Cyprus Offers Strategic Tax Incentives To Attract Global Talent

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

January 21, 2026

Overview Of The Minds In Cyprus Initiative

Cyprus is making headway in its efforts to attract skilled professionals from abroad, launching a revamped tax incentive scheme under the initiative known as Minds in Cyprus. The program is designed to ease the transition for overseas workers into the local workforce by offering significant tax exemptions and broad eligibility criteria, particularly for those who have resided outside the country for seven years.

Program Details And Fiscal Implications

According to reports from the Ministry of Finance, around 600 overseas professionals have already expressed interest in leveraging the new benefits. Under the current framework, employment earnings can enjoy a tax relief of 20% up to €8,550 for a period of seven years. However, the proposed legislative amendment aims to increase this exemption to 25% for self-employed earnings, extending the maximum relief up to €25,000 for those who have lived abroad for the specified period.

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Eligibility Criteria And Comparative Markets

The initiative targets young professionals and introduces variable residency requirements based on educational qualifications. Applicants holding a recognized university degree are required to have spent three years abroad, while those without such credentials must meet a seven-year residency condition. Notably, similar schemes are also being implemented in Greece, reflecting a broader regional trend in fiscal policy aimed at talent retention and attraction.

Stakeholder Concerns And Future Considerations

Despite the positive outlook, some members of the Economic Committee have raised concerns about potential inequalities. Critics argue that the policy may result in a disparity between different groups of workers, effectively creating two tiers of employment. There is a strong call for setting an expiration date for the initiative to ensure its relevance and fairness over time.

Legal Perspectives And Implementation Insights

Representatives from the Cyprus Bar Association, including legal expert Maria Grigoriou, have also voiced concerns. Grigoriou highlighted that the retroactive application of the new provisions, effective from January 1, 2025, might benefit workers who relocated in the previous year. Furthermore, she emphasized the need to align an applicant’s professional experience with the nature of the work in Cyprus to ensure that the scheme truly serves the country’s interests.

Balancing Incentives And Fairness

An official from the Cyprus Employers and Industrialists Federation (OEB) noted that while the tax incentive adds a valuable dimension to Cyprus’s economic strategy, the inherent challenge remains: balancing fairness across all sectors. The official acknowledged that criteria which favor some groups might inadvertently exclude others, underscoring the complexity of designing universally equitable fiscal incentives.

As the scheme continues to evolve, both policymakers and industry stakeholders will be closely monitoring its effectiveness and impact on Cyprus’s competitive edge in attracting global talent.

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EU Services Production Grows As Information And Communication Lead

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

November 10, 2026

Services production continued to expand across the European Union in August 2026, with information and communication recording the strongest annual growth. However, performance varied significantly between industries and member states, while Cyprus reported a mixed picture, with business services expanding and hospitality-related activities declining.

Information And Communication Leads Sector Growth

Compared with August 2025, services production increased by 5.9% in the euro area and 5.8% across the EU in information and communication. Transportation and storage also recorded growth, rising by 2.1% and 1.9%, respectively.

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Real estate activities increased by 1.6% in the euro area and 1.1% in the EU. Professional, scientific and technical activities grew by 1% in both areas, while administrative and support services advanced by 1.1% and 1.3%.

Accommodation and food services was the only major sector to record an annual decline, falling by 0.1% in both the euro area and the EU.

The monthly figures were more mixed. Information and communication remained the strongest performer, increasing by 1.2% in the euro area and 1% across the EU. Real estate activities rose by 0.4% and 0.9%, respectively, while transportation and storage edged up 0.1% in the euro area but declined by 0.2% in the EU.

Administrative and support services recorded modest gains of 0.2% in the euro area and 0.1% in the EU. Accommodation and food services fell by 0.3% and 0.4%, while professional, scientific and technical activities declined by 0.8% and 0.9%, respectively.

Slovakia And Greece Record Strongest Annual Growth

Romania recorded the largest monthly increase in services production, at 5.2%, followed by Malta at 1.8% and Portugal at 1.7%. Luxembourg experienced the steepest decline, with output falling by 5.1%, followed by Bulgaria at 2.3% and Denmark at 1.9%.

On an annual basis, Slovakia led with growth of 10%, followed by Greece at 9.3% and Malta at 7.5%. Hungary recorded the weakest performance, with services production declining by 5.6%. Denmark fell by 5.3%, while Italy recorded a smaller decrease of 0.3%.

Cyprus Sees Growth In Business Services But Weakness In Hospitality

Cyprus’ latest figures show a similar divide between expanding business services and weaker hospitality-related activities. According to the Statistical Service of Cyprus (Cystat), professional, scientific and technical activities recorded the strongest annual growth among the covered sectors in the second quarter of 2026, increasing by 3.4%.

Transportation and storage and information and communication both grew by 2.1%, while real estate activities rose by 1.6%. In contrast, accommodation and food services declined by 3.1% year on year, and administrative and support services fell by 2.2%.

First-half results were more favourable for several sectors. Between January and June, professional, scientific and technical activities grew by 3.5%, transportation and storage by 2.8%, real estate by 2.1% and information and communication by 1.3%.

Nevertheless, administrative and support services contracted by 1% over the six-month period, while accommodation and food services declined by 0.7%.

How Cyprus’ Figures Differ From Eurostat’s Data

The Eurostat and Cystat figures measure different aspects of economic activity and are not directly comparable. Eurostat’s services production index tracks changes in the volume of output, whereas Cystat’s Turnover Value Index for Services and Transport measures the value of sales at current prices.

The reporting periods also differ: Eurostat’s figures cover August, while the cited Cypriot data relate to the second quarter and first half of 2026.

Cystat transmits services production data to Eurostat but does not yet publish a separate national production index. Turnover figures therefore remain the main publicly available national indicator for the sector.

Taken together, the data point to continued growth in several of Cyprus’ business-oriented services, alongside persistent pressure on accommodation, food and administrative support activities.

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