In this guide
From tax year 2026, Cyprus changed who files. Before, a resident filed only if gross income passed EUR 19,500. Now every Cyprus tax resident aged 25 to 70 files a return, even with no income. The return goes through one portal only: Tax For All (TFA). This guide explains who is caught, what to do and when, and the mistakes we see most often.
The good news is that a filing duty is not a tax bill. The 2026 reform also raised the 0% band to EUR 22,000. For many people the return is a paperwork step that keeps their file clean, protects their residency evidence and often means no tax to pay.
The rule, in the Tax Department's own words
The Cyprus Tax Department lists two groups of residents who must file from tax year 2026 (S1):
- Residents with gross income, from Cyprus or abroad, within Section 5(1) of the Income Tax Law, at any age.
- Residents aged between 25 and 70 during the tax year, whatever their income, including none.
So the only residents who do not file are those with no gross income who are under 25 or over 70. Non-residents file only if they have Cyprus income within Section 5(2).
The same persons must also register in the Tax Registry and hold a tax identification number (TIC) (S2). Registration comes first. The return comes after. If you had no income in 2026 and 2027 and are not yet registered, the law allows you to register by 31 December 2027 (S5). How this fits with the 2026 return deadline is not yet clear from official guidance, so ask your accountant before relying on it.
Who counts as a Cyprus tax resident
You are a Cyprus tax resident for a year if you spend more than 183 days in Cyprus, or if you meet the 60-day rule (S4). The 60-day rule is the flexible route many entrepreneurs use. In broad terms, all four must hold in the same year: you spend at least 60 days in Cyprus; you do not spend more than 183 days in any other single state; you carry on a business in Cyprus, are employed in Cyprus, or hold an office in a Cyprus tax-resident company, and this does not end during the year; and you keep a permanent home in Cyprus that you own or rent. Since 2026, being tax resident elsewhere no longer rules the test out, but your other country may still treat you as resident under its own rules. (S6) If you use the 60-day rule, the new filing duty applies to you exactly as it does to a 183-day resident.
This matters because the return is now part of your residency evidence. A filed Cyprus return for each year sits next to your lease, your day count and your certificate of tax residence.
What changed, side by side
| Tax years up to 2025 | Tax year 2026 onwards | |
|---|---|---|
| Resident with income | File if gross income above EUR 19,500 | File if any Section 5(1) income, any age |
| Resident with no income | No return | File if aged 25 to 70 |
| Non-resident | File if Cyprus income above EUR 19,500 | File if Section 5(2) Cyprus income |
| Portal | TAXISnet | Tax For All only |
| 0% band | EUR 19,500 | EUR 22,000 |
Source: S1.
Step by step
- Create a TFA account. Registration in the Tax Registry is possible only online through Tax For All (S2).
- Register or link your TIC. No TIC yet: choose "Register as a new taxpayer". You already have one: choose "Apply for access to a tax identification number (TIN)" (S2).
- Upload your identity document. EU citizens upload the Registration Certificate (yellow slip). Third-country nationals upload the Residence Permit. If yours is still pending, upload the proof of payment for it and the other documents the page lists (S2).
- File the 2026 return in TFA. The statutory deadline is 31 July 2027. The Council of Ministers can extend it by decree (S1). In most recent years the final date was extended, but plan for 31 July.
- Keep a copy with your residency file.
Note: your 2025 return still goes through TAXISnet. Its deadline was 31 October 2026 (S1). In late 2026 a new arrival can need both portals: TFA for the TIC and TAXISnet for 2025.
Worked examples
E1. Retired couple, 66 and 72, living in Paphos, no Cyprus income, a foreign pension for one of them. The 66-year-old files because of age. The 72-year-old files only if he or she has gross income; a foreign pension is income, so that person files too. If the 72-year-old had nothing at all, no return.
E2. Remote founder, 34, 60-day resident, company abroad pays nothing in 2026. No income, but aged 25 to 70 and resident. Files a nil return in TFA by the deadline.
E3. Student child, 23, resident with the family, no income. Under 25 and no income: no return. If the child earns a part-time salary, a return is due.
E4. Investor, 45, Non-Dom, lives on dividends from abroad. Files, because dividends are income and age is in range. Non-Dom status can remove Special Defence Contribution on those dividends, while GESY health contributions still apply; check the current rate and cap with your accountant. The return is where that position is recorded.
Common mistakes
- "I earn under EUR 22,000, so I do not file." The 0% band is about tax, not about filing. Aged 25 to 70 and resident means you file.
- "I have no income, so I need no TIC." Registration is required for the same group (S2).
- Logging into TAXISnet for 2026. From tax year 2026 the return goes only through Tax For All (S1).
- Forgetting the spouse. Each person files on their own if caught by the rule.
- Counting on an exemption. The Council of Ministers may exempt categories, or people with gross income up to EUR 22,000 on set criteria (S2). That only helps once an Order actually covers you and the year. Check before relying on it.
- Treating the nil return as optional for 60-day residents. The rule does not distinguish. Late filing can lead to interest, fines and other charges, according to the government portal (S4). Ask your accountant what applies to you.
Why this is worth doing calmly
A state that asks for a form from people with no income is adding paperwork, not revenue. You cannot change that rule, but you can make it cheap: one account, one registration, one return a year. Done on time, it strengthens the very file that proves you live in Cyprus, which is the file your home country will ask to see.
FAQ
I turn 25 in November 2026. Do I file for 2026? Yes, if you are resident. The government portal says the duty applies once you have reached 25 by 31 December of the tax year (S4), and the Tax Department page says between 25 and 70 during the tax year (S1). Both cover you.
I turned 71 in 2026 and have no income. The government portal limits the no-income duty to residents who have not reached 71 by 31 December (S4), so you are likely outside it. The two official pages word the upper age differently, so confirm with your accountant. If you have any income, including a pension, you file at any age.
Does filing mean I pay tax? No. Tax depends on taxable income. Up to EUR 22,000 of taxable income is taxed at 0% from 2026 (S1).
Where do I get help? Your Cyprus accountant. ENCC coordinates, the professional files.
Official sources (verified 4 November 2026)
- S1 Tax Department, Individual Income Tax Return: https://www.gov.cy/mof-tax/en/documents/forologiki-dilosi-eisodimatos-atomoy/
- S2 Tax Department, Registration in the National Tax Registry, Individuals: https://www.gov.cy/mof-tax/en/documents/registration-and-cancellation-from-the-national-tax-registry-issuance-of-a-tax-identification-number-tic-tin/registration-in-the-national-tax-registry-issuance-of-a-tax-identification-number-tic-tin-individuals/
- S3 Tax For All, explanatory guide to the 2026 reform (Greek): https://www.gov.cy/mof-tfa/documents/epexigimatikos-odigos-efarmogis-tis-forologikis-metarrythmisis-gia-fysika-prosopa-poy-einai-forologikoi-katoikoi-kyproy-apo-to-forologiko-etos-2026/
- S4 Business in Cyprus, Registering for income tax: https://www.businessincyprus.gov.cy/doing-business-in-cyprus/start-your-business/registering-for-income-tax-and-value-added-tax/
- S5 Law 4/1978, section 5A(1A), consolidated text on CyLaw: https://www.cylaw.org/nomoi/enop/ind/1978_1_4/section-scc631bd12-238d-3964-19be-d08efc8bbe00.html
- S6 Income Tax Law 118(I)/2002, s.2, as amended by Law 244(I)/2025 (CyLaw).
This article is general information, not tax advice.
Cover photo: Krzysztof Ziarnek (Kenraiz), Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
