How to buy property in Cyprus, step by step

The short answer

• Reserve the home and appoint your own independent lawyer.
• Sign the sale contract, then deposit it at the Land Registry within 6 months. No stamp duty since 2026.
• Pay in stages for a new home, or in full on transfer for a resale.
• Get the keys, and the title deed once it is issued in your name.

Before you start

• A Cyprus tax identification number and a local bank account. Your lawyer can arrange both.
• Your budget on top of the price: VAT or transfer fees, legal fees and, with a loan, 1% to register the mortgage. See the cost of buying property.
• Financing: if you will borrow, speak to a bank before you reserve. See mortgages for foreign buyers.

The steps

1. Choose and reserve

Once you have chosen a home, a reservation agreement and deposit take it off the market while the contract is prepared.

2. Appoint an independent lawyer

Your own lawyer, not the seller's, checks the Land Registry search certificate, the planning and building permits, any mortgage on the land, and the contract terms before you sign.

3. Sign the sale contract

The contract sets the price, the payment schedule and the delivery date. You can sign in person or through a power of attorney given to your lawyer. For contracts signed from December 2023, the seller attaches a recent Land Registry search certificate.

4. Deposit the contract at the Land Registry

Within 6 months of signing, at a fee of €50. Stamp duty was abolished from 1 January 2026, so a contract signed today goes straight to the Land Registry. Once deposited, the home cannot be sold or charged to anyone else without your consent.

5. Permit for buyers from outside the EU

Non-EU buyers need a permit from the district office to acquire property. It is a routine application made by your lawyer after signing.

6. Pay as agreed

For a new home, payments are usually staged against construction milestones written into the contract. For a resale, the balance is paid on transfer at the Land Registry.

7. Handover and title deed

You receive the keys on completion. On a resale with a title deed, ownership is registered in your name at the transfer. On a new apartment, the deed follows once the building has its Certificate of Final Approval and separate titles are issued: see title deeds in Cyprus.

Buying from abroad

You do not need to be in Cyprus. A power of attorney lets your lawyer sign, deposit the contract, apply for permits and attend the transfer for you. Many buyers visit once to choose the home and once to collect the keys.

Buying an Oniro home

Every Oniro sale contract is deposited at the Land Registry after signing, and we share the permit numbers and search certificate with your lawyer before you sign. See Aegea Views and Infinite Blue.