Governor of the Central Bank of Cyprus Constantinos Herodotou has spoken of a new culture of compliance in Cyprus banks on anti-money laundering since 2013 and that progress so far is beginning to be recognised abroad.

Herodotou was addressing the 9th Nicosia Economic Congress on “the Cyprus Economy the way forward.”

According to the Central Bank Governor “there has been tremendous progress in the post crisis years to restructure our economy and our banking sector and to enhance the prospects of a brighter future for the citizens of our country.

“GDP growth has been restored,” he noted, adding that “we consider it sustainable because it is very broad based.” “There is no single reliance on any one sector,” he said.

According to Herodotou, “this is much better than what drove GDP growth in the pre-crisis years.” This, he added, “is also widely recognised but we still have work to do relating mainly to legacy issues in order to strengthen our gains further.”

At the same time, he acknowledged that “there is also no doubt that there are significant interactions between the challenges we are facing and the effective participation of the Central Bank in eurosystem policy formulation.”

“As the new governor I am fully aware of the responsibility I am undertaking to deal with these issues,” he said and pledged that together with his colleagues, “we will give our best to achieve these goals in close cooperation with all the relevant authorities and institutions in Cyprus, Europe and internationally.”  

Referring to NPLs Herodotou said that there has been “tremendous progress” during the last years.

At their peak, he noted, NPLs were roughly 28 billion euros whereas now there are around 11 billion euros in the banking sector.

This, he said, “is a significant reduction, especially when compared to the size of the GDP of the country”, adding that “the reduction is almost equal to 90% of our GDP”.

The Central Bank Governor pointed out however that “there is still a significant amount of legacy NPLs that we have to dealt with in order to bring the relevant rations at the threshold levels required.”

Herodotou said that with the legislative changes approved by the Parliament last year the banks “now have a complete range of options or tools they can use to deal more effectively with NPLs.” He further noted that various joint ventures between Cyprus banks and specialist loan servicers should also start delivering results within 2019.”

Since 2013-2014, he said, “the banking sector has also been enhancing the anti-money laundering and counter terror financing efforts.”  It is clear, he stressed, “that a new culture of compliance is being established at the Cyprus banks.”

The Central Bank Governor also spoke of anti-money laundering efforts pointing out that they “are beginning to be recognised abroad.” This, he explained, is due to better cooperation between Cyprus authorities and banks with foreign authorities and banks and to the “coordinated and targeted effort initiated by the Central Bank of Cyprus, the Association of Cyprus Banks, the banks themselves, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.”

This effort, he explained, “aims to inform our partners and stakeholders of the progress made so far but has also enabled us to open and strengthen international relationships that will allow closer and better cooperation against money laundering and terrorist financing.”

"I truly believe that this effort and project is a great example of coordination and cooperation between Cyprus Authorities and entities and shows that we can achieve a lot when we work together on common objectives," he said.
 
He added that “there will be other initiatives” by the Central Bank in the future.

Source: StockWatch

Deputy Minister for Tourism Savvas Perdios expects prices of travel packages from the UK to Cyprus that have plummeted already by 10% - 15% this year, to drop even further in 2020, as a result of the six-month extension of the Brexit process, with which he is not pleased.
 
In an interview with the Cyprus News Agency (CNA), Perdios said that 2019 would be a difficult year for tourism in Cyprus and that losses from the British and the German market would not be covered.
 
Perdios referred to the new strategy for tourism for the next decade which is being prepared, saying it would be divided into short, medium- and long-term actions and it will be ready within the next two months.
 
Invited to elaborate on the basic pillars of the strategy, he said that considering the demographics of Europe, where 50% of the residents will be 50 or even close to 60 years old in the next decade, one of the goals is to target visitors from other age groups, whereas families, another basic category of visitors for Cyprus, will also remain important for the island’s tourism industry. He added that particular emphasis would be placed to the so called “short breaks”, that is short visits of three or four days in duration from countries of the wider Eastern Mediterranean region, following the Government’s bilateral and trilateral agreements signed with them. He also noted that another goal is to attract visitors from long distant countries such as the US, Canada, Korea, Japan and China that like to travel in the region for two or three weeks and visit more than one country, by utilizing flights or flight schedules of countries in the Eastern Mediterranean.
 
