Company formation in Cyprus
A foreign founder can form a Cyprus Ltd without Cypriot residence: a Cypriot lawyer files the incorporation, and the company needs an office in Cyprus, a director and a secretary; the Registrar fee is €165. Corporate tax is 15% from 2026. INNOVA coordinates the incorporation, the choice between a subsidiary and a branch, tax and reporting. Founder residence is assessed separately because a company does not grant it.
- Form
- Private Ltd
- CIT 2026
- 15%
- VAT
- 19%
- Audit
- Required / review
- Residence
- Separate process
Services in Cyprus
We fit the structure to the real business: who the owners are and where they live, where the company will be managed from, whether it has staff and clients in Cyprus, whether it needs VAT registration at once, and how profit will reach the owner.
Ltd incorporation
Name approval, Greek-language articles, form HE1 through a Cypriot lawyer, the registered office, director and secretary, and the Registrar of Companies entry.
Describe your task →Subsidiary Ltd or branch
We compare a subsidiary with registering a place of business of the foreign company (overseas company): liability, profit tax and the apostilled parent documents.
Describe your task →Beneficial owners and corporate changes
Beneficial-owner register within 90 days and the annual confirmation, change of director or secretary, moving the office, share transfers and new share issues.
Describe your task →Tax after the 2026 reform
15% corporate tax, company tax residence by management and control, SDC on dividends, VAT, and Ukraine–Cyprus treaty rates for a Ukrainian owner.
Describe your task →Accounting and reporting
IFRS financial statements, statutory audit or review, the annual return, the T.D.4 tax return, provisional tax on 31 July and 31 December, VAT returns.
Describe your task →Owner and team residence
A separate assessment: companies of foreign interests (BCS), Digital Nomad, permanent residence under Reg. 6(2), EU Blue Card, Startup Visa. An Ltd confers no status.
Describe your task →Cyprus by the statute
The rates, fees, thresholds and deadlines below are Cypriot law: consolidated statutes on cylaw.org, the Registrar of Companies, the state portal Business in Cyprus and the Migration Department, and the treaty text on zakon.rada.gov.ua. Our own fees are excluded: they depend on the scope and are set out in a written proposal.
| Item | Rule as of October 2026 | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Main form | Private company limited by shares (Ltd); the name ends in LIMITED or LTD. A private company needs at least 1 director, a public one at least 2 | Registrar; Cap.113 s. 170 |
| Name | €10 fee per proposed name, plus €20 for the expedited service; an approved name is held for 6 months | Registrar of Companies |
| Incorporation | €165 registry fee (€235 for a company without share capital), plus €100 expedited. Form HE1 is signed and sworn before the court by a Cypriot lawyer; the articles are signed in Greek | Registrar; Cap.113 s. 15(2) |
| Office and secretary | A registered office in Cyprus is mandatory and every company has a secretary. A sole director may also act as secretary only in a single-member private company | Cap.113 s. 171(1); Registrar |
| After incorporation | Apply for a tax number within 60 days; register as an employer with Social Insurance when hiring | Registrar, after incorporation |
| Beneficial owners | Details entered within 90 days of incorporation, changes within 45 days, annual confirmation from 1 October to 31 December; ownership threshold 25% plus one share | Registrar; Law 188(I)/2007 |
| Annual levy | The €350 annual fee is repealed from 2024 by Law 25(I)/2024; it remains payable only for years before 2024 | Registrar, annual fee |
| Branch (overseas company) | Register the place of business within 1 month, fee €380; the parent's articles with an apostille, translated into Greek if they are not in Greek or English | Registrar, overseas company |
| Corporate tax | 15% from 1 January 2026 (12.5% until 2025). Losses carry forward for 7 years. A company is resident if managed and controlled in Cyprus or incorporated there | ITL ss. 2, 4(2), 13 |
| Dividends | SDC 5% for a resident with domicile (17% on dividends from profits up to 2025 paid within 6 years). Non-residents pay no SDC, except recipient companies in low-tax (5%) or EU non-cooperative jurisdictions (17%). The 70% deemed distribution survives only for 2024–2025 profits | SDC ss. 3, 3Γ |
| VAT | 19%, reduced 9%, 5% and 3%. Registration is mandatory when taxable turnover exceeds €15,600 over 12 months; EU acquisitions above €10,251.61 a year | VAT Law 95(I)/2000; Business in Cyprus |
| Treaty with Ukraine | In force with the 2015 Protocol (effective 28 Nov 2019): dividends 5% for a 20% holding and €100,000 invested, otherwise 10%; interest 5%; royalties 5% or 10% | Protocol, zakon.rada.gov.ua |
| Audit | Audited IFRS statements; a review may replace the audit when turnover is up to €300,000 and assets up to €500,000 for two consecutive years (not for groups that consolidate) | Cap.113 s. 152 |
| Reporting | First annual return 18 months after incorporation, filed within 28 days, €20 fee, late penalty up to €150. The T.D.4 return with audited or reviewed accounts is due by 31 January of the second year after the tax year | Registrar; ACTL s. 5 |
| Citizenship by investment | Abolished: only applications filed by 30 Oct 2020 are examined. The investor permanent residence under Reg. 6(2) remains: from €300,000 plus €50,000 annual income | CRL s. 111A; Migration Department |
Last verified 9 October 2026.
