An urban amnesty plan was approved by the Council of Ministers on Friday afternoon. Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou said the proceeds generated by the plan will be used to strengthen the government's housing policy.

"Today's decision is particularly important for thousands of our fellow citizens who have been trapped for years without the right to issue of title deeds due to a small area of arbitrary constructions on their premises," he said in statements after the end of the Council of Ministers meeting.

As he clarified, through the urban amnesty plan, owners are given a way out, with the possibility to submit a request with new terms and simplified procedures to obtain planning permission for small-scale deviations, by paying a fixed monetary fee.

At the same time, he added, by introducing a series of strict and clear safeguards, the possibility of abuse of the plan is reduced. Specifically, he noted, the plan will be implemented once with immediate effect and a duration of 6 months, that is, until March 2025. Also, the new plan will be applied only in cases where the arbitrary constructions were made in an approved building, i.e. that has an issued planning permit, or a building permit until today.

The Minister noted that, in the same vein, the arbitrary additions should have been completed before today. The execution time of the urban planning arbitrariness will be certified by a solemn declaration of the professional designer.

As he said, the limited duration of the project ensures the possibility of citizens for immediate actions to submit the application, while the fact that only those cases of irregularities that have been completed will be examined aims to limit the possibility of additional arbitrary constructions.

In addition, he noted that the new plan concerns cases of exceeding the building ratio or regulatory urban deviations, while it extends to a wide range of buildings, such as residential, industrial, office, livestock and other developments.

The amount to be paid ranges from €300 to €3,000, based on the category of deviation and the area in which the property falls, i.e. if it is in an area where a local plan or policy statement is implemented.

The Minister stressed that the most important parameter of the plan lies in its interconnection with the housing policy implemented over the last 10 months by the government. As he said, it was ensured through the plan that the compensation paid for the legalization of arbitrariness will be deposited in special funds of the Cyprus Land Development Agency and will be channelled for the purpose of producing affordable housing. "This means that the revenues will be reciprocal, will strengthen the state's effort to increase affordable housing options and, by extension, will help meet the housing needs of our socio-economically vulnerable fellow citizens, strengthening the social policy pursued by the government."

As he said, the full text of the plan, as well as the procedure to be followed by interested parties, will be posted on Monday on the website of the Department of Town Planning and Housing and applications will be submitted to the urban planning authorities all over Cyprus, namely the 5 District Local Government Organizations, as of Monday, September 23, 2024.

"I urge our fellow citizens who are affected to study the plan and use it within the 6-month time frame, so that they can secure title deeds and extricate themselves from the impasse they are in, thus utilizing our property."

Asked about this, he said that the plan includes several thousand owners who will be able to be amnestied, who either have exceeded the building coefficient, or the borders, or various other excesses.

The new Urban Amnesty Plan in detail

1. The new Urban Amnesty Plan aims to enable citizens to legalize arbitrary constructions in approved developments, which involve small-scale regulatory deviations and which do not substantially affect the whole, type of development or amenities of the residents.

Specifically, the proposed new "Town Planning Amnesty Scheme" will apply only in cases of arbitrary constructions in buildings that have obtained planning permission and/or building permit until the date of this Decision of the Council of Ministers, in order to obtain Certificates of Approval and issuance of Property Titles.

The Scheme will last for 6 months from the date of approval of this Proposal by the Council of Ministers, in order to ensure the possibility of citizens for immediate application actions before its expiry, while limiting the possibility of additional arbitrary constructions.

2. It is recalled that in the past, an Urban Incentives Scheme entitled Measures for the Legalization and Licensing of Arbitrary/New Constructions in Approved Developments had been implemented, with the Decision of the Council of Ministers No. 79.263 (29/07/2015), valid for four years, until 31/12/2019, which was extended by three subsequent Decisions of the Council of Ministers (no. 88.892, dated 5/2/2020, until 31/12/2021, with no. 90.872, dated 17/2/2021, until 31/12/2022, and with no. 93.993, dated 15/11/2022, until 31/12/2023).until 31/12/2023.

3. The fact that this plan concerned only buildings that had been licensed until 2015, resulted in the number of submitted applications (3,151 town planning applications) not being representative of the number of arbitrary constructions nationwide, as it is estimated that there are many more buildings with irregularities whose owners did not seek to benefit from the Plan, in order to obtain a Certificate of Approval and issue the Title Deed. Therefore, it is considered beneficial to implement a new policy framework for granting an urban amnesty.

