempt from VAT when sold without any form of building.
The TAXInet service provides the possibility to electronically submit Income Declarations.
Text last edited on: 06/2006
Births
Mothers give birth in state and private hospitals and private clinics. Births must be registered at the office of the eparch of the city in which they take place. All the district administrations issue birth certificates. After the application for the registration of the new-born child has been completed and signed by the doctor who attended the birth, one copy is retained by the clinic at which the child was born, a second copy is sent to the local district administration and a third copy is given to the parents of the child so that they can register the baby at the registry of births. In order for a birth certificate to be issued, the particulars of the citizen must be registered in the population archive.
It should be noted that every pregnant woman who is a citizen of the European Union and staying in Cyprus is entitled to give birth at a state hospital and to have the cost charged to her country of provenance if she has a Form E111.
Weddings
Cyprus allows both civil and religious weddings.
Civil weddings are carried out at municipal offices by the mayor or by members of the municipal council who are authorised by the mayor. The process is very simple. The couple are required to:
- furnish documentary evidence of their identities (e.g. ID cards, passports);
- furnish recent certificates from an official authority of their home country proving that they are unmarried;
- attend at the municipal offices and complete the relevant application forms, produce the relevant documentary evidence and pay a fee of £75 (about €128).
The wedding may not take place earlier than 15 days after the submission of the application. However, if the couple wish to marry before the 15 days has elapsed (even on the day on which they lodge the application) the fee is £165 (about €282). It should be noted that where there is insufficient documentation to satisfy the municipal officials that the persons concerned are not already married, one or both of the persons may be asked additionally to make a declaration on oath at the district court concerning their family status.
Divorced persons who wish to marry at a civil wedding in Cyprus are required additionally to furnish a decree absolute document.
Widowers and widows are required to furnish the death certificate of the deceased spouse.
Lastly, a request may be made for relevant documents which are not in Greek or English to be translated into one of those languages and certified as correct translations of the originals by the competent authority of country of the person concerned. In such cases, the parties concerned (the couple) must also furnish the originals of the documents in whatever language they were issued.
Religious marriages are carried out at churches of many Christian denominations in Cyprus, in particular Orthodox and Catholic churches. There are also Maronite and Armenian churches.
Death
When a death occurs, a death certificate is issued by a doctor (or a coroner's report is issued in specific cases) and a form is completed and furnished to the local office of the eparch.
Further Information
Holy Archbishopric of Cyprus - Tel: 225 54600
Moving to Cyprus / The Health System / Education / Living in Cyprus / Infrastructure / Social Security / Labour
copyright © lintv 2008 contact webmaster lintv
Informing you locally online, lintv brings you the latest round-up of news from Paphos & Cyprus with video news every Wednesday & Friday and print news every week-day
