Cyprus glossary · 2026 edition
Cyprus tax & legal glossary
Plain-English definitions of every Cyprus tax, legal, immigration and accounting term we use across the Zeno corpus. Bookmark this page — we update it whenever Cyprus law or practice changes.
1
- 183-day rulealso: 183 day rule
- The default Cyprus tax-residency test: spend more than 183 days in Cyprus in a calendar year and you are automatically Cyprus tax-resident. Read the full guide →
6
- 60-day rulealso: 60 day rule
- A Cyprus tax-residency route that qualifies you with just 60 days a year in Cyprus (instead of the standard 183 days), if you meet the other conditions (Cyprus home, Cyprus business/employment/directorship, ≤183 days in any other single country). The 2026 reform removed the prior 'not tax resident anywhere else' condition. Read the full guide →
A
- Article 20Ealso: Art. 20E, crypto tax
- The new Cyprus crypto tax regime effective 1 January 2026. Taxes qualifying crypto capital gains at a flat 8% for Cyprus tax residents who elect in. Read the full guide →
- Article 8(23A)also: 50% expat exemption, high-earner exemption
- A Cyprus personal-income-tax exemption that shields 50% of Cyprus employment income for up to 17 years for qualifying new residents, subject to a minimum-income threshold.
- ATADalso: EU Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive
- EU Directive that harmonises anti-avoidance rules across member states: CFC rules, interest-limitation, exit taxation, GAAR and hybrid-mismatch rules.
B
- Basic Package
- Zeno's €950 company registration tier. Covers incorporation, name reservation and UBO filings. No annual renewal fee. Suited to dormant or founder-operated companies. Read the full guide →
- BEPSalso: Base Erosion and Profit Shifting
- The OECD-led project to close international tax-planning gaps. Includes measures like Action 5 (harmful regimes), Action 7 (PE), Action 13 (TP documentation) and the Multilateral Instrument.
C
- CFCalso: Controlled Foreign Company, CFC rules
- Rules in most EU home countries (ATAD) that tax a resident shareholder on the undistributed profits of a foreign company they control — especially if that company has limited substance.
- CGTalso: Capital Gains Tax
- Cyprus CGT applies at 20% to gains from Cyprus immovable property and shares in companies holding such property. Shares of non-real-estate Cyprus companies are fully exempt.
- company secretary
- A statutorily required officer of a Cyprus company (Companies Law Cap. 113). Responsible for statutory filings, maintaining the statutory registers, and calling meetings. Most firms provide this as a nominee service.
- Cyprus Baralso: Cyprus Bar Association
- The regulator for Cyprus lawyers and law firms. Legal work delivered through Zeno is performed by independent Cyprus Bar-licensed advocates; Zeno itself is the brand and the single point of contact for clients.
D
- DDDalso: deemed dividend distribution
- A Cyprus tax rule that deemed undistributed profits distributed (and taxable) after two years. DDD was abolished for Cyprus non-dom residents in the 2026 reform.
- DTTalso: double tax treaty
- A bilateral treaty between Cyprus and another country that prevents double taxation and allocates taxing rights. Cyprus has 65+ active DTTs, including with all major EU states.
E
- Enterprise Package
- Zeno's €4,400 company registration tier. Everything in Standard plus nominee director services and a Cyprus corporate bank account — the structure needed for POEM in Cyprus without relocating personally. Read the full guide →
G
- GESYalso: GeSY, National Health System
- Cyprus General Healthcare System. Funded by contributions from employees (2.65%), employers (2.90%), self-employed (4%) and other income types, capped at €180,000 of total contribution base per year.
H
- HE32also: annual return
- The annual return filed with the Cyprus Registrar of Companies. Confirms directors, shareholders, registered office and share capital. Filed within 28 days of the AGM.
I
- ICPAC
- The Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus — the regulator for statutory auditors and accounting practitioners in Cyprus. Our audit work is performed by independent ICPAC-licensed auditors.
- IFRSalso: International Financial Reporting Standards
- The accounting standards Cyprus companies use to prepare statutory accounts. IFRS-for-SMEs is also permitted for companies meeting the size thresholds.
- IP Boxalso: IP Box regime, Cyprus IP Box
- A preferential tax regime that gives an 80% deduction on qualifying IP profits. Post-2026 corporate rate, the effective rate on qualifying IP income is approximately 3%. Read the full guide →
N
- nexus ratioalso: modified nexus approach
- The OECD formula (BEPS Action 5) that limits IP Box benefits to R&D genuinely done by the company. Calculated per asset as (qualifying expenditure × 1.30) ÷ overall expenditure, capped at 1.00.