4. The "Urban Amnesty Plan for the Legalization of Arbitrary Constructions in Approved Developments" provides in summary the following:

(a) Validity of the Plan 6 months from the date of this Decision of the Council of Ministers, with a wide scope (residential, industrial, office, recreation/entertainment, etc.).

(b) Application also to buildings that have obtained planning permission and/or building permit until the date of this Decision of the Council of Ministers, for a significant increase in the number of beneficiaries.

(c) Introduction of an obligation to pay compensation in cases of residential development with three classifications exceeding the building coefficient, as they arise within the main shell of the existing building, outside the main shell (horizontal or vertical extension), or in case an additional residential unit has been created with the implemented arbitrary construction, and introduction of an obligation to pay compensation also in cases where the building factor is exceeded and for other categories of development.

(d) Introduction of an obligation to compensate for regulatory deviations (covered veranda/pergola, reduced distance from the border, increased coverage rate, increased height or length of ancillary building along a common border, etc.), categorized into small scale and significant deviation, or larger.

(e) Payment of compensation to the Special Funds of the Cyprus Housing Organization for the Affordable Housing Scheme, at a particularly critical stage of its implementation, before the granting of planning permission, minus 10% of the required compensation, which will be deposited, before the granting of the planning permit, to the Funds of the Urban Planning Authorities (District Local Government Organizations), for the administrative burden that will arise with the implementation of the Plan.

5. It is noted that the market value of the building factor will be calculated on the basis of the applicable General Assessment Tables of the competent Department of Lands and Surveys, using and completing the form SPECIAL FORM FOR REDEMPTION OF THE EXCESS OF THE BUILDING COEFFICIENT, while in cases of regulatory deviations from provisions of the Development Plans, a specific amount is determined for each category of deviation, depending on its scale and importance, as well as the administrative area to which the property falls (Local Plan/Area Plan, or Rural Policy Statement), using the COMPENSATION TABLE.

Scope and Provisions of the Plan

A. ADDITIONS AND MODIFICATIONS TO EXISTING APPROVED DEPLOYMENTS

1.1 Residential Development

1.1.1 In the case of a residential development that has obtained a planning permit and/or a building permit before the date of this Decision of the Council of Ministers, where extensions have been implemented without obtaining the required planning permit, resulting in exceeding the maximum allowed building density coefficient of the current Zone, or the approved building coefficient with prior permission, the Planning Authority may approve an increase in this floor area ratio by 20%, or by 60 sq.m., whichever is greater.

Arbitrary extensions may have been implemented either inside the building envelope (integration of auxiliary spaces, parking sheds, covered verandas, inside the unit), or outside the shell (horizontal and/or vertical extension). The Planning Authority may also approve an extension concerning an arbitrarily constructed additional residential unit, exclusively to cover the housing needs of the organic family of the owner of the plot, or in cases where the Planning Authority assesses that the legalization of the additional unit does not harm amenities and property interests of co-owners.

1.1.2 The implementation of the Plan is also possible in cases of residential apartments in existing apartment buildings, for the purpose of legalizing constructions related to the incorporation of covered verandas or housing and integration of uncovered verandas in the residential unit, provided that the written consent of all co-owners is submitted with the application.

1.1.3 In cases where the building ratio is exceeded in residential developments, it is required to pay a compensation percentage of the value of this excess, depending on the type and category of development, for the support of the Special Funds of the KOAG for Affordable Housing, before the granting of the planning permit, using the Special Form, deducting 10% of the required compensation, which will also be submitted, before the granting of the planning permit, to the Funds of the Urban Planning Authorities (District Local Government Organizations) for the administrative burden that will arise with the implementation of the Plan. The market value is derived from the General Assessment of the competent Department of Lands and Surveys, and the obligation to pay is differentiated as follows:

(i) Payment of compensation of 20% of the value of the excess building coefficient, in cases where the application concerns an increase in the buildable area within the shell of the originally approved building.

(ii) Payment of compensation of 25% of the value of the excess building coefficient, in cases where the application concerns an increase of the buildable area with vertical or horizontal extension, outside the shell of the originally approved building.

(iii) Payment of compensation of 30% of the value of the excess building coefficient, in cases where the application concerns an increase in the buildable area due to an arbitrarily erected additional residential unit.

