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Cyprus State Employment Reaches 55,367 In March 2026, Up 0.1%

Key Figures Reflect Marginal Growth In The State Workforce

State employment in Cyprus reached 55,367 in March 2026, an increase of 42 employees compared with March 2025. The change corresponds to annual growth of 0.1%, according to Cystat. For January–March 2026, average employment increased by 0.2% compared with the same period in 2025.

Shifts In The Civil Service And Security Forces

Employment trends varied across sectors. Civil service staff declined by 0.8%, from 23,198 to 23,013 employees. Security forces recorded a 0.7% decrease, from 13,832 to 13,734. Education staff increased by 1.8%, rising from 18,295 to 18,620.

Differentiated Trends In Employment Categories

By contract type, employees with indefinite contracts increased by 1.7% to 9,617. Permanent staff rose by 0.1% to 32,900. Employees on definite duration contracts declined by 2% to 6,318, while hourly paid staff decreased by 0.3% to 6,532.

Sector-Specific Contractual Adjustments

Civil service permanent staff decreased to 11,934. Indefinite contracts declined by 3.1% to 4,030, while definite duration contracts increased by 0.5% to 1,437. Hourly paid roles fell by 0.8% to 5,612. In the education sector, permanent staff remained at 12,446 with a slight decrease. Indefinite contracts increased by 24.9% to 1,184. Definite duration contracts rose by 2.1% to 4,843, while hourly paid staff increased by 5% to 147. Security forces recorded a 0.7% increase in permanent staff to 8,520 and a 1.3% rise in indefinite contracts to 4,403. Hourly paid roles increased by 2.7% to 773. Employees on definite duration contracts in the security forces declined by 85.9%, from 269 to 38, following contract expirations in July 2025.

Year-To-Date Trends And Terminology Update

For January–March, civil service employment declined by 0.9%, while education increased by 1.9%. Security forces recorded a 0.2% decrease. Permanent staff increased by 0.2%, and indefinite contracts rose by 1.6%. Definite duration contracts and hourly paid roles declined by 1.2% and 0.4%. Cystat replaced the term “government” with “state employees” starting from March 2026 without affecting historical comparability.

payabl. Launches Click To Pay With Visa To Help Merchants Improve Checkout Conversion And Reduce Fraud

payabl. has launched Click to Pay with Visa, a new card payment experience designed to help merchants reduce checkout friction, improve authorisation rates, and deliver a faster, more secure online payment journey.

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Click to Pay replaces manual card number entry with a token-based checkout experience. Once a customer’s card is enrolled, they can complete purchases in just a few clicks, without re-entering card details. The result is a faster checkout that mirrors the ease of contactless payments in-store, while maintaining strong security standards.

For merchants, the impact is measurable. According to Visa, Click to Pay can deliver up to a 11% uplift in authorisation rates compared to manual card entry, alongside significant fraud reduction through network tokenisation. Faster checkout also helps reduce cart abandonment, particularly on mobile, where typing card details remains a major source of friction.

“With online checkout, every extra step costs conversion,” said Breno Oliveira, Chief Product Officer at payabl. “Visa Click to Pay removes one of the biggest points of friction at the moment of purchase. It helps merchants approve more legitimate transactions, reduce fraud exposure, and give customers the experience they already expect.” 

Visa Click to Pay is available through payabl. checkout, enabling merchants to activate the service without additional integration complexity. The solution works across devices and supports existing security flows, including 3D Secure where required.

“Consumers have come to expect a highly personalised, intuitive, and seamless payment experience, whether they’re buying a coffee, shopping online, or applying for a loan. Visa Click to Pay aims to meet these expectations by removing the need to manually enter card details, thus enhancing both security and the consumer experience in online card payments. With the support of network tokens, Visa Click to Pay enabled a more secure and smoother transaction process, available in many countries around the world. According to European VisaNet data, Visa Click to Pay may allow a 4.5% uplift in merchant sales, meaning a possible annual increase of €51 bn in SMB eCommerce sales in the UK and EU,” said Michael Ioannides, Country Manager, Visa Cyprus.

The launch forms part of payabl.’s broader focus on checkout optimisation, helping merchants improve conversion, approvals, and payment reliability at scale. Click to Pay with Visa is now live for eligible merchants across Europe. 

Checkout expectations are rising across Europe 

Insights from payabl.’s State of European Checkouts report underline why frictionless checkout experiences are becoming a commercial priority. The research found that consumers cite speed (46%), convenience (44%), and security (41%) as the top reasons for choosing a payment method. More than half of consumers (53%) are open to switching to newer payment methods and nearly half (48%) are open to one-click checkouts, provided the solution is backed by a trusted brand such as Visa.

“Checkout is no longer just the final step of a transaction,” said Oliveira. “It is a critical part of the overall customer experience. Our research shows that 43% of European consumers will not return to a site after a poor checkout experience. For merchants across the UK and Europe, that translates directly into lost customers and lost revenue.”

The launch forms part of payabl.’s broader focus on checkout optimisation, helping merchants improve conversion, approvals, and payment reliability at scale. Click to Pay with Visa is now live for eligible merchants across Europe.

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