# Cyprus Non-Dom Checker: status, annual saving and your 17-year clock

> Check whether you are non-domiciled in Cyprus, what it saves you each year on dividends and interest, and when your 17 exempt years run out. 2026 rules, the €250,000 paid extension, reviewed by ICPAC and ICAEW chartered accountants in Nicosia.

Publisher: Aqualis Ltd, Nicosia, CY. Members of ICPAC and ICAEW.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-14. Figures marked "Confirm" await adviser sign-off.
Canonical URL: https://nondomchecker.com/

## Short answer

You are non-domiciled in Cyprus if your domicile of origin is outside Cyprus and you have not been tax resident here for 17 of the last 20 years. Once tax resident under the 183-day or 60-day rule, a non-dom pays no Special Defence Contribution on dividends or interest, against 5% on dividends and 17% on interest for domiciled residents. Rental contribution was abolished for everyone in 2026. You still pay the 2.65% General Healthcare System contribution on passive income, capped at €180,000 of income. The status lasts 17 years and can be extended twice, for €250,000 per five-year period.

## Cyprus non-dom rules, 2026

- **Who pays Special Defence Contribution**: Only individuals who are both tax resident and domiciled in Cyprus. A non-dom resident is outside it entirely (In law)
- **Domicile of origin**: Acquired at birth under the Wills and Succession Law, normally from your father. Birthplace and passport do not decide it (In law)
- **Deemed domicile**: Tax resident in Cyprus for at least 17 of the 20 years before the tax year, whatever your domicile of origin (In law)
- **Exception for Cypriot origin**: Domicile of choice abroad and at least 20 consecutive years outside Cyprus tax residence before the tax year. How long it lasts after return is read differently (Confirm)
- **Dividends, domiciled resident**: 5% on profits earned from 2026. 17% on pre-2026 profits distributed up to 31 December 2031 (In law)
- **Interest, domiciled resident**: 17%. 3% on Cyprus and EU government savings bonds and certain listed bonds (Confirm)
- **Rent**: Contribution on rent abolished for everyone from 1 January 2026. Rent is taxed under income tax only (In law)
- **General Healthcare System**: 2.65% on dividends, interest and rent, on total income up to €180,000 a year. Non-doms pay it too (In law)
- **Paid extension**: €250,000 lump sum for each five-year period, up to two periods. Irrevocable, non-refundable, only for a domicile of origin outside Cyprus (In law)
- **Extension deadline**: 30 June of the first year of the five-year period. Transitional deadline of 30 June 2026 for people deemed domiciled in 2024 to 2026 (Confirm)
- **Tax residence, 183-day rule**: More than 183 days in Cyprus in the calendar year (In law)
- **Tax residence, 60-day rule**: At least 60 days, no more than 183 in any other single state, a Cyprus home, and a Cyprus business, job or directorship. Not resident elsewhere is no longer required from 2026 (In law)
- **Claiming the exemption**: Declaration form T.D.38 to the payer, with domicile questionnaires where asked. Exempt income shown on the annual return (Confirm)
- **Capital gains tax**: 20%, only on Cyprus immovable property and shares deriving at least 20% of their value from it (In law)
- **Crypto-assets**: 8% on gains from disposal, separate from non-dom status, which does not cover them (In law)
- **Foreign pension option**: 5% on foreign pension above €5,000 a year, or normal income tax bands, chosen each year (In law)

## How to establish and keep Cyprus non-dom status

1. **Document your domicile.** Collect evidence of your father's domicile at your birth and of your life abroad. For anyone born in Cyprus or of Cypriot parents, this file is the whole case.
2. **Become tax resident.** Meet the 183-day rule, or the 60-day rule with a Cyprus home and a Cyprus business, job or directorship. Register for a tax identification number.
3. **Claim the exemption.** Give the paying company or bank the non-dom declaration so no contribution is withheld, and show the income as exempt on your annual tax return.
4. **Plan for year 18.** Decide whether to distribute early, pay for an extension or accept the domiciled rates. An extension must be applied for by 30 June of the first year it covers.

