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Foreigners Driving Cyprus Property Prices Through The Roof: Bypassing Laws And Raising Concerns

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

January 31, 2025

Foreign buyers are sweeping up land across Cyprus, sidestepping local regulations, and pushing property prices to unprecedented levels. Meanwhile, this trend is creating a housing crisis for residents, particularly young couples who are struggling to find affordable homes.

While legislation does exist, including restrictions on foreign ownership, it appears to be easily bypassed. Sources close to the matter suggest that foreigners are increasingly purchasing property via legal entities, such as companies, which allows them to sidestep the scrutiny intended by the law.

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The issue has been a topic of public debate for some time, but now it’s taking center stage in a more focused manner, thanks to a new parliamentary push. Today, the parliamentary Interior Committee will discuss a bill introduced by Nikos Georgiou, the DISY MP for Famagusta.

Representatives from the Ministry of Interior, the Department of Land and Surveys, the Ministry of Finance, the Legal Service of the Republic, and the Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property have all been invited to share their views. They will be tasked with shedding light on the growing issue of foreign buyers bypassing the law by acquiring property through companies and trusts.

Tightening The Legal Framework

Georgiou’s proposed bill aims to modernize Cyprus’ property acquisition laws for foreigners, ensuring more transparency and tightening controls. According to the explanatory memorandum, the aim is to protect public interests by improving the monitoring process, enforcing stricter due diligence, and ensuring professionals like lawyers and accountants adhere to stringent ‘Know Your Client’ (KYC) guidelines.

The proposed law would essentially embed these professionals into the process, ensuring they verify the identity of foreign buyers before any property transactions can go through. This move mimics anti-money laundering practices and aims to close the loopholes that allow foreigners to bypass local controls by using legal entities.

Loopholes For Companies

As citizens and officials raise concerns, the current law (Article 3) already imposes restrictions on foreign individuals purchasing real estate, which requires prior approval from the Council of Ministers. The legislation also sets clear boundaries for the area of land a foreigner can acquire, ensuring it remains within manageable limits for residential or business purposes.

However, as pointed out by Nikos Georgiou in a parliamentary question last summer, there is growing evidence that foreigners are exploiting these laws by buying property through companies. This raises the question: why should restrictions exist for individuals if they can easily circumvent the law through corporate structures?

As legal expert George Koukounis pointed out years ago, any foreigner can establish a Cypriot company to purchase property without facing the same constraints. The problem lies in why natural persons face limitations when they can bypass these through a company.

European Perspective On Foreign Property Ownership

While Cyprus isn’t the only country facing these issues, it does stand out. Across Europe, many countries have taken steps to address similar concerns.

In Finland, a recent report called for stricter legislation to prevent foreigners from acquiring property, especially from countries whose actions threaten national security. In the UK, transparency rules and anti-money laundering measures are in place, ensuring more thorough checks on foreign buyers. Meanwhile, in Greece, foreign purchases are restricted in border regions and require special permits from the Ministry of National Defense.

These measures reflect the growing sense of caution in Europe over foreign ownership of land and property. The increasing concerns in Cyprus may well push for similar reforms, with calls for greater scrutiny of foreign buyers becoming louder by the day.

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Europe’s Deadly Summer Heat Exposed The Cost Of A Warming Continent

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

October 23, 2026

Europe experienced its deadliest summer for heat-related deaths on record in 2026, with an estimated 24,400 excess deaths linked to extreme temperatures across 30 countries. Researchers estimate that human-induced climate change was responsible for around 32,000 of the deaths attributed to heat in the study’s broader analysis, accounting for 65% of the total.

The findings highlight the growing public-health consequences of global warming, largely driven by fossil fuel use, as extreme heat becomes more frequent and severe.

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A Summer Of Dangerous Heat

Between June and August, heatwaves pushed temperatures in Western Europe to an average of 2.9°C above the 1991–2020 norm, with some days reaching 12°C above average. Nearly a third of estimated heat-related deaths occurred during a particularly intense heatwave between 17 June and 1 July.

“These numbers are a stark reminder that our hotter, more extreme summers are having an increasingly severe impact on public health,” said Dr Clair Barnes, a researcher at Imperial College London and co-author of the study.

The estimated toll exceeded previous peaks of around 29,000 deaths in summer 2022 and 28,000 in 2003 across the region studied.

How Researchers Estimated The Toll

Researchers modelled the relationship between temperature and mortality across 854 urban areas in the EU, UK, Norway and Switzerland, covering around 40% of the population in the 30 countries studied.

The analysis incorporated temperature records, age, socioeconomic conditions, environmental factors and access to healthcare. By comparing actual temperatures with those expected without human-induced warming, the team estimated the additional deaths attributable to climate change.

Final official mortality figures for summer 2026 are not yet available in many countries, and heat-related deaths are often underreported because their effects can be difficult to identify directly.

Older People Face The Greatest Risk

People aged 85 and over accounted for roughly half of the estimated deaths. However, the impact extended across age groups, with around 800 excess deaths among adults aged 20–44 and approximately 6,000 among people under 65.

Southern Europe experienced the highest mortality burden, reflecting hotter temperatures and other vulnerabilities, including air pollution, limited green space and unequal access to healthcare and heat-alert systems.

Italy, France And Spain Record Highest Toll

Italy recorded an estimated 13,303 heat-related excess deaths, followed by France with 7,268 and Spain with 6,824. Germany recorded around 6,340, while the UK saw an estimated 4,354 deaths.

In the UK, the heat also placed significant pressure on healthcare services. Andrew Hartle, Professor of Practice of Anaesthesia at Imperial College Healthcare, said demand during the summer resembled that of a severe winter virus season.

Cities Urged To Strengthen Heat Protection

Researchers say cities can reduce the risks through climate shelters, external shading and building retrofits, alongside measures to help residents avoid exposure during the hottest hours. Checking on vulnerable people, staying hydrated and following heat alerts are also important.

The researchers stress that adaptation must go hand in hand with reducing fossil fuel use to limit further warming. The findings underline that extreme heat is already a major public-health threat across Europe, with thousands of lives at risk each summer.