At the same time, he stressed that in order to develop these markets, Cyprus should put particular emphasis on special forms of tourism: health and wellness tourism, rehabilitation, accessible tourism, gastronomy tourism, culture tourism, casino tourism, wedding tourism, mountain tourism, and therefore offer a wide variety of experiences to the visitor. Targeting, Perdios said, is very important if Cyprus is to lengthen its holiday season. “We want to keep the sun and the sea as our basic product, but in order to lengthen the season and bring tourism to other areas besides the sea front, we need to target differently in terms of nationalities, demographics and special products”.
 
Since the targeting has been announced, he explained, the Deputy Ministry shall prepare an action plan for the next decade. “I believe it will be ready in the next two months, we will be in a position to announce it to the stakeholders at that stage and carry out a consultation again”, said the Deputy Minister, adding that the action plan will be divided into a short term period (2019 – 2021), a medium term period (2022-2024) and a long term period (2025-2030).
 
According to the Deputy Minister all the actions of the medium- and long-term plan must fall within the environmental study that has to be carried out in continuation of the national tourism strategy legislation, whereas the short-term actions have to do with marketing, branding, targeting and therefore they can be implemented immediately.
 
Asked which could be the biggest obstacles in the implementation of the new plan, Perdios said that it is very important to be in agreement with stakeholders in the tourism industry, noting that there is a wider understanding with them. He also referred to difficulties concerning the medium-term plan and especially issues related to landscaping, improving lighting on coasts, adoption of new legislation for leisure centers or theme parks and amendments to current legislation.
 
The Deputy Minister told CNA that 2019 will be indeed a difficult year in many aspects. He cited Germany’s slow economic growth and noted that Brexit causes insecurity to British travelers, as a result of which Cyprus has been losing ground. He pointed out that messages from the Russian market are more positive and arrivals from that country are projected to reach last year’s numbers, but added that “this does not mean that any loss from the British or the German market will be covered. We hope that we will be close to last year’s numbers. We will be happy if we achieve that”.
 
In terms of future arrivals, the Deputy Minister pointed out that “with correct and cautious targeting, marketing and changing of Cyprus’ branding, countries of the central and northern Europe will respond”. He added that the Deputy Ministry would like to see the new branding launched before next year’s tourism exhibitions that open in March in an attempt to reverse the impression that Cyprus is merely a sun and sea destination.
 
Asked how is Cyprus going to be affected by the extension of Brexit until 31 October, Perdios said the extension “was something that I am not pleased with” and this is because “we already have lost valuable ground”. The extension, according to him, will help to increase reservations for this year, but prices have already taken a hit, because of the uncertainty around Britain’s exit from the EU that increased pressure from tour operators for lower prices. “We expect that prices in Cyprus for tourist packages will record a decline of 10-15% and this has happened because the private sector had to offer discounts so that we could hope that we would attract approximately the same number of visitors as last year. That was the cost we had to pay to maintain the same number of visitors”.
 
As a result, tourism revenue will be affected, he said. “While we cannot be accurate about the final number of arrivals at the end of the season, we can say with certainty that there will be a drop in per capita spending for sure, since packages will be cheaper than in previous years. And the fact that this period has been prolonged until October it essentially means that there will be a decline in prices in 2020 as well, as tour operators, especially from Britain, are now starting to prepare their packages for 2020”, Perdios said. He also added that they already get messages that pressure from tour operators on prices will continue. Soon, he pointed out, we will be talking about difficulties in 2020 as well.
 
Regarding flight connectivity, the Deputy Minister said that there are a lot of flights to and from Cyprus, but added that what is missing at the moment is a direct flight connecting Cyprus with France and Germany. “We are working on this and we continuously try to increase competitiveness either with new airlines or with more flights from the same companies. If we compare the current situation with previous years there has been serious progress, but since we want to develop new markets, such as the Middle East, we will work very hard in consultation with the Ministry of Transport and Hermes Airports, to attract these airlines and let them know that Cyprus is an all year round destination which is what they are interested in”.

