Cyprus Bailout | The TRNC Finance Minister says Come North!

WITHOUT  PREJUDICE
Cyprus Bailout | The TRNC Finance Minister says Come North!

Well there is something very unexpected… not. The Finance Minister inviting Brits and Russians in south Cyprus to come and live in north Cyprus.

Whilst over 1400 people wait with baited breath for the outcome of the Kulaksiz 5 case, still thousands more property scam victims
wait for their properties to be started/ finished/ repaired/ mains water connected/ normal tariff electricity connected. I think the message is loud and clear, unless you come and rent, you may well find the the grass is not greener and you may be jumping out of the frying pan into the fire.

It is  only recently that the Government have backed down and reversed the racist move of making transfer fees for foreigners twice what they were for Turkish Cypriots on first purchases. The transfer is now the same for all nationalities,  but should it have ever been different? The situation on purchasing pre 74 title should be investigated thoroughly, be sure you can qualify for Permission to Purchase this as a foreigner.    Look at the site on which you are buying, if it is too close to a military establishment, you will never get Permission to Purchase as a foreigner and you can be almost sure, if you do not ask, you will not be told this.

Many foreigners have waited years for Permission to Purchase, some are still waiting. I have heard of people waiting 8 years. This is even more unacceptable when you consider a lot of purchasers retire to north Cyprus, so time is not on their side. The law now allows the Contract of Sale to be registered as an interest at the Land Registry whilst you await Permission to Purchase but the land remains in the name of the landowner with the obvious dangers this can bring. Debtors of the landowner can and have put in memorandums behind the Contract of Sale. I have even heard rumours of one case where a mortgage was given to the landowner, despite the existence of a registered Contract of Sale.

Many foreigners are tied up in litigation which can take years to go through the system and even then you may find an award in your favour is not collectable, so you have wasted more precious time and a lot of money on nothing. The only people benefiting being the Advocates.

If you are younger, and need to work, think long and hard before making the move. Work is scarce and work permits are not granted easily. To qualify for residency status you need to undergo blood tests annually if you are under 60 years old and demonstrate the ability to fund your living costs without working. The over 60’s now can apply for two years residency,  only the first application has any medical requirements, but you must be able to demonstrate the ability to support yourself financially. That is not unreasonable in my opinion.

Anon

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