Filenews 27 December 2020 - by Adamos Adamou
Facilities for companies wishing to transfer their headquarters in Cyprus, as part of Invest Cyprus' strategy, as well as to shipping and pharmaceutical companies already on the island, regarding the employment of qualified personnel are provided by the "Rapid Activity Mechanism", which was activated in October.
These facilities concern, inter alia, the shortening of the time for issuing residence and employment permits for workers from third countries to 4 or 6 weeks, on the basis of specific criteria decided by the Council of Ministers, following suggestions from an inter-ministerial committee, an abbreviation which is expected to test the strength of the Department of Population and Migration Records, which is called upon to implement the whole process. The criteria for these facilities, as regards the employment of staff from third countries, are economic, but are also related to specific professions relating to technology, shipping and the pharmaceutical industry. It should be noted, however, that the vast majority of the 26 professions for which facilities may be offered concern the technology sector, as part of the efforts made to attract investment and companies in the sector in Cyprus. Efforts that, as "F" has already written, seem to be paying off, since as part of Invest Cyprus' strategy to promote Headquarters, at least three large foreign companies in the field of technology are in the process of establishing a base in Cyprus.
New framework for express licences
The facility for the issue and renewal of employment and residence permits for staff from third countries, on the basis of criteria, shall enter into force following a decision of the Council of Ministers, taken on 7 October 2020. The Decision lays down the conditions under which it will be easier to issue residence and employment permits for persons from third countries employed by existing and new companies, as well as by companies that have joined the Rapid Activity Mechanism. The time required to issue residence and employment permits will be between 4 and 6 weeks. As the Minister of Energy, Trade and Industry Natasha Pelidou recently mentioned, in the context of the presentation of the Rapid Activity Mechanism, the new policy for issuing residence permits concerns not only companies of foreign interests that will make use of the mechanism but also Cypriot companies that fall within the fields of shipping, high technology and innovation, pharmaceuticals, biogenetics and biotechnology and wish to employ staff from third countries with skills , for which there has been a shortage in our country.
In particular, undertakings meeting the following criteria are eligible for use of the new policy:
1. Third-country nationals shall own a majority of the shares in the company. Excludes criterion obligation 1 companies included in the following cases:
• Public companies registered on any recognized stock exchange.
• Companies of international activities (formerly off-shore), operating before the change of status held by the Central Bank.
• Cyprus shipping companies.
• Cypriot high-tech/innovation companies, to be certified by the Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy, on the basis of a framework and methodology to be defined.
• Cypriot pharmaceutical companies or Cypriot companies active in the fields of biogenetics and biotechnology.
• Persons who have acquired Cypriot citizenship by naturalisation on the basis of economic criteria, provided that they prove that the conditions under which they were naturalised are still met.
• It should be noted that if the percentage of the foreign shareholding of the company is equal to or less than 50% of the total share capital, in order for the company to be considered the beneficiary, this percentage must represent an amount equal to or greater than the amount of €200,000.
2. Prove by appropriate documents that the final beneficiary has made a direct foreign investment of at least €200,000 for the purpose of operating the company in Cyprus.
3. Operate independent offices in Cyprus, which are housed in suitable premises, separate from any private residence or other office, except in cases of co-location of enterprises.
Foreigners requested
Under the new policy adopted by the Council of Ministers, the facilities for the employment of workers from third countries concern specific categories of occupations. These relate to high-paid staff but also to employees of specific skills and professions recorded. In particular, the facilities apply to the following categories for which specific financial and other criteria such as the setting of minimum monthly earnings are again set:
1. Senior Directors:
• Third-country nationals registered in the Registrar's Register as Directors or Partners
• General Managers of the Annexes and subsidiaries of foreign companies
• Departmental Managers
• Project Managers
The minimum accepted gross monthly earnings for senior managers are €4,000 or more, which can be adjusted from time to time depending on fluctuations in the salary index. The new policy sets a maximum number of third-country nationals who can work in this category at five, unless the Department of Population and Migration is convinced that a higher number of people are justified, depending on the data of each company.
2. Inter-management, senior management and other necessary staff (key personnel):
• Senior / Mid-management staff
• Other administrative, secretarial or technical staff.
The minimum accepted gross monthly earnings for mid-managers and senior executives are €2,000 or more, which can be adjusted from time to time depending on fluctuations in the salary index. The policy defines ten (10) persons as the maximum number of third-country nationals who can be employed in this category, unless the Department of Population and Migration is convinced that it is justified to employ a larger number, depending on the data of each undertaking.
3. Specialized Personnel
Facilities will also be provided for third-country staff in 26 occupations/ with skills. The minimum accepted gross monthly earnings for Qualified Personnel are €2,000 or more, which can be adjusted from time to time depending on fluctuations in the wage index. In the relevant table published, these 25 occupations are as follows:
1. Software and System Engineers
2. Application and Data Architects
3. ICT and Enterprise Solution Architects
4. Technical Assurance Professionals
5. Telecom and Space Engineers
6. Data scientists
7. Machine Learning Engineers
8. Web Developers and designers
9. UX User Experience Professionals
10. Quantitative Analysts
11. Quality Assurance Analysts
12. Mobile Application Developers
13. Augmented Reality/ Virtual Reality Programmers
14. Digital Marketing Specialists
15. Video Production Multimedia Specialists for Mobile Apps and Software
16. Analysts for Mobile Apps and Software
17. Designers of Prototype for Mobile Devices
18. DevOps Engineers
19. Cyber Security Specialists
20. Artificial Intelligence, Robotics and Big Data Specialists
21. Pharmaceutical Formulation Technologists
22. Pharmaceutical Engineer Validation Specialists
23. Pharmaceutical Patents Specialists
24. Pharmaceutical Regulatory and Quality Assurance Professionals
25. Marine Engineers
26. Naval Architects
Benefits for companies and the economy
On the same website, the Ministry of Energy, Commerce and Industry also records the benefits that will arise for companies that will join the mechanism and that will choose to prefer Cyprus for any relocation of their headquarters or for the creation of a new base. These include:
• There are no time restrictions on the years of residence of foreign employees (Senior Management, Inter-Management Staff, Specialized Personnel).
• It is not necessary to secure a sealed contract from the Department of Labour for third-country nationals who fall within the Senior Management and Inter-Management level or the Specialized Personnel.
• There is direct access to the family reunification of foreign employees with their families (spouse and minor children), provided that the relevant conditions of the Aliens and Immigration Act, Cap. 105 as amended.
• Temporary residence and employment permits may be issued to the companies referred to as Senior Management, Middle Management and Specialized Personnel whose entry into the Republic has been obtained by means of a tourist visa, i.e. without prior authorisation from the TPM (this is not part of the existing policy of the Council of Ministers, but an administrative practice followed to facilitate the companies).