Source: StockWatch

Crucial developments for the Mediterranean island’s energy sector are expected this week as the next steps regarding hydrocarbon deposits discovered offshore Cyprus are decided.

That’s why separate negotiations are ongoing with visiting top-ranking representatives from French energy giant Total, Italy’s Eni, the ‘Aphrodite’ plot consortium of Noble-Shell-Delek and with ExxonMobil’s Vice President-Business Development Donald Bagley.

Since Monday, Ministry of Energy officials began long and hard negotiations with high-level delegations from Total and Eni. The talks focus on two aspects – the first concerning the final terms of the contract for the allocation of research and exploitation rights at block 7.

Insiders told Phileleftheros that the French-Italian consortium proposes an “aggressive” drilling plan in that plot, to take place towards the end of 2019 and beginning of 2020.  Amongst others, Nicosia is pushing for a rise in the “premium” the consortium will provide the government with after the signing of the contracts.

The other aspect of the negotiations focuses on the government’s decision whether to allow changes in the rights of block 8 which is now owned by Eni and looks like agreement has been reached.  This means that Total will also take part in the drilling with a scheduled plan already in place.

On Tuesday, intense and difficult negotiations began with the Noble-Shell-Delek delegation aiming to reach agreement on changes in the contract for the exploitation and revenue sharing of ‘Aphrodite’ deposits, so that the plot’s development and subsequent exports to Egypt begin. Phileleftheros has information that the two sides are bridging differences over their positions which have been stated and negotiated at length during previous meetings as well as through several teleconferences that have been carried out.

In another development, ExxonMobil’s Donald Bagley who recently replaced Tristan Asprey is in Cyprus since Monday. And the fact that his working visit to Cyprus is among the first since taking up this position shows that he considers the drilling plans offshore Cyprus of utmost importance, according to insiders. He has already met with the energy sector’s state leadership, as well as with representatives of services etc.

Source: InCyprus

The House finance committee on Monday released €1.4m that will be used to hire a specialised firm to carry out enhanced due diligence on people who apply for Cypriot citizenship as part of the island’s investment programme.

Cyprus has been heavily criticised over its citizenship-by-investment programme, which the EU said lacked transparency and posed a money laundering risk.

House finance committee chairman Angelos Votsis said hiring a firm to carry out enhanced due diligence would allay concerns and enable Cyprus to respond to accusations aimed at ruining the island’s reputation abroad.

Cyprus acknowledged the existence of problematic cases and unveiled a set of reforms in August last year.

The reforms doubled the length of time for assessing applications and introduced an annual cap of 700 on the number of passports for sale.

Also, private sector agents are now accredited by and answerable to a Supervision and Control Committee.

The agents are listed on a public register and are obliged to abide by a code of conduct that requires them to submit a “report of the findings of due diligence review” for every individual they support for citizenship.

In January, the European Commission warned that programmes of EU states, including Cyprus, to sell passports and visas to wealthy foreigners could help organised crime groups infiltrate the bloc and raise the risk of money laundering, corruption and tax evasion.

The warning is contained in the first report the EU executive has produced over the multi-billion-dollar industry of so-called “investment migration”, which allows rich individuals to buy citizenship or residence in countries that put them on sale.

Although legal, these schemes are sometimes run in opaque ways and without sufficient checks on those who acquire passports and visas, the commission said, mostly raising concerns about the programmes in Malta and Cyprus.

Source: CyprusMail

When it comes to investing in real estate, the Cypriot market is considered to be an increasingly attractive investment destination, which has been gaining more and more importance over the past 15 years. 

We should now concentrate to establish Cyprus as a transparent, easy, safe and straightforward country to invest in. 

– The real estate market is moving in cycles and consists of several stages, expansion, stagnation and contraction. Cyprus is now in an up-market phase of the cycle in all market segments.

For several years, the housing sector has been continuously recording the demand that is two times higher than the new offer.

Large Complexes with 40 or more units, which are also the primary choice of local but mainly foreigner buyers, imply a phased construction that carries a price increase of an average of 5 percent with each new phase, which motivates buyers to opt for purchases at the earliest phases of the complex, because it takes 2 to 3 years on average for the completion of the construction of the entire complex, and the value of the property purchased at the beginning means there is an increase in the value of this property by as much as 20 percent.

