Cypriot passports are issued to citizens of

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

. Every Cypriot citizen is also a

Commonwealth citizen A Commonwealth citizen is a citizen or qualified national of a Commonwealth of Nations member state. Most member countries do not treat citizens of other Commonwealth states any differently from foreign nationals, but some grant limited citizen ...

and a

citizen of the European Union European Union citizenship is afforded to all citizens of member states of the European Union (EU). It was formally created with the adoption of the 1992 Maastricht Treaty, at the same time as the creation of the EU. EU citizenship is additio ...

. The Cypriot passport, along with the

Cypriot identity card The Cypriot identity card is issued to citizens of Cyprus. It can be used as a travel document when visiting countries in Europe (except Belarus, Moldova (old version), Russia, Ukraine and United Kingdom), as well as French overseas territorie ...

, allows for free rights of movement and residence in any of the states of the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

European Economic Area The European Economic Area (EEA) was established via the ''Agreement on the European Economic Area'', an international agreement which enables the extension of the European Union's single market to member states of the European Free Trade Ass ...

, and

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. Cypriot citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 174 countries and territories, ranking the Cypriot passport 16th in terms of travel freedom according to the

Henley Passport Index The Henley Passport Index (abbreviation: HPI) is a global ranking of countries according to the travel freedom enjoyed by the holders of that country's ordinary passport for its citizens. It started in 2006 as Henley & Partners Visa Restrictions ...

. Cypriot citizens can live and work in any country within the EU as a result of the right of free movement and residence granted in Article 21 of the EU Treaty. The

Republic of Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

was formed in 1960. All persons who were citizens of the Republic of Cyprus at this time are entitled to renew their citizenship and passport, whether living on the island or abroad within the

diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews after ...

. Their descendants, whether living on the island or abroad, are equally entitled to obtain Cypriot citizenship and passport. These citizens include the Greek and Turkish people, as well as the much smaller communities of Jewish and Armenian heritage.

Language

All current and earlier Cypriot passports are inclusive, and so contain text in

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

as well as

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

. Since 1974, the

Turkish Cypriot Turkish Cypriots or Cypriot Turks ( tr, Kıbrıs Türkleri or ''Kıbrıslı Türkler''; el, Τουρκοκύπριοι, Tourkokýprioi) are ethnic Turks originating from Cyprus. Following the Ottoman conquest of the island in 1571, about 30,00 ...

community live mainly in the north of the island where the official language is Turkish (Cypriot dialect) and the

Greek Cypriot Greek Cypriots or Cypriot Greeks ( el, Ελληνοκύπριοι, Ellinokýprioi, tr, Kıbrıs Rumları) are the ethnic Greek population of Cyprus, forming the island's largest ethnolinguistic community. According to the 2011 census, 659,115 r ...

community live mainly in the south of the island where the official language is Greek (Cypriot dialect). Many people are trilingual. Over 4 decades, many citizens of the Republic of Turkey have moved to

Northern Cyprus Northern Cyprus ( tr, Kuzey Kıbrıs), officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC; tr, Kuzey Kıbrıs Türk Cumhuriyeti, ''KKTC''), is a ''de facto'' state that comprises the northeastern portion of the Geography of Cyprus, isl ...

to contribute to the labour force. As non-citizens of the island in 1960, this generation of workers are not entitled to Citizenship of the Republic of Cyprus.

Physical appearance

Biometric passport A biometric passport (also known as an e-passport or a digital passport) is a traditional passport that has an embedded electronic microprocessor chip which contains biometric information that can be used to authenticate the identity of the pa ...

s have been issued since 13 December 2010 and include text in all official

languages of the European Union The European Union (EU) has 24 official languages, of which threeEnglish, French and Germanhave the higher status of "procedural" languages of the European Commission (whereas the European Parliament accepts all official languages as working la ...

. They carry a microchip containing biometric data such as fingerprints, a biometric photograph, and a digital signature. Inside, on different pages, there are images of a statue of the goddess

Aphrodite Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols include ...

on display at the

Cyprus Museum The Cyprus Museum (also known as the Cyprus Archaeological Museum) is the oldest and largest archaeological museum in Cyprus. The museum houses artifacts discovered during numerous excavations on the island. The museum is home to the most extensi ...

, a dove carrying an olive branch, a symbol of peace, and the Cypriot

mouflon The mouflon (''Ovis gmelini'') is a wild sheep native to Cyprus, the Caspian Sea, Caspian region from eastern Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Iran. It is thought to be the ancestor of all modern domestic sheep breeds. Taxonomy ''Ovis gmelini'' ...

. Prior to independence, the old British Cyprus passports were issued to citizens.

Visa requirements

Cypriot citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 173 countries and territories, ranking the Cypriot passport 16th in terms of travel freedom according to the

. Image:Britcolpass.jpg,

Application

The Civil Registry and Immigration Department of the Ministry of the Interior is responsible for issuing and renewing Cypriot passports.

Revocation

Passport revocation took place for 26 individuals in 2019 for the first time after a Reuters investigation on Cyprus citizen-by-investment program, where foreign individuals are granted citizenship after investing €2 million worth of real estate in Cyprus. Simultaneously, the Interior Minister Constantinos Petrides opened an official investigation to all investors granted a Cypriot citizenship prior to 2018.Bangkok Post: Cyprus revoking 'golden passports'
(consolidated version)

References

Cyprus and the Commonwealth of Nations Passports by country

Passport A passport is an official travel document issued by a government that contains a person's identity. A person with a passport can travel to and from foreign countries more easily and access consular assistance. A passport certifies the personal ...