Business Support Center (BSC)

General Information

The Business Support Center (BSC) commenced its operation on 26/05/2025.

The operation of the BSC was approved by the Council of Ministers on 12/3/2025 and comes to meet an essential need of the business community, enhancing the competitiveness and growth of the economy.

It is an evolution, with expanded responsibilities, of the Business Facilitation Unit whose operation had been approved by the Council of Ministers on 21/12/2021 and which came into force on 01/01/2022.

The BSC, is a partnership of key services, with the aim of providing a more direct, efficient and coordinated service to Cypriot and foreign investors, as the new Centre will operate as a common service provider and will consist of:

  • the Strategic Development Sector (SDS) of the Department of Town Planning and Housing (DTP&H);
  • the Business Facilitation Unit (BFU) of the Ministry of Energy, Commerce and Industry;
  • Invest Cyprus;
  • contact points with the departments involved in the licensing sector.

The BSC will be the first point of contact for investors, Cypriot and non-Cypriot, wishing to do business or expand their business activities in Cyprus.

Link : Elena Damianou reveals key elements of the new Business Support Center

  1. Information and Personalized Guidance
  • Point of contact regarding the establishment and licensing of businesses, tailored to the type and needs of each investment.
  • Guidance and information on required permits as well as the possibility of inclusion in the fast-track licensing mechanism, based on the provisions of the Law on the Facilitation of Strategic Development Projects.
  • Assistance with registration in the Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property, Employers’ Register of the Social Insurance Services, and Tax Department Registers.
  1. Registration in the Register of Companies with Foreign Interests
  1. Single point for Energy Projects
  • Provision of information and facilitation of the licensing procedures for projects related to renewable energy sources, energy storage, zero-emission technologies, critical electricity transmission infrastructure, and projects funded by European or state programs.
  • Information on funding opportunities.
  • Operation of the Digital One-Stop Shop online platform.
  • Information point for Energy Communities.
  1. One-Stop Service Center (Point of Single Contact (PSC) Cyprus)
  • Support and guidance for the establishment and operation of businesses in the services sector.
  • Guidance for the creation of businesses in the services sector.
  • Cross-border provision of services on a temporary basis.
  1. Licensing of Strategic Development Projects, in accordance with the provisions of the Law on the Facilitation of Strategic Development Projects (Law No. 84(I)/2023).

Please note the following, 

The initial investment may be a deposit, by the shareholder or collectively by the company’s shareholders, of an amount of €200,000 in an account held by the company in a credit institution licensed by the Central Bank (in these cases, payment institutions are not included). Alternatively, the company can submit appropriate certificates as evidence of an investment amounting to €200,000, for the purposes of operating the business in Cyprus (e.g. bank statement at the time of deposit of the amount or proof of investment, invoices/receipts for purchase of office space and/or office equipment/machinery, it is noted that all receipts must be on the company’s name). Any form of investment must have taken place up to six (6) months prior to the date of submission of the application.

The initial investment criterion of €200.000 is applicable in all the cases described below. 

Eligible businesses (e.g. registered local companies (HE) and registered branches of overseas companies (AE)) must meet one of the following criteria:

1. Majority share: the majority of the company’s shares are owned by third-country nationals (e.g. third-country shareholder/s collectively possess a nominal capital share 50% plus (+)).

2. Minority share: in case that, the percentage, of the company’s shares, owned by a third-country national is equal or less than 50%, the company is eligible if that, foreign, minority shareholder’s share  has a value of at least €200.000 (e.g. the minority shareholder’s 5% nominal capital share has a value of at least €200.000). This requirement is additional to the initial investment of €200.000 as clarified above. In case of choosing the procedures of the Department of the Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property (DRCIP) in order to prove the relevant requirement, namely “Increase of Authorised Share Capital” (HE14) and/or “Reporting the Allotment of Shares” (HE12), the forms must be accompanied by the corresponding certificate of cash deposit (e.g. SWIFT, company bank account statement).

3. Public companies registered on any recognised stock exchange.

4. Companies of international activities (formerly off-shore), which operated before the change of regime, whose data are held by the Central Bank.

5. Cypriot shipping companies.

6. Cypriot high-tech/innovation companies*.

7. Cypriot pharmaceutical companies or Cypriot companies active in the fields of biogenetics and biotechnology.

8. Companies of whom the majority of the total share capital is owned by persons who have acquired Cypriot citizenship by naturalization based on economic criteria, provided that they prove that the conditions under which they were naturalized continue to be met.
9. Cypriot Private Institutes of Tertiary (Higher) Education licensed by the Ministry of Education, Sport and Youth.