On the other hand, the activity in the part of the retail market where we have about 180,000 square meters of malls currently under design or construction is also impressive, and it will increase the total offer of such space by almost 50 percent within the following two years.

A similar situation exists in the office space market, where record levels of demand are also being recorded, creating the needs for new business buildings, keeping rent levels very high – so the investment risk needs to be reduced.

– The relatively inelastic offer and the fact that, in relation to the demand growth at this moment, the offer takes a few years to respond to it with a specific product, are precisely the reasons why real estate investment is riskier than investing in other forms of assets.

In order to reduce the potential risk, investors must try to anticipate trends in parts of the market in which they want to invest and to assess how and in which way the fundamental economic indicators will flow on one hand, and, on the other hand, how will the supply and demand flow on the part of the real estate market which is interesting to them.

In other words, the excess supply of a real estate type may result in a fall in prices, especially if it coincides with a negative economic environment. 

It is desirable to consult experts who are engaged in this business, so that they can assess from a professional point of view whether the real estate has the potential for improvement and, as such, be adapted for a wider circle of buyers or tenants – it should be noted that, in all likelihood, Cyprus is competing with other EU countries such as Malta, Greece or Portugal with its offer and quality of construction.

Source: Financial Mirror

House prices in Cyprus rose by an annual 1.6% in the last quarter of the previous year, the Statistical Service announced on Thursday.
 
According to a preliminary estimate of the Statistical Service, the House Price Index (HPI) in the fourth quarter of 2018 stood at 106,95 units.
 
“Compared to the third quarter of 2018, the HPI increased by 3.5% while compared to the Index of the corresponding quarter of 2017, the Index increased by 1.6%”, said Cystat.

Source: Stockwatch

The discovery of a new gas field by ExxonMobil and Qatar Petroleum has given a new impetus to Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone, the Chairwoman of the Cyprus Hydrocarbons Company (CHC), Toula Onoufriou, said on Tuesday, after handing over to the President of the Republic a report on the first five years of CHC.
 
“In this report we have listed the principles and the vision of the Board of Directors, which formed the basis for a solid development and course of the company based on the quality of our human resources, professionalism and the best international standards” Onoufriou told the press after her meeting with President Nicos Anastasiades.
 
She said that they highlighted the main fields to which the CHC has contributed substantially with its expertise and the actions it has taken in the hydrocarbons sector in Cyprus, always in cooperation with the Energy Ministry and all the other relevant bodies.
 
She added that they made suggestions for further empowerment and better use of the CHC within an improved broader framework of operation in order to do the best for the country in cooperation with other institutions.
 
“The CHC will be present to contribute with professionalism and its expertise to all developments” she noted.
 
Asked about the challenges facing the CHC, Onoufriou said that Cyprus has taken significant steps in the hydrocarbons sector and that the latest discovery of “Glafkos” gas field has given a new impetus.
 
Now, she explained, negotiations between Cyprus and Egypt on the sale of the gas of the Aphrodite field to one of Egypt’s two terminals have reached an advanced stage and added that they are also expecting the development of the negotiations with the consortium in block 12 (Noble Energy, Delek, Shell) on the revision of the revenue – sharing agreement.
 
“Negotiations are underway with the licensed companies with the aim to render it more economically viable and be able to proceed more effectively with the exploitation of this field”, said Onoufriou.
 
Discussions, she concluded, “have reached an advanced stage just like the negotiations with the most probable buyers in Egypt, but these things will proceed together in the next stage”.

Source: Stockwatch

Saving Energy Advice 

Appropriate insulation is a basic prerequisite for the protection of a building from cold or heat.