1.2 Industrial, Handicraft, Storage, Livestock and Agricultural Development

1.2.1 In case of industrial, handicraft and livestock development, or agricultural warehouse, which obtained a planning permit and/or building permit before the date of this Decision of the Council of Ministers, where extensions have been implemented without obtaining the required planning permission, the Planning Authority may approve an increase in the permitted building density coefficient of the current Zone, or the approved building coefficient with prior permission, by 20%, and after obtaining the agreement of the relevant Local Authority.

1.2.2 This possibility also applies in cases of existing approved developments, outside designated Industrial, Handicraft, Livestock Zones or Areas, except in the case of Category A Industrial Developments, or pig farms.

1.2.3 The Planning Authority shall set a condition for the payment of compensation to a Special Fund of the Cyprus Planning Authority prior to the granting of planning permission, amounting to 40% of the value of the buildable area for industrial or craft buildings, 20% of the value of the buildable area for livestock premises, and 10% for agricultural warehouses, based on the General Assessment of the Department of Lands and Surveys, by using the Special Form, minus 10% of the required compensation, which will also be submitted, also before the granting of the planning permit to the Funds of the Urban Planning Authorities (District Local Government Organizations), for the administrative burden that will arise with the implementation of the Plan.

1.3 Commercial and Office Development (additions to approved ground floor stores)

1.3.1 In the case of a shop that obtained a planning permit and/or building permit before the date of this Decision of the Council of Ministers, where an addition has been implemented by converting the mezzanine into a main use, without obtaining the required planning permission, and to facilitate small businesses to increase their living space and improve their operation, in ground floor shops of a ground floor area of up to 100 sq.m., or in ground floor shops operating as offices, the Planning Authority may approve the above conversion, regardless of its height (and less than 2.60 meters), without this area being calculated in the building coefficient, and without requiring additional parking spaces. This incentive may also be applied in cases of consolidation of shops so that they operate as a single enterprise, even if the sum of the area exceeds 100 sq.m.

1.3.2 It is noted that in cases of mezzanine conversion, and given that the mezzanine is part of the unit, the signatures of the co-owners are not required for the purposes of applying for planning permission. It is clarified that although this area is entered in the Title Deed (as additional square meters), it is not taken into account for the purpose of calculating the percentage of the share in the joint ownership.

1.4 Recreation/Entertainment Development

1.4.1 In case of development of recreation / entertainment (cafeteria, restaurant, snack bar, etc.), which has obtained a planning permit and / or building permit before the date of this Decision of the Council of Ministers, where extensions have been implemented without obtaining the required planning permission, the Planning Authority may approve an increase of the permitted building coefficient, by 20% of the current one or up to 100 sq.m., Any is smaller, as it results either by converting a mezzanine into a main use, or as it results from a horizontal extension (except in cases of jointly owned buildings), provided that the extension was implemented to improve functionality and upgrade the surrounding area, without affecting the amenities of the residents.

1.4.2 The Planning Authority may authorise an extension concerning the creation of an outdoor dining area, provided that its area does not exceed 30% of the approved indoor dining area, with light constructions for shading, in an area that has been registered as a limited common property (license), and provided that all the signatures of the co-owners are secured, and the agreement of the Local Authority, provided that the amenities of the residents are not affected. It is noted that the Planning Authority may accept the location of the additional required parking spaces on another suitable plot, as well as apply the institution of redemption, as described in paragraph D(e) below.

1.4.3 In case the addition concerns an extension of the internal space to a piece of land belonging either to one owner or to more, and the extension is proposed on a piece of land that is objectively obvious to belong to the applicant, it is possible to approve an implemented extension outside the shell of the main building, which results in exceeding the maximum allowed building density coefficient of the current Zone, or the approved building ratio with prior permission, up to 20%, or up to 100 sq.m., whichever is less. In these cases, the Planning Authority will set a condition for the payment of compensation to a Special Fund of the Cyprus Planning Authority prior to the granting of planning permission, amounting to 30% of the value of the buildable area, based on the General Assessment of the Department of Lands and Surveys, using the Special Form, minus 10% of the required compensation, which will be deposited, also before the granting of the planning permit, to the Funds of the Urban Planning Authorities (District Local Government Organizations), for the administrative burden that will arise with the implementation of the Plan.

B. CHANGE OF USE OF PART OF A RESIDENTIAL UNIT TO BUSINESS PREMISES

1.1 In the case of a residential development that has obtained a planning permit and/or a building permit before the date of this Decision of the Council of Ministers, where the conversion of part of the residence into business premises has been implemented without obtaining the required planning permission, the Planning Authority may approve the change of use in case it concerns a limited area (of the order of 60 sq.m.), If the conversion has been implemented for the activation of the owner of the respective residential unit, without applying the provision for reducing the building ratio to 70% of the maximum allowed for residential use, while in addition the indication of an additional parking space will not be required.

