New members of the Cyprus forum, introduce yourselves here - 2019

Hi

I'm Chris, I'm just starting the first phase of my move to Cyprus and have rented a place in Paphos in Regina Gardens.

In the coming year my partner and  I will be out a lot and this is to set up our residency ahead of moving full time next year. I need to set up tax residency in Cyprus and MEU1 etc along with getting a social security number and getting utilities set up. I think it's just electric and broadband as the rest is either in with the rent or staying in the landlord's name.

We'll be looking to make new friends and get advice along the way

I’m currently negotiating a long term rental on an apartment at Palm Bay View, Kalograia in the north, with a view to moving this Autumn.

Hi Everyone,
Myself and my husband are looking to relocate to Larnaca  hopefully at the end of this year fingers crossed. We have our interview for the MEU1 application at the end of July.

If anybody has any advice on what to expect at the interview and would like to share this that would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for taking the time to read this and I look forward to any updates

Good morning lovely people ! We are thinking to move to North Cyprus in upcoming year ! We are small family of 3 from Norfolk UK
We have 7 year old son that is already started to learn Turkish lol !
We are going in August for little spy trip try to find property for long term rent and do our research on schools
Any advice and experience living in north Cyprus will be much appreciated
Have a lovely day everyone ❤️

good luck with your moves everyone we love it here and dont regret making the move

Hi , we are a family of 4 , my sons are 8 and 4, we are looking to move to paphos in the next few months, my mum and dad live in anarita but are moving to tala, I need advice and guidance on quite a few things .
Which area is best to bring up children so they make friends , socializing, parks ECT
Which schools are best for English children without paying?
Do I need to register them anywhere before applying for schools
How soon do I apply for yellow slip
Do you need a job to be able to get your social number
Do I keep my English bank account and make national insurance contributions
Will my children still receive a national insurance number

The list goes on , any information would be greatly appreciated, thanks 😁

Good luck on your move.

am sure there are  more knowledgable people here with children who can answer the schools  and child questions

as regards the Yellow slip (ARC-Alien Registration Certificate)  you have 90 days in which to apply for the appointment and as long as you have that appointment then you are usually ok if your stay exceeds the 90 days .. when you all go to immigration with your passports to get the appointment they will give you a ticked list of document requirements - provide the originals and copies...

As far as I am aware you do not need a job to get a social / tax number... everyone is obliged to get a tax number (TIN) and submit an annual tax return online whether you have income or not  - even a zero return is necessary. Just call into the tax office in Paphos and register for tax and online access.

https://taxisnet.mof.gov.cy/login.jsp

Keep the UK HMRC and DWP informed of your move.. along with your banks nsurance companies and any private pension providers you may have .... you can still keep your ISA's if you have them dont give them up its just you cant contribute more to them whilst not being resident in UK...

as for NI contributions i dont know of any scenario where you would keep paying them whilst not being resident in UK.. maybe others can guide you 

always keep your UK bank accounts, savings accounts cards etc ... never give them up.. they are difficult to get as a non-uk resident once you've given them up.

If you are working here you will be subject to tax (Personal Allowances €19500 each tax free per year) and social contributions (1.65% of declared income this yr and 2.65% next year and onwards at present rates .. GESY (Cyprus NHS) has just started here so you will all be eligible for that.. you will need yellow slips to register at the local clinic or hospital of your choice - just take the slip and yourselves to either clinic or hospital and voila they will help you register

https://www.gesy.org.cy/sites/Sites?d … ge=home-en

That's great toon thank you for the help , once we have the yellow slip and register at local hospital do we still need health insurance?

I think the contributions to the national insurance is go you don't have gaps in them , which enables you to get state pension , I am only 28 so a long way away yet lol but I'm just trying to get me head around everything works , if I stay in Cyprus till I retire will I get UK pension or Cyprus pension , thanks

No

plus in the meantime your UK ehic will also cover you as visitors for the first 90 days for emergenct treatment

you can buy your missing years - (max 7years I think - about £700 per yr)   and you would get a UK pension depending on and in accordance with the paid years you have amassed - but if you work here you will pay into the cyprus system and get a pension here too.

My understanding is that you can get a UK pension with a minimum of 15 years of contributions if there are gaps you can top it up. I know people in Austria which have done so.

https://www.gov.uk/voluntary-national-i … tributions

Let's hope there still is a state pension in 40 years?

Thanks again toon . Hahaha that's the thing isn't it , weather there is a pension in 40 years or not , a few things have been cleared up thanks,
One last thing for you guys , my partner has a pension now ( he is 32) it is a gip from the armed forces compensation scheme, will he have to get that paid into a Cyprus bank account? Where does he have to declare this income in Cyprus . Thanks

if its a gov pension then  it must be taxed in UK but you can mitigate and offset that tax and income in  your tax return here taking advantage of the better tax allowances .

Opt for the dual taxation treaty between uk and cyprus  - its about €80 each one off payment to do so -and do it when you register for tax here takes a few weeks to get it through but its well worth it

Ok , this is the part I don't really understand , so every year in Cyprus you declare how much you have earned for each year , when and where do you do this , and is that as well as your employer paying your social 😄

oh and you are not forced to pay any UK income into Cyrpus at all...
as long as you can prove what income you have to support yourselves etc  - its part of the process for immigration anyway...