- NIDalso: Notional Interest Deduction
- A Cyprus tax deduction on new equity capital, calculated on a reference rate (10-year government yield + 5% margin). Capped at 80% of taxable profit per year.
- nominee director
- A Cyprus-resident professional appointed to the board of a Cyprus company in place of the beneficial owner. Commonly used to satisfy the place-of-effective-management test and to access the 60-day rule.
- non-domalso: non-domiciled, non-dom status
- Cyprus non-domiciled status. Exempts worldwide dividend and interest income from Cyprus Special Defence Contribution (SDC) for 17 years, extendable to 27 years via two €250,000 five-year extensions. Read the full guide →
O
- OSSalso: One Stop Shop, IOSS
- EU VAT scheme that lets a single Cyprus VAT registration cover B2C sales to all EU consumers. IOSS covers imports up to €150. Cuts registration complexity for e-commerce sellers.
P
- participation exemptionalso: Cyprus participation exemption
- Cyprus tax relief that exempts gains on the sale of subsidiary shares (non-real-estate) from corporate tax at the holding level. Key tool in Cyprus holding structures. Read the full guide →
- PAYEalso: Pay As You Earn
- The Cyprus system for withholding personal income tax on employee salaries at source. Employers remit PAYE monthly using Form TD7 alongside social insurance and GESY contributions.
- PEalso: Permanent Establishment
- A fixed place of business (or dependent agent) through which a foreign enterprise is treated as taxable in a country. Cyprus applies the OECD Model Article 5 definition. Read the full guide →
- Pillar Twoalso: GloBE, 15% minimum tax
- OECD's global minimum tax framework. Applies a 15% effective tax rate to multinational groups with revenue over €750 million, via a top-up tax in each jurisdiction.
- Pink Slipalso: temporary residence permit
- The Cyprus temporary residence permit for non-EU nationals. Issued under various categories (Category F, Digital Nomad, Employment) and renewable annually. Read the full guide →
- POEMalso: place of effective management, management and control
- The place where a company's board makes strategic decisions. For Cyprus to tax a company as resident, POEM must be in Cyprus — usually evidenced by a Cyprus-resident majority board meeting physically in Cyprus.
R
- registered office
- The statutory Cyprus address of a company, filed with the Registrar of Companies. All official correspondence (tax, court, registry) is sent there. Must be an actual physical address in Cyprus.
S
- SDCalso: Special Defence Contribution
- Cyprus Special Defence Contribution — a separate tax on dividends, interest and rental income. 5% on dividends for Cyprus-domiciled residents from 2026; 0% for non-doms. Read the full guide →
- Standard Package
- Zeno's €2,600 company registration tier. Covers incorporation plus tax/VAT registration, registered office, company secretary and online corporate banking introduction. €1,650 annual renewal. Read the full guide →
T
- TD1also: personal income tax return
- Cyprus personal income tax return. Mandatory for every Cyprus tax resident with taxable income above the nil-rate band. Includes the non-dom declaration.
- TD4also: corporate tax return
- Cyprus corporate income tax return. Filed annually by every Cyprus-resident company. Must be accompanied by audited accounts (except for small-company review exceptions).
- TINalso: Tax Identification Number
- The unique taxpayer number issued by the Cyprus Tax Department. Required for every individual or company engaging in any taxable activity in Cyprus.
U
- UBOalso: Ultimate Beneficial Owner, beneficial owner
- The natural person who ultimately owns or controls a Cyprus company — defined as anyone holding more than 25% of shares or voting rights, or otherwise exercising control. Filed with the UBO Register.
V
- VIESalso: VAT Information Exchange System
- EU-wide database that records intra-EU B2B VAT-registered transactions. Cyprus VAT-registered businesses selling B2B cross-border must file monthly VIES recapitulative statements.
W
- Wegzugsteueralso: §6 AStG, German exit tax
- Germany's exit tax under §6 AStG. Taxes substantial shareholders (≥1%) on the deemed disposal of their shares on the day before they cease German tax residency. Read the full guide →
Y
- Yellow Slipalso: MEU1, MEU 1, registration certificate
- The Cyprus registration certificate for EU, EEA and Swiss citizens staying more than 3 months. Proves legal residence; required to access GESY, employment and banking. Read the full guide →
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