1.2 This provision applies exclusively to service professions, such as a doctor's office, office, a small one-room tutorial and/or a Class C laboratory (very limited degree of nuisance), and does not apply in cases involving retail trade or leisure/entertainment development.

1.3 This provision also applies in cases where, based on the provisions of the current Development Plan, it is not possible to locate such a development, provided that there are no negative effects on the amenities of the residents or road safety problems. It is understood that in cases of residential units in apartment buildings, the provision applies only if the proposed development is permitted under the Development Plan, and provided that the signatures of all co-owners are secured.

C. DEVIATION FROM REGULATORY PROVISIONS

1.1 The Urban Planning Amnesty Scheme enables the Planning Authority to examine ad valorem and approve, regardless of the content of any regulatory provisions (Development Plans, Orders, etc.), and without obtaining the consent of the competent Local Authority, arbitrary extensions to buildings with an initial planning permit and/or building permit prior to the date of this Decision of the Council of Ministers, falling into two categories of regulatory divergences, limited in scale and importance of a technical nature, and more substantial divergences.

1.2 Technical deviations include the distances of buildings from the boundaries of the plot, the distances between the main and auxiliary buildings, the exceeding of the coverage rate, the length of contact of auxiliary buildings at common borders, the maximum allowed height and/or the number of floors of main and auxiliary buildings, etc., at the discretion of the Planning Authority. It is understood that the arbitrarily implemented extensions must not alter the architecture of the building, nor affect the amenities of the residents and the environment and the physiognomy of the area.

1.3 The amount of compensation varies according to the scale and importance of the deviation, as well as the area covered by the property (Local Plan/Area Plan, or Rural Policy Statement), as shown in the attached COMPENSATION TABLE.

D. BASIC CONDITIONS

The Urban Amnesty Scheme is implemented provided that the following terms and conditions are met:

(a) The building is approved and the development obtained planning permission and/or building permission before the date of this Decision of the Council of Ministers, and the arbitrary additions were implemented before the date of this Decision. It is noted that when submitting the application, the competent designer will submit a Solemn Declaration in relation to the date of implementation of the arbitrary additions.

(b) The additions, outside and within the shell of the approved building, will be in harmony with the morphology and architecture of the building and will have been implemented with materials of high aesthetics and quality, and will not result in an adverse effect on the environment, or any negative impact on the comforts of the residents, or an effect on the property rights of third parties.

(c) In cases where the building ratio is exceeded, a condition will be set in the planning permit for the payment of compensation of a specific percentage of the value of the excess as extracted from the General Assessment of the Department of Lands and Surveys, which will be paid before the granting of the planning permit by the competent Authority, for the reinforcement of the Special Funds of the KOAG for Affordable Housing, deducting 10% of the required compensation, which will be deposited, also before the granting of the planning permit, to the Funds of the Urban Planning Authorities (District Self-Government Organizations), for the administrative burden that will arise with the implementation of the Plan, by completing the attachment. SPECIAL FORM FOR REDEMPTION OF EXCESS BUILDING COEFFICIENT.

(d) In cases of deviation from a regulatory provision, the payment of a specific compensation per category of deviation will be required, before the granting of the planning permit, and depending on whether the property falls within the limits of a Local Plan or a Rural Policy Statement, also for the support of the Special Funds of the KOAG for Affordable Housing, and as shown in the attached COMPENSATION TABLE, deducting 10% of the required compensation, which will be deposited, also before the granting of the planning permit, to the Funds of the Urban Planning Authorities (District Local Government Organizations), for the administrative burden that will arise with the implementation of the Plan.

(e) The Planning Authority will activate the mechanism for the acquisition of additional required parking spaces, in cases where these cannot be located on the property to be developed, even if the development falls within an area where the Order of the Minister of the Interior for the acquisition of parking spaces is not applied, without requiring the procedure for approval of the deviation of the Order by the Minister of the Interior.

(f) The Minister of Home Affairs may send Circular Instructions to clarify the provisions of this Urban Amnesty Plan, as paragraph 14 of the Delegation of Powers Decree of 2024.

TABLE OF COMPENSATION FOR REGULATORY DIVERGENCES [only available in Greek currently]