I know its an important matter (along with savings & investments etc) to consider very carefully (especially now with all the uncertainty) but I keep my UK income in UK until the rate improves....  am not saying you should as everyone has different views and circumstances..

but look at the options and take some pukka advice froma professional if you think it may be worth it

as for tax there is a good tax professional here in paphos elizabeth welch.. she is knowledgable and knows the system well.... we used her initially and she showed us how to understand the tax system and we now complete our own tax returns.. well worth the initial consultation fee ...

you do this every year online once you have registered for tax and registered for the online taxisnet service = all done online now

for example 2018 tax return were submitted this year 2019...... 2017 were done last year

if you work then the social contributions for healthcare etc  and tax is usually deducted at source by your employer and will be shown as such on your payslip

Great thanks , things have to be narrowed down for me haha , you've been a great help , just need to understand the process for the boys now 😎

same process for immigration as far as I am aware ...

I think you may need to do same at tax too to get a TIN

i will find out

ok just had word with a mate of mine with kids of school age and older.... you dont  need to get tax id etc as they will be covered by the parents working / employed

Apologies Sim I shouldve spotted this but got carried away

How do I start a new one ? 🙈 Apologies

go to forum  paphos post new

Hii all am cedric dahdouh from Lebanon planning to move to Cyprus and find a job anyone could help me thank you

Hi all

My name is Zyrah, currently living in Drogheda but moving to Belfast next week as my husband is transferring offices. We are taking early retirement in mid August 2022 and then moving to Paphos.

My husband and I know the area reasonably well as we have been regular visitors for the last 12 years.

Hey wonderful people!

My wife, baby and I are considering making the move to Cyprus next year. We're currently on holiday here, staying in Mandria and sadly tomorrow is our last day in this beautiful country. While here visited a few of the expat hotspots in the Paphos region and they unfortunately weren't for us.

However, we stumbled across Latchi and thought it was incredible, so we're planning on coming back in March to stay there. I spoke to a few locals and they said that Latchi wouldn't be a great place to live longterm mainly due to it being a dead zone in the winter months. We've seen some stunning longterm rentals that fit the bill (1000 p/m for a villa with private pool and garden) in Latchi and would love it if anyone could throw in their views or point us in the right direction for an alternative location.

Thanks so much for your help in advance!

Hello Expat Community,

Me and my wife are seriously planinng to move to Cyprus. Probably at the middle of 2020.
I am a german guy, who left Germany 11 years ago in the age of 28, living in the Philippines since, found a mostly nice girl and now i have a family with two little kids. But i feel its time to move again. Since im also selfemployed i got my eyes on Cyprus. I never been there, but everything what i read or see, sounds really good.

There is actually only one last concern. But i will open another thread for that question.
Just a short one here. Is anybody in this community from the Phlippines? My wife is concerned, that she will be the only Filipina there.

Greetings
Kevin

There are quite a few Philipinos here in the paphos district.

Hi guys am new on the forum , Am planning to come to Cyprus by  January 2020

Hello,

I am Serge I am Lebanese and i am married.

It has always been a dream of mine to work and live in Cyprus, but i am finding it hard to get any solid information about living there or even choosing where to live in Cyprus.

I made this account in 2017 and forgot about it now as i got married me and my wife are very interested in reviving this dream so i came back to this platform and updated it again to get any help with this project

Thank you

best bet is to ask specific questions

Hi I am Phil Carole is my wife
We have been planning to move to Cyprus to the Polis area for about a year. We think it will finally happen in Nov 2020 moving into a rental in Latchi for a few months while we search for a long term (1+1 year) same area.
We will have lots of questions as 2020 gets underway so thanks in advance for any advice we ask for

Welcome Phil and Carole  - just ask away when you are ready

Hi all,

Paul & Deanna currently living in Malta but looking to move to Cyprus next year (2020). Early retiree from uk.

Will be in Cyprus for Xmas this year and hope to recce rental locations Paphos/Pissouri area.

Questions.
Will estate agents be open during Xmas week?

Any recommendations for shipping household goods ( not furniture ) from Malta ?

Is the bureaucracy as bad as in Malta re residency,tax,motor vehicle etc?

Thanks in advance.

Paul

we also came from Malta (5 years ago having spent 6 yrs there) but sold everything and bought new here... It was just so much easier..... best to place a fresh subject on the forum for direct and targeted answers

Thanks Toon,

Thought the name was familiar I followed your advice from the Malta forum when we got here almost 6 yrs ago. Very helpful !

Paul

Hi  everybody

We've had a house in Cyprus for 10 years+ and we're now looking to move over (more) permanently so we're trying to sort out the MEU1 requirements. I think we've got most things covered, just a couple of queries

1 - do we still need health insurance now the GESY scheme has started?
2 - also, we DO have title deeds for our house, presumably a copy of these is needed in place of the contract for sale

Any other tips would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks Chris

best to start a fresh thread rather than ask questions on the welcome page..

1.... However to be able to apply for GESY you need to be legally resident.. with an MEU1 as a minimum.. there is a waiting list at the moment especially as things are getting close to full on Brexit and the requirements may change once brits become TCNs  ..... you cannot use an EHIC as proof of healthcare.. so I suspect you should take private healthcare (the cheap policy for about €170 per yr) for the first year that will give you time to get "legal" and then apply for GESY ..... NB you have 90-120 days to get "legal"

2....not sure if title deeds would be accepted but i know they will accept proof of purchase invoices.....