How registration works
Form and shareholders
Private Ltd, public company or an overseas company branch. We check shareholders, directors, activity and how profit reaches the owner.
Name approval
An application to the Registrar of Companies with a €10 fee per option. An approved name is reserved for 6 months.
Articles and HE1
Articles in Greek, form HE1 from a Cypriot lawyer, HE2 with the office address, HE3 with the first directors and secretary. Foreign documents carry an apostille.
Registrar of Companies
Filed through e-filing or in person with the €165 fee. The company receives its number and certificate of incorporation.
UBO register
Beneficial-owner details within 90 days, changes within 45 days, annual confirmation between 1 October and 31 December.
TIN and VAT
A tax number within 60 days through the Tax For All portal. VAT registration follows the TIN and is mandatory above €15,600 of turnover.
Bank and employer
A bank file under AML rules and employer registration with Social Insurance. Opening the account is the bank's decision after its checks, so we never promise it.
Annual cycle
IFRS accounts with an audit or review, the annual return, provisional tax on 31 July and 31 December, the T.D.4 return by 31 January of the second year.
Dividends and the treaty
SDC depends on the recipient's residence and domicile. For an owner in Ukraine the treaty caps source tax at 5% or 10%.
Company and residence are separate procedures
Registering an Ltd gives the owner no right to live in Cyprus. Working in your own company runs through the companies-of-foreign-interests scheme (BCS): a salary from €2,500 gross a month, a contract of at least 2 years and conditions on the company itself. A remote worker may apply as a Digital Nomad with net income from €3,500 a month, within a cap of 500 permits. Investor permanent residence under Reg. 6(2) requires €300,000 invested and €50,000 annual income; it allows work only as a director of the company invested in. Citizenship by investment is abolished; naturalisation follows 7 years of residence and Greek at B1. Cyprus is in the EU and outside Schengen. Temporary protection for Ukrainians runs to 4 March 2027, and that time does not count towards citizenship.
How to form an Ltd in Cyprus
Lawyer and HE1, secretary, registry fees, 15% corporate tax, SDC, VAT and annual reporting.
Read →Ltd or branch, and founder residence
Subsidiary or overseas company, BCS, Digital Nomad, Reg. 6(2) permanent residence, Blue Card.
Read →The owner's tax residency
Where an owner who runs the company from another country pays tax.
Read →Frequently asked questions
Cyprus is an EU member state with 15% corporate tax from 2026, 19% VAT, a mandatory audit or review and a beneficial-owner register. A Cypriot company is tax resident in Cyprus when it is managed and controlled there or incorporated there, and it pays tax on its own profit. A resident owner without domicile (non-dom) pays no SDC on dividends, and Cyprus treaties cap withholding at source; each rule is checked against the actual structure.
Yes. A foreign individual or company may own a private Ltd. Registration requires a Cypriot lawyer who signs form HE1, a registered office in Cyprus, at least one director and a secretary. The articles are signed in Greek. The Registrar fee is €165 plus €10 for the name.
15% from 1 January 2026; the rate was 12.5% until 2025. Losses carry forward for 7 years. Dividends to a resident with domicile bear 5% SDC when paid from 2026 profits onward, and 17% when paid within 6 years from profits up to 2025.
Cyprus withholds no SDC on dividends to a non-resident individual; for recipient companies SDC applies only in low-tax (5%) and EU non-cooperative (17%) jurisdictions. The Ukraine–Cyprus treaty with the 2015 Protocol caps source tax at 5% or 10%. Ukrainian tax and CFC rules for a Ukrainian resident are assessed separately.
Residence is a separate procedure with the Migration Department. To work in your own company there is the companies-of-foreign-interests scheme (BCS) with a salary from €2,500 gross a month and conditions on the company itself; an investor can obtain permanent residence under Reg. 6(2), which allows work only as a director of the company invested in.
Yes, audited statements are mandatory for every company. From 2026 a company with turnover up to €300,000 and assets up to €500,000 for two consecutive years may replace the audit with a review by a statutory auditor. Groups that consolidate cannot use this option.
The programme is closed: only applications filed by 30 October 2020 are examined, and the provision was deleted from the law in 2025. Naturalisation requires 7 years of residence within the last 10 and Greek at B1; a fast track of 3–4 years applies only to employees of companies under the state business-attraction strategy.
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