Filenews 30 July 2025 - by Theano Thiopoulou
The data announced by the Statistical Service give an image of the gross (gross) salaries granted to Cyprus and highlight once again the wage gap, both among Cypriot workers and among foreigners.
The data show that the percentage of non-Cypriots in the highest salary brackets is increased. However, the percentage of non-Cypriots in the lowest salary bracket is also increased. Therefore, in addition to the wage gap that separates thousands of Cypriots, there is also a mythological gap among non-Cypriots.
- Official data show that one in three Cypriots is paid a gross salary of less than €1500. In total, 36.5% of workers in Cyprus are paid this salary. 30.5% of Cypriots receive this salary and 49.2% of non-Cypriots (EU and from third countries).
- About 4 out of 10 workers - 39.6% - have a gross salary of between €1,500 and €2,999. 43.8% with such a salary are Cypriots and 30.6% are non-Cypriots. It should be noted that the gap between €1,500 and €2,999 is quite large and does not allow to determine what is the percentage of Cypriot workers who have a salary of up to €2,000 gross or even up to €2,509, which is considered by the Statistical Service to be the average gross salary in Cyprus today.
- The higher the monthly salaries, the smaller the percentage of employees who benefit. On the scale of gross monthly salaries from €3,000 to €4,499, the percentage of employees is 12.8%. 15.4% of Cypriot workers are on this scale, as are 7.2% of non-Cypriots.
- The percentage of employees (to 6.1%) for employees with average gross monthly earnings from €4,500 to €5,999 drops sharply. According to the nationality of the employees, 6.6% of Cypriots are on this scale and 4.9% of non-Cypriots.
- Finally, on the higher scale, with an average gross salary of more than €6,000 with a percentage of 5.1% of employees. The percentage of Cypriots who receive such a salary is 3.7% and of non-Cypriots 8.1%.
How Cypriots are paid
According to the data published yesterday by the Statistical Service, during the first quarter of 2025 Cypriot employees were divided into the following tiers:
- Up to €1,500 30.5%
- From €1,500-€2,999, 43.8%
- From €3,000-€4,499, 15.4%
- From €4,500-€5,999, 6.6%
- And over €6,000, 3.7% of Cypriots.
Foreign companies
According to the data, 8.1% of non-Cypriots have gross monthly earnings above €6,000, while Cypriots in this salary bracket are 3.7% of the total.
This may be due to large foreign companies that are established in Cyprus and usually employ staff from abroad for the middle or senior positions and differentiate the remuneration data between foreigners and Cypriots.
The Statistical Service notes that according to preliminary data, the average gross monthly earnings of (all) employees in the first quarter of 2025 are estimated at €2,509, compared to €2,382 in the first quarter of 2024, i.e. an increase of 5.4%.
For the first quarter of 2025, there is an increase of 1.4% in average gross earnings adjusted for seasonal fluctuations compared to the fourth quarter of 2024.
The average gross monthly earnings of men in the first quarter of 2025 are estimated at €2,689 and of women at €2,284. Compared to the first quarter of 2024, the average monthly earnings of men and women increased by 5.2% and 5.5% respectively.
What does average gross earnings mean?
The average monthly earnings of employees include the basic salary, indexation allowance, overtime pay, the Leave Fund, any allowances received by employees during the reporting period, as well as retroactive payments. Allowances include both fixed and non-fixed payments (13th salary, 14th salary, salaries, etc.).
The Statistical Service clarifies that the average monthly earnings are calculated by dividing the total gross earnings before deducting any contributions to the compulsory Social Insurance funds, by the total number of employees who received these salaries. All employees registered in the Social Insurance Services Register are covered. Excluded are people with earnings below the threshold allowed, which was set by the Statistical Office as an indication for persons who were not in normal employment during the reference period (e.g. persons who received only a retroactive payment, persons who worked very few hours, etc.).