* An enterprise qualifies as ‘High Technology Company’ if:

(a) it is already established and has a presence in the market, and

(b) it has a high level or experimental R&D intensity, and

(c) it developed product/s that fall into one of the following categories: products related to aviation and space industry, computers, information and telecommunication technology (ICT), pharmaceuticals, biomedical, research and development equipment, electrical machinery, chemicals, non-electrical machinery.

Businesses wishing to transfer their operations or expand their activities in Cyprus, must follow the following procedure :

a)  Submit the Foreign Interests e-Application (at the bottom of the page).

The e-form requests a letter of expression of interest for the establishment or expansion of their activities in Cyprus. The “Letter of Intent” should include a brief description of the company’s profile, activities (nature of business as stated in the Articles of Association), number of staff, expansion plans and  be supported by the necessary documents required in the e-form (Annex I, only copies of the certificates are required in electronic form).

b) The applicant is notified on the receipt of the application and of consecutive changes in the status of the application by email.

c) If the applicant is eligible and the application fulfills the requirements the registration to the Register of Companies with Foreign Interests will be completed in no more than ten (10) business days from the date of duly submitting  the e-form.

d) A confirmation letter of the registration will be sent by email.

1

Certificate of Incorporation (signed and stamped by the Department of Registrar of Companies & Intellectual Property (DRCIP))
2 Certificate of Registered Office Address (signed and stamped by the DRCIP)
3 Directors’ Certificate (signed and stamped by the DRCIP)
4 Shareholders’ Certificate (signed and stamped by the DRCIP)

In the case where legal entities (e.g. local or foreign companies, trusts) are the shareholders, a shareholders’ structure diagram presenting the whole chain of ownership up to the final owners (natural persons who are the ultimate beneficial owners) should be declared and documented.
5 “Ultimate Beneficial Owner (UBO) Search” Certificate by the Companies Section of the DRCIP (must reflect the current UBO state) through GOV.CY
6 Ultimate Beneficial Owners’ valid passport(s)
7 Articles of Association of the company (signed and stamped by the DRCIP)
8 Immovable property title/deed or a purchase agreement or rental agreement (at least 12-month duration) for the business premises of the company. Please note that, business premises must be separate from any kind of residence (separate from a shareholder’s residential property).

Regarding rental agreements: Sublease documents and shared-spaces agreements are acceptable given that the full details/addresses of both parties are included in the agreement/document submitted (office number, floor, street, street number, area).

Please also note that, a rental agreement must be duly stamped if its value equals or exceeds the annual amount of €5,000.
9 Latest Audited Financial Statements (AFS) for existing companies already operating in Cyprus (AFS for 2022-2023)
10 Tax Clearance Certificate for the company, for existing companies already operating in Cyprus
11 Deposited amount of at least €200.000, supported by a bank SWIFT or other equivalent document, which proves that the sole shareholder/one or more of the company’s shareholders, has/have transferred the required amount from abroad to the company’s corporate bank account in Cyprus.

Purchase of offices and/or equipment for a total amount of €200,000 are also considered eligible as proof of investment. Purchase invoices and other equivalent documents must be submitted as proof.

Any form of investment must have taken place up to six (6) months prior to the date of submission of the application.

Α nominal capital increase of €200,000 (more information in “Eligibility Criteria”, Criterion 2.) is acceptable if accompanied by the corresponding certificate of the financial transaction (e.g. supported by SWIFT document from the bank and bank statement). 

 

Business Support Center  (BSC)
5-6 Kinira str.,
1102 Nicosia

Email: bfu@meci.gov.cy 

Contact information for enquiries regarding :

  • BSC Policy & Registration of Companies with Foreign Interests :

Mrs. Katerina Solomou
Tel.: +357 22867193
Email: ksolomou@meci.gov.cy 

Mr. Christos Michaelides
Tel. :+357 22409318
Email: cmichaelides@meci.gov.cy

  • Renewable Energy Sources (RES) Projects :

Mr. Iosif Spyrides
Tel.: +357 22409385
Email: ispyrides@meci.gov.cy 

Mr. Christos Gogakis
Tel. :+357 22867203
Email: cgogakis@meci.gov.cy 

Online Application for Registration as a Foreign Interests Company
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