Cyprus will tighten its golden visa programme ahead of joining the Schengen area, Deputy Minister of Migration Nicholas Ioannides told a parliamentary committee in September 2026.
No new thresholds or timetable have been announced. The current minimum investment is €300,000.
What Cyprus has said
Ioannides said about 1,500 golden visas were issued in the past two years. Around 12,000 issued since 2013 are being reviewed to check whether holders still meet the programme’s conditions.
The ministry is also examining whether investment could be directed towards education, defence and innovation. Today the programme accepts residential or commercial property, company shares and investment fund units.
The figures are not consistent. Officials told MPs in April 2026 that 7,088 golden visas were valid. A 2025 finance ministry letter put the total at 28,660 permits including family members.
How Greece compares
Greece’s programme already went through its own tightening. Its property route now costs €800,000 in Attica, Thessaloniki and larger islands, €400,000 elsewhere, and €250,000 for conversions to residential use.
Greece is also far larger. It had 34,759 active investor permits at the end of August 2026, according to Ministry of Migration and Asylum data published on 23 September. Some practitioners expect Cyprus may raise its minimums and could model them on Greece’s tiered system.
What it means for buyers
At €300,000, Cyprus is below Greece’s €400,000 and €800,000 property tiers for now, though above the €250,000 conversion route. Its rules are about to change and the details are unknown. Greece’s thresholds are known and already in force. Buyers comparing the two face more uncertainty in Cyprus until the new terms are published.
Buyers should confirm how this applies to them with a Greek lawyer or accountant.
What happens next
Cyprus has not said when the new rules will be published or whether existing applicants will be protected.
