Cyprus pledges residency rights for British expats

As time runs out and a no-deal Brexit looms, the Cyprus government has decided British expats who’ve been living on the island for five years by December 31, 2020 will be given residency rights which include their family members.

The Cypriot Interior Ministry’s announcement came as a huge relief for worried British expats on the island, as did the news that those who haven’t clocked up five years residency by the due date will be able to stay until they reach the five-year threshold. Once the threshold has been reached, they will be able to apply for permanent residency, with the same applying to those who arrive during the two-year transition period, should it be in place.

Some 800,000 Britons live, work or are retired in Cyprus, all of whom will be covered by the March 2018 draft withdrawal agreement and will be able to have the same access to public services, study, benefits and work as they now have. During the transition period, those arriving in Cyprus with the intention to stay will benefit from the free movement directive, as will their family members and those who’ve previously lived in Cyprus for over five years and wish to return on a permanent basis, provided their absence was for less than five years.

Along with France, which issued a similar guide earlier this week, Cyprus’s decision to defray UK expats’ fears is a welcome change from the doom and gloom predictions of UK media outlets and social media. No doubt, the British government’s recent guarantees of rights for EU expats in the UK will have played a part in the Cyprus government’s considerations, as a large number of Greek Cypriots have made their homes and grown their businesses in the UK and have no immediate wish to return to the home country. Expats in other EU member states will now be waiting to hear whether their adopted country is willing to let them stay.