# Moving to Larnaca



## Meenotyou (May 26, 2014)

Hello all. My wife works for Qatar Airways and has been offered an assignment there in Larnaca.

I have spent a few hours looking over the various threads trying to gather some information. A big thank you to the forum mods and community members as I have found a lot of helpful info.

I see most of the members of this forum are Brits. Please don't bash me too harshly for being a Yank 

First and foremost, I am extremely concerned about my ability to get a job there. It seems job opportunities are pretty hard to come by. Compounding the problem further is that I am an American and not an EU national. Can anyone offer any advice other than to point out the dismal reality or possibly offer some referrals. I am former American military with a background in Intelligence and have served as a diplomat in the Middle East. I am most qualified for operations and program management, risk analysis, and government liaison. However, my heart is in tourism management. I have a BA in Criminal Justice/Counter Terrorism and I am half complete with my MBA with a specialty in Tourism and Hospitality Management. I am also an experienced certified PADI diving instructor (IDC Staff Instructor with a myriad of specialty instructor credentials under my belt).

I hope we can find a way to overcome this as Cyprus seems like a beautiful place to live and it would be great for my wife in terms of her career.

Moving past this, couple other questions if I may:

Anyone able to PM me contact info for an honest, helpful rental broker in Larnaca?

I own a Ford F150 pick-up. I assume this will be a bit of an eye sore there on a small island, plus I know gas is pretty expensive. Any reason I should consider bringing it vice selling it before coming?

I haven't found much on this forum in terms of relocating and things we should procure and bring with us; things that are hard to obtain there. Any recommendations?

As stupid as it sounds, we have been in the Middle East for so long I don't remember what it is like to pay taxes. Can anyone give me the 101 on income taxes there?

Lastly, we hope to meet some great people through this forum so that we know some people when we arrive. My wife and I are both mid-30s and we have a 1 year old daughter. My wife's mother will likely come with us as she is currently living with us here in the ME.

Thank you all.
Regards,
Mike~


----------



## Rema (Aug 12, 2012)

Meenotyou said:


> Hello all. My wife works for Qatar Airways and has been offered an assignment there in Larnaca.
> 
> I have spent a few hours looking over the various threads trying to gather some information. A big thank you to the forum mods and community members as I have found a lot of helpful info.
> 
> ...


Hi Mike,

Welcome and best of luck with the move.

Firstly re the job. You seem to have some pretty interesting credentials! Most folk will comment on the rarity of jobs, particularly here in Paphos where most of our forum members live, but the economy is improving all be it slowly. Larnaca, being both larger and more of a commercial centre should offer better prospects, you would also be closer to Nicosia. I don't have any specific recommendations re work but I'm sure you could approach almost any security focused company and what about the many Embassies? Most Western ones will engage foreign nationals for some aspects of their work. Maybe not the tourism focus you had in mind but I would play to my strengths, at least initially.

A Ford F150 would be awesome. Check out the import charges first though as a big engine with high emissions will push up the rate considerably. You can check this out in advance at CUSTOMS & EXCISE - Welcome to our Website 

This site for information re taxation is http://www.pwc.com.cy/en/publications/assets/tax-facts-figures-2014-en.pdf
Income tax starts at €19,500 and the rate is 20%, it covers all you will need to know.

You can buy almost anything here but you may have to look around a little. Cyprus is not a complete backwater you know! I moved over from UAE last year and have not had any problem. Electrical items and quality (imported) furniture tend to be more expensive, especially compared to the Middle East, so maybe worth thinking about.

Sorry, I can't help with rental brokers in Larnaca as I don't know any.

Hope things work out for you, Cyprus is a great place to live.

Richard aka Rema


----------



## Kirkwoods (Mar 22, 2014)

Hi Mike

My husband and I have just moved to Larnaca from the UK and we've met some lovely yanks!

We rent a house in oroklini which is a village 15mins from Larnaca. We used Antonis loizou estate agents and found Louis to be very good and helpful. Would recommend.

We bought a car here as bringing our 2litre xtrail from the UK was going to very expensive in terms of tax. But it may be cheaper for you.

Can't comment knowledgably on anything else as husband works from home and his business remains based in the UK.

Feel free to get in touch when you arrive. We are late 30s and expecting our first child.

