Cyprus’ future amendments to the law on investment citizenship

Currently, according to the process of deprivation of citizenship announced at the end of last year for investments of 26 people, no proceedings have been undertaken. This is due to the fact that the articles of the relevant law (revocation of a passport) do not cover cases of deprivation of citizenship acquired for investment.

A statement by the Council of Ministers states that the Ministers of the Interior and Justice will soon meet with the Attorney General to agree on the amendments. Most likely, a decision will be made to amend the relevant legislation to cover cases of naturalization of investments, so that these 26 people, by decision of the Council of Ministers, can be placed under the procedure for revoking citizenship.

Of the additional checks carried out, no other cases of naturalized Cypriot investors have been found who have committed crimes sufficient to deprive them of their Cypriot citizenship. Of course, the control was not finally completed, and the data may change. At the same time, the Council of Ministers recalls that after checking those who have acquired Cypriot citizenship through investment, those who received a permanent residence permit in Cyprus as part of the relevant investment program will be checked.

At the European level, the creation of a common set of control measures for countries offering such investment programs seems delayed. At the beginning of 2019, the European Commission created a committee consisting of experts in the field of naturalization to study the risks of investing in naturalization programs, to develop security measures, including risk management procedures that take into account money laundering, tax evasion and corruption.

Source:http://www.cylaw.org/nomoi/enop/non-ind/2002_1_141/index.html https://www.naftemporiki.gr/story/1556549