## Free tools on this page

- **Cyprus non-dom eligibility and 17-year clock**: Tests domicile of origin, the 17-of-20 deemed domicile rule, the 20-year exception for people of Cypriot origin and tax residence, then returns a non-dom, domiciled or deemed domiciled verdict with reasons, the first and last exempt year, the paid extension windows and deadlines, and the exempt years remaining.
- **Cyprus non-dom annual saving calculator**: Sets out a year of dividends, interest and rent as a statement, comparing Special Defence Contribution for a domiciled resident with a non-dom, the 2.65% General Healthcare System contribution within the €180,000 cap, the net annual saving and the saving over the exempt years remaining, with an optional comparison against UK dividend tax 2026/27 or German capital income tax.
- **Cyprus non-dom extension break-even calculator**: Compares the €250,000 fee for a five-year extension of Cyprus non-dom status with the Special Defence Contribution it avoids on expected dividends and interest, and returns the break-even yearly passive income and a verdict.

## Questions and answers

### What does non-dom mean in Cyprus?

It means you are tax resident in Cyprus but not domiciled here for the Special Defence Contribution. That exempts your dividends and interest from the contribution, which a domiciled resident pays at 5% on dividends and 17% on interest. It is not a visa or a residence permit.

### How long does Cyprus non-dom status last?

Seventeen tax years of residence. In the year after the seventeenth, the twenty years behind you contain seventeen of residence and you are deemed domiciled. Someone resident from 2026 is exempt to the end of 2042. Since 2026 it can be extended twice by five years for a fee.

### Can I lose my non-dom status in Cyprus before 17 years?

Not through the passing of time alone. You can lose it if your domicile of origin turns out to be Cyprus, or if you acquire a domicile of choice here, which needs a clear intention to stay permanently. Losing tax residence also ends the benefit, although it then has nothing to exempt.

### Do I need to apply for non-dom status in Cyprus?

There is no formal grant. You claim it by declaration, on form T.D.38 to the company or bank paying you, and on your annual return. A written confirmation can be requested from the Tax Department, and people born in Cyprus or with Cypriot parents should expect a domicile questionnaire. The current forms are for the adviser to confirm. Keep the evidence from day one.

### Is non-dom the same as Cyprus tax residence?

No. Tax residence comes from the 183-day or the 60-day rule and decides whether Cyprus taxes you at all. Domicile decides whether one particular tax, the defence contribution, applies to your passive income. You need to be resident for non-dom to make any difference.

### Can a Cypriot qualify as non-dom in Cyprus?

Sometimes. A person with a Cyprus domicile of origin is treated as non-domiciled if they acquired a domicile of choice abroad and were not tax resident in Cyprus for at least 20 consecutive years before the tax year. Advisers read differently how long this lasts after return, so take advice before relying on it. The paid extension is not available to them.

### Does my spouse also get Cyprus non-dom status?

Not automatically. Domicile and the 17-year count are tested for each person, so each spouse needs their own declaration and file. A couple with different origins can have different answers, which matters when deciding who holds the shares or the deposits.

### What do I still pay on dividends as a Cyprus non-dom?

The General Healthcare System contribution of 2.65%, on total income up to €180,000 a year, so at most €4,770. No defence contribution and no income tax. Your company will already have paid 15% corporation tax on the profits behind the dividend.

### What is the 2026 Cyprus non-dom extension and who can use it?

A person whose domicile of origin is outside Cyprus, and who becomes deemed domiciled, can pay €250,000 to keep the exemption for five more years, and do it once more, to 27 years in all. The election is irrevocable and the fee is never refunded. The application is due by 30 June of the first year of the period. A transitional deadline of 30 June 2026 applied to people already deemed domiciled.

### Does Cyprus non-dom status cover crypto gains?

No. From 2026 gains on disposing of crypto-assets are taxed at a flat 8% under income tax, for domiciled and non-domiciled residents alike. Losses can only be set against crypto gains in the same year. Non-dom status covers dividends and interest only.

### Are foreign capital gains taxed in Cyprus?

Cyprus capital gains tax applies only to Cyprus immovable property and to shares that draw at least 20% of their value from it. Gains on foreign shares, funds and property are outside it, and gains on securities are exempt from income tax. This is true whether or not you are non-dom.

### Is there inheritance tax in Cyprus?

No. Estate duty was abolished from 1 January 2000 and there is no gift tax. Your heirs may still face tax in their own country, and the UK can reach a former long-term resident's estate for years after departure. Succession law is a separate question from tax.

### What happens to my Cyprus non-dom clock if I leave and come back?

The test looks at the twenty years before each tax year, so years abroad add nothing and old years drop out of the window. Leaving for a few years usually pushes your end year back. Some advisers read the law as keeping deemed domicile until you have spent twenty years away, so confirm before you plan around it.

### Does Cyprus non-dom status reduce tax on my salary or pