# Larnaca Immigration Office and Residency Advice



## SiAnDem (Jan 8, 2016)

Hi,

My wife (US citizen) and I (UK citizen of Cypriot origin through my mother) have just moved to the Larnaca district, and are trying to figure out the best timeline/approach to acquiring residency.

I am working full time at a school, while my wife is not looking to work at the moment, and I have received conflicting advice as to how best to apply for residency, and when to do so. I know we have to apply within 90 days, but am not sure whether to do so straight away, or if it is better to wait till I have received my first pay check, by which point I should have a social security registration number (though my current employer doesn't seem too proactive about getting this sorted...). Does anyone have any advice about this? And will it be more difficult for my wife to get residency if she is not working?

Regarding the residency requirements, if I am working, does that mean that I do not need health insurance? Would my wife need it, since she is not employed?

Also, some people I've spoken to have suggested I should just apply for citizenship through being of Cypriot origin, and then get it conferred on my wife, but everything I've found online suggests that the Cypriot authorities only care about your father's nationality (pretty backward, if so), and that you can't apply for it till you've been permanently residing in the country for 12 months. Again, does anyone have any experience of going through this?

Finally, I wanted to ask if anyone has used the Larnaca immigration office, and if so, if they might be able to provide me with directions, as I've no idea where it is!

Sorry for the barrage of questions, and thanks in advance for any advice,

Simon


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

Hi Simon, welcome to the forum

I cant answer all of your questions as things have changed a lot since I moved here but there are members who moved here more recently who will be able to answer them.
You must insist that your employer sorts out your social insurance though as this will entitle you to free health care and also your wife is covered as your dependant.
Once you have your social number you can get your hospital card.

Below is a map showing you where to find the immigration office in Larnaca

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place...98,14z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x8859e90121a652c9


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## SiAnDem (Jan 8, 2016)

Thanks so much, Veronica!


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## AMMG (Dec 10, 2015)

Hi Simon,

My wife and I will be arriving in February and going through the residency application some time after that. We are also in a similar situation (British citizen with non-EU spouse).

I'd be very interested to hear your experiences with Larnaca Immigration as we will be using the same office. Please keep us updated

To assist with your decision making, I have been informed on this forum that it would be better to have your social security number in place before applying.

Here is the previous thread:

http://www.expatforum.com/expats/cy...ency-should-i-self-employed-before-after.html

Hope to hear good news from you after you have visited Immigration.

Alun


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## SiAnDem (Jan 8, 2016)

Thanks for the heads-up on the social security number, Alun.

Will keep you posted.

Simon


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## Baywatch (Mar 30, 2014)

SiAnDem said:


> Hi,
> 
> My wife (US citizen) and I (UK citizen of Cypriot origin through my mother) have just moved to the Larnaca district, and are trying to figure out the best timeline/approach to acquiring residency.
> 
> ...


I have said that I should not write in the forum again but no one seem to answer this so I will do.

First, never go on the Cypriot citizenchip route. It is MUCH more complicated. The rules that allow a EU citizen's spouse to get a yellow slip also if he/she is non-EU is not valid for Cypriots, they have a much more complicated process. Our landlord, born by Cypriot both father and mother but with South African Citizenship and a wife from Brazil wanted to go that route. After 2 years they have given up and remain in S.A.

About the health Insurance. If you have paid in to the NHS pr any other EU social security for three years or more yand will be working here, then you have the right to public healthcare here. That also goes for your wife as your dependent. As Veronica say, push the employer, you will not get any yellow slip without the social security number. You can get the document you need here. It is named E104 in all other EU countries but not in UK

https://www.gov.uk/check-national-insurance-record

I don't think there is any difference between the immigration offices. You will get your slip very quickly, perhaps the same day if all documents are in order, your wife's will take some weeks, her papers will be sent to Nicosia for evaluation. If they for some reason try to deny her, please contact me and I will help you. We had the same problem when we came


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## SiAnDem (Jan 8, 2016)

Thank you so much, Anders. That is incredibly helpful.

Simon


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## zach21uk (Jun 26, 2014)

Hi Simon,

I am basically the same as you - I am British / Cypriot and my wife is from Florida, USA. 

My wife (fiancee at the time) arrived in Cyprus about 2 months after I did and during those two months, I was able to register as self employed with the social insurance office. 

The process was fairly easy and once registered, I was able to get a certificate of income from the social insurance office which was sufficient alongside my rental agreement, passport and medical insurance, for immigration to grant me a yellow slip.

My wife (Liz) and I were not married when she arrived here in Cyprus, so this is the part where our process may differ slightly. 

We made Liz's immigration appointment on around day 80 of her being here, within the 90 days. During those 80 days, we organized a civil ceremony at Paphos Town Hall and got married.

Liz was registered as my dependent and spouse - we required the same basic "immigration" level medical insurance as well as her US passport and birth certificate and also my proof of income once again (to show that I was making enough money to cover both of us).

We took all those documents to our appointment, everything was processed and Liz got a receipt from the immigration office stating that her application was being processed (in case anyone stopped her in the meantime) and then about eight weeks later, her own yellow slip turned up in the mail. Its valid for five years as far as I remember and it entitles her to live and work here.

The entire process was very smooth for both of us and I did not experience any issues at all. Very easy to complete.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you have questions.

Zach


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## SiAnDem (Jan 8, 2016)

Thanks so much for this, Zach. I hope my process goes as smoothly!

Regarding health insurance, I've read conflicting things about whether you need it if you're in full-time employment. I'm guessing from what you've said that the right answer is that my wife and I do need to get some?

Thanks again,

Simon


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## Baywatch (Mar 30, 2014)

SiAnDem said:


> Thanks so much for this, Zach. I hope my process goes as smoothly!
> 
> Regarding health insurance, I've read conflicting things about whether you need it if you're in full-time employment. I'm guessing from what you've said that the right answer is that my wife and I do need to get some?
> 
> ...


If zou are employed the employer must take care of your payments to the social fund. If zou have paid in to NHS for 3 years or more you are entitled to healthcare here and dont need any private insurance. Nor do your wife, she is a dependent of you


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## SiAnDem (Jan 8, 2016)

Terrific. Thanks again, Anders. I'll get to work on filling out the E106 form then.

Simon


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