All the best
Sarah & James kirkwood


----------



## Meenotyou (May 26, 2014)

Thank you for the replies.

I am beating every bush I can to see what can be done about employment. I am pretty skeptical but we would love to come to Cyprus so I am trying. We are thinking of flying up for a weekend in early/mid June to get a feel for Larnaca and I am hoping to have some interviews lined up. 

One official website I found stated that when businesses apply for work permits for non-EU nationals, it often takes months to get approved. Anyone able to offer up more positive practicalities? 

Sorry Richard, didn't mean to imply Cyprus was backwater. We live in Oman and even though pretty modern and commercial, they don't manufacture anything locally so everything is imported and expensive (typically about 10-20% more expensive than Dubai as Dubai is often the transit point for goods coming into Oman) and some things are very hard to find here.

As for the F150, I love it but will probably try to sell it before coming. I read some threads about peoples cars getting keyed by local kids for their cars being nicer or more eccentric (my words, not theirs). Just seems it better to go with a smaller economy car there.

Congrats Sarah and James, the first is always exciting. When is the baby due? Ours turned 1 today. We would love to get in touch. I will look up rental agent you recommended. Any particular area that is better than another. We are not looking for lavish. Most everything here in the Middle East is HUGE so small and cozy in a safe neighborhood with nearby shopping and entertainment is ideal (which I guess goes without saying). 

Again, thanks for the replies. Wish you all the best
Mike & Theresa


----------



## Kirkwoods (Mar 22, 2014)

Due in August and heading back to the UK to escape the heat here!

We are still relatively new to the area but have viewed a lot of properties. Definite no's are pervolia and alethrico - too remote and have to drive everywhere. Larnaca itself is mostly apartments - good and central but we have a dog so was a no for us. A few friends live centrally and love being able to walk to places. Livadia is the first village just north of Larnaca - don't know it but seems nice. For us oroklini (2nd village north of Larnaca) ticked all the boxes - a bit quieter but all amenities within walking distance (GP,dentist, bank, pharmacy, groceries stores and ... A 24/7 bakery!).


----------



## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

Meenotyou said:


> Thank you for the replies.
> 
> 
> As for the F150, I love it but will probably try to sell it before coming. I read some threads about peoples cars getting keyed by local kids for their cars being nicer or more eccentric (my words, not theirs). Just seems it better to go with a smaller economy car there.


There are some really nice pickups in Cyprus so I don't think jealousy would be problem. I can't say I have ever heard of cars being keyed because of envy.
However it is wise to go for something more economical as the price of petrol is rising rapidly and also road tax on anything over 1.6 engine is very high.


----------



## Meenotyou (May 26, 2014)

Again, congrats on the future addition to your family. Boy or girl?

Haha, we are coming from the Middle East. It was a humid 47C here today and will likely exceed 50C by weeks end. Not to say it isn't hot there, but for us hot is a relative term lol. As long as I am near the water, I can always cool down.

Thank you very much for the lay of the land. We will probably just get an apartment in the city. To be perfectly honest, things are so spread out here, and the houses so large, it will be nice to be in a small, cozy place with so many neighbors nearby. Fingers crossed for great neighbors. That all said, if you don't mind me asking, from where you are to the city's center, what is the commute time?


----------



## Meenotyou (May 26, 2014)

Veronica said:


> There are some really nice pickups in Cyprus so I don't think jealousy would be problem. I can't say I have ever heard of cars being keyed because of envy.
> However it is wise to go for something more economical as the price of petrol is rising rapidly and also road tax on anything over 1.6 engine is very high.



The thread I was referencing about a car being keyed was by Rema on 12 April title "this really annoyed me!!!" (tried to post link but don't have 5 posts yet). It was about 4am when I read it so if I misinterpreted the facts, I apologize.

I didn't know anything about a road tax. Where can I find more information about it?

Are motorcycles pretty common there, particularly 750-900 sport bikes/super sports? Also, I saw you recommend an auto dealer to Alun (hope I got the name right) in another thread. Does the same dealer have a branch in Larnaca by chance?


----------



## Meenotyou (May 26, 2014)

Haha, just noticed Rema is Richard...the first gentleman to offer a reply to this thread.


----------

