Foreigners may face restrictions on property purchases in sensitive areas of Cyprus

Stefanos Stefanou, leader of the Cypriot left, announced the submission of two bills to parliament aimed at tightening the rules for property acquisition by foreign citizens. The initiative primarily concerns transactions near strategically important and sensitive zones — airports, military facilities, the ceasefire line, as well as agricultural and forest lands.

According to Stefanou, recent years have seen an increase in large-scale transactions involving foreigners, particularly in the Larnaca and Limassol areas. This trend, he believes, raises justified concerns not only from a real estate market perspective, but also in terms of national security and the preservation of the country’s land resources.

At the same time, the proposals do not envisage a complete ban on property purchases by foreigners. The leader of the AKEL party emphasizes that the goal of the initiative is to “put things in order” and eliminate existing legal loopholes that allow restrictions to be bypassed through complex ownership schemes.

One of the key points of the proposals is limiting foreigners’ access to property near military camps, airports and the buffer zone, as well as to forest and agricultural land. Particular attention is paid to the practice of purchasing property through companies: new restrictions may also apply to legal entities if their ultimate beneficiary is a foreigner.

At the same time, the bills provide for a simplified procedure for standard transactions. Thus, without obtaining special permission from the Council of Ministers, foreigners will be able to purchase one apartment or a residential house with an area of up to 200 square meters, as well as commercial property — a shop or an office — within the limits established by law.

AKEL stresses that this approach will help maintain a balance between security concerns, transparency of the real estate market and support for the construction sector, which remains an important part of Cyprus’s economy.

At this stage, the initiative is under consideration. The bills must go through parliamentary discussions, possible amendments and a vote before it becomes clear whether the new rules will be adopted and in what form.