In order to reduce thermal losses one can:

• Close any gaps around the rim of doors or windows using insulating materials, self adhesive foam ribbons available in shops or silicon rubber
• Avoid too excessively air spaces heated
• Close the window shutters and curtains on cold winter nights in order to conserve heat within.
• Insulate thermally the roof of the building
• Replace the single-glass-pane windows with new thermally insulated double glazed windows
• Insulate the walls

SPACE HEATING 

• Use solar energy to heat your building. On sunny winter days allow the sunrays to enter through the southern windows.
• If you have a split unit system do not set your thermostat over the 22oC mark. For each additional degree you spend up to 7% more energy.
• Do not cover the heating panels in any way because this reduces severely their efficiency.
• If you have central heating ensure that the burner is correctly set and the boiler is cleaned every summer by a competent person, who should also issue a maintenance certificate, in accordance with the law, giving measurements of the efficiency of the installation, of the fuel stack temperature of the fuel gases and of the carbon dioxide and soot content. 　

SPACE COOLING - AIR CONDITIONING

Before you venture to buy an air conditioner you would do well to investigate alternative ways of cooling. Air conditioners consume large quantities of electricity especially at the hours of the system maximum demand and their operation will be costly. Over and above they pollute and heat up the environment.

• Use shades on all your windows. Select the appropriate shading system depending on the orientation of the window.
• Plant trees preferably, trees that shed their leaves, in order to shade your building but also in order to create, wherever this is possible a more favorable "micro-climate".
• Select light colours for outside walls, roofs and tents
• Reduce the internal heat sources. Install lamps and other appliances of low consumption. Do not use high-energy-consuming appliances (e.g. electric cooker, iron) which also contribute to the warming of the space especially during the periods of high temperatures
• During hot days ventilate your building only at night
• Openings over doors, over staircases, ventilating chimneystacks, in conjunction with certain openings at low points in the building can create a very effective vertical ventilation, without the need to open all your windows
• If the external conditions and the openings of your building do not allow the requisite ventilation install fans for both the introduction as well the expulsion of the air from the building
• Install roof mounted fans in the rooms. A roof fan cools while consuming negligible energy ( as much as an ordinary Lamp). You will feel cool even when temperatures are relatively high and you can do away with the need of installing an air conditioner. Alternatively, use a free standing fan. 
  
  If you decide to buy an air conditioner:

• Request to be informed of its power input given that this will significantly raise your electricity bill especially during the summer months
• Ensure that it is suitable for your space consult a specialized engineer and not merely salesman before you select. If you intend to install air conditioning for the whole flat or an entire building ask for a study.
• Set the air conditioning using a good wall mounted thermometer and do not seek temperatures lower than 26°C in the summer
• Ensure that the windows are shut during operation of the air conditioning system so as not to lose valuable energy
• Apply diligently the instructions of the manufacturer for the installation and maintenance of the air conditioning – frequent cleaning of the filters is indicated for health reasons 　

LIGHTING

• Allow natural light to enter, if possible, from all sides of your spaces. In this manner you achieve greater adequacy and better distribution
• For better control of natural light prefer blinds rather than curtains on the windows.
• Prefer light colours on the walls of your house, for they make a the internal environment brighter
• Ensure that lights in the rooms do not remain switched on when they are no longer needed
• Prefer a low general lighting and additional lights at the points needed
• Use low energy consuming lamps. An ordinary incandescent lamp consumes as much as five times more energy than a fluorescent lamp giving the same amount of light.

• The low energy consuming lamps may cost more than the ordinary lamps, but their lifespan is eight times longer and they consume five times less electricity

• Clean regularly the lighting fittings and the lamps
  
  

WATER HEATING SIPHONS  

• Switch on your water heater only when and for as long as necessary to cover your needs and do not leave it switched on when not needed
• Prefer a shower rather than a bath. You spend three times less electricity and water
• Do not let the tabs dripping and do not allow hot water to run needlessly
• Prefer a solar water heater instead of an electric for water heating (the solar water is in a position to cover 70% of your annual needs in hot water with a corresponding reduction in your electricity consumption)Electric Appliances

ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES

Electric cooker

• Ensure that your cooking utensils (saucepans, pans etc) fit properly on the cooker rings. You waste 20-30% more heat and electricity when the base of the utensil is 1-2 centimeters smaller than the cooker you save 30-60% electricity and 80% on time.
• When you boil water, cover the saucepan with its lid. It will boil faster and with less energy
• Avoid the needless preheating and the frequent opening-closing of ovens. Each time you open the oven door 20% of the internal heat escapes. Clean regularly the cooker rings and the oven
• For heating up of small quantities of food, prefer, if you have it, the micro-wave oven for it saves both electrical energy and time 　

Refrigerator - Freezer

•  Refrigerators consume a lot of energy because they work over the whole 24 hours. The energy mark which is on all modern electrical appliances gives us information about their efficiency. Select an appliance with low energy consumption.
• Place your refrigerator away from the cooker, the radiators and places under direct sunlight otherwise its consumption may go up by as much as 30%
• If your refrigerator does not have automatic defrosting ensure that you defrost it regularly. A layer of ice 5mm thick increases the electricity consumption by 30%
• Regulate the thermostat of your refrigerator so that the temperature of the conservation area is 7oC and that of the freezer is -18oC. This way you may save up to 15% electricity
• Do not open the refrigerator door often and do not keep it open for a long time. Make sure that the rubber seal of the door is clean and closes very well
• Do not cover the ventilation openings of your refrigerator, dust well the radiator at the rear of the refrigerator and allow a clearance of at least 5cm from the wall
• When you are absent from your home for a long time e.g. on vacation, remove the refrigerator from the supply socket, empty its contents and leave its door open
• Do not place warm food in the refrigerator. You would better allow them to cool dawn first (this is recommended for health reasons) 　

Washing Machine

• Select a washing mashing with low consumption of water and electricity. There are many differences from one appliance to another
• For large saving of energy you may select a modern washing machine of the "hot fill" type which can be connected to a solar water heater
• It is proven that clothes are washed equally clean at 60oC as at 90oC and with the new programmes and detergents even at 40oC. Prefer therefore, the operation at the lower temperature
• Ensure that the machine is loaded homogeneously and prefer to load it to its full capacity (usually 5-6 kilos of clothing)
• Apply the instructions of the manufacturer in order to save electricity water, detergent and also for the good operation of the appliance
• Connect your washing machine with your solar water heater for hot water supply
  When you are absent from home shut the supply of water to the washing machine 　

Dish Washer

•  Select a dish washer with low consumption of water and electricity. There are many differences from one appliance to another
• Ensure that the washer is loaded homogeneously and prefer to load it fully
• Apply the instructions of the manufacturer in order to save on electricity, on water on detergent and for the good operation of the appliance
• When you are absent from home shut the supply of water to the dish washer 　

Small appliances 

• Before you purchase any appliance request to be informed about its electricity consumption, given that there are many differences between appliances (even when on "stand-by" mode)
• Small appliances as a general rule consume less electricity than larger ones therefore, whenever possible, prefer small appliances
• Switch off the television set, the coffee-maker, the iron etc when you do not need them
• Use the switch of the appliance to switch off the television set, the video Hi-Fi set etc and not the remote control because otherwise these appliances remain on stand-by mode and continue to consume electricity   Source: EAC

A multi-million movie starring Nicolas Cage will be filmed in Cyprus, it was announced on Friday.

Cage has starred in such well-known movies as Rumblefish, Raising Arizona, Moonstruck,  Guarding Tess, and Leaving Las Vegas.

The Cyprus Investment Promotion Agency (Invest Cyprus) announced that the first international film production is to take place on the island after the coordinated effort to attract important players from the film industry.

The film, starring the Academy Award winner is titled ‘Jiu Jitsu’ and is to be filmed entirely in Cyprus while production cost is estimated at €24.6m. It is a science fiction and martial arts film, whose cast includes “established Hollywood actors” Frank Grillo, Alain Moussi, Rick Yune, Marie Avgeropoulos and JuJu Chan, Invest Cyprus said.

Producers are Martin J. Barab and Dimitri Logothetis, who will also be the director.

“This development is crucial for the growth of the Cypriot audiovisual industry, but also for the Cypriot economy as a whole, since it is a significant investment with multiple benefits that will promote our country worldwide,” the agency said.

It said that Cabinet recently gave Invest Cyprus exclusive responsibility for the development of the audiovisual industry and the chair of the Incentive Plan application committee (EASO).

The agency said it considers it particularly important that shortly after the assignment to them by the state of these new competencies, it was possible to attract, through targeted and well-coordinated efforts, the first cinematographic production.

“This film production will place our country on the global cinema map and will be the first and essential step for the further development of the field,” Invest Cyprus said.

Invest Cyprus in cooperation with the Cyprus Tourism Organisation, and the government’s press and information office organised last year, the first-ever film summit in which over 120 delegates participated including producers and directors from Hollywood, Pinewood and Bollywood.

During the summit, the island promoted itself internationally to investors, dubbing the incentive plan ‘Olivewood’.

In statements to the press, Georgiades said efforts are ongoing at all levels and sectors and that both the public and private sectors had been mobilised.

During their stay in Cyprus, participants were taken to Paphos, Troodos, Larnaca and Limassol to find inspiration on possible film locations.

Last September, the government launched a scheme for the promotion of the film industry providing Cypriot and foreign producers with incentives, cash rebates and/or tax credits of up to 35 per cent on qualifying production expenditures and also predicts tax allowances of 20 per cent for investment in infrastructure and equipment.

The scheme aims to allow inflows of capital from international productions to Cyprus and to support the local industry.

An online platform has been launched with information for foreign and Cypriot film industry professionals concerning the competitive advantages of Cyprus in the sector.

Visitors to the platform can also learn about the locations of the island that can be used in audio-visual productions, and access a list of local professionals.

The move comes after a long debate on the absence of state support to the film industry that pushed foreign producers to other countries in the area to film their movies.

In 2016, MPs heard that a BBC production on Cypriot migration to the UK was to be filmed in Malta instead of the island as it would cost less to do so.

The then Chairwoman of the Directors’ Guild of Cyprus Alexia Roider, had said that a large part of the film was set in Cyprus and the producers had asked the government for information on what facilities and incentives it offered to film on the island, but decided to shoot in Malta instead, after they were told nothing could be offered.

Source: CyprusMail

THE past three years have seen a surge in the demand for Cypriot passports by the UK’s Cypriot community, while over 1,000 passports were expected to be issued this year, it emerged on Thursday.

Cypriots living or born in the UK can register for Cypriot citizenship either directly through the ministry of interior, a procedure taking less than a month, or through the Cypriot High Commission in London, where a passport can be secured within three to four months.

“Since 2016, when the Brexit referendum took place, we are seeing the number of applications for Cypriot citizenship double every year,” the Cypriot High Commissioner to the UK, Euripides Evriviades, told Politis daily newspaper.

In fact, Evriviades said that compared to the pre-Brexit period, the High Commission has seen an increase in applications to the tune of 1,000 per cent, having received 353 applications in 2018, while only 38 were received in 2014.

“Calculations for this year, raise the figure of applications to around double of those received last year, so to around 700, though this figure does not include the significant number of expats choosing to secure citizenship directly through Cyprus,” Evriviades said.

Combining the data from the High Commission with the interior ministry’s civil registry and migration department, Politis said that in 2016 a total of 527 Cypriots living or born in the UK registered for Cypriot citizenship.

The figure increased by 34 per cent to 711 in 2017, and by a further 15 per cent in 2018 with the figure of registrations for Cypriot citizenship by British expats reaching 818.

In just the first three months of 2019, a total of 286 UK citizens of Cypriot descent filed for Cypriot citizenship, with the figure expected to surpass 1,000 by the end of the year.

The surge in the number of applications filed have pushed the High Commission of Cyprus in London to launch an initiative whereby interested parties can book online appointments through the High Commission’s website, www.cyprusinuk.com.

According to the deputy director of the Civil Registry department, Makis Polydorou, all applications are examined on the basis of the Civil Registry Law and the Treaty of Establishment of the Republic.

Polydorou told Politis newspaper that the descendants of third and fourth generation Cypriots are traced on the basis of data held by the department that date back to the Ottoman period, in conjunction with accompanying documents sent with the application.

Persons born after the establishment of the Republic of Cyprus, and whose mother or father is a Cypriot citizen can apply for citizenship through a simple registration procedure, Polydorou noted.

Source:CyprusMail