Cyprus Mail 1 April 2020 -by Evie Andreou
The ministry of innovation and digital policy announced on Wednesday that amendments have been made to the authorisation mechanism for the exceptional movement.
After recalling that every person is allowed to be outside once per day, the ministry said that everyone under 65 can obtain permission to do so only by sending a text message to 8998.
For persons over 65 years of age, permission may be requested either by text message to 8998, completion and printing of Form B or a handwritten note.
When outside, members of the public need to carry with them the confirmation they obtained. In the event of a check, they will be asked to present the confirmation SMS, or the forms, printed or handwritten and proof of identity:
- Cypriot citizens: Republic of Cyprus identity card
- European citizens and third-country nationals: registration certificate or residence permit respectively. For those who do not have these documents, exceptionally other proof of identity such as foreign passport, identity card or diplomatic passport will be accepted.
The ministry also recalled that there is curfew between 9pm and 6am and only those who need to be at work during this period of time are allowed to be outside but they need to hold Form A, filled out and signed by their employers.
As regards text messages the format is: X space number of ID space postal code.
X corresponds to one of the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 that correspond to the predefined reasons for being outside.
As regards identification:
- Cypriot citizens: must write their ID number
- European citizens and third-country nationals: must write the Alien Registration Number (ARC) on their registration certificate or residence permit
- European citizens and third-country nationals who do not have an ARC: they may use other identification number such as foreign passport or foreign ID number or diplomatic passport number.
Concerning the identification document number, the system accepts up to three letters and up to 10 characters in total (numbers and letters).
Text messages (SMS) will receive replies in three formats: approval, rejection due to message structure, or notification of completion of the maximum number of daily trips allowed.
Persons who send SMS and receive authorisation have the right to be outside for a reasonable period of time depending on the purpose of their movement.
For more information and instructions on securing a movement confirmation and sending a text message please refer to the following link: https://www.pio.gov.cy/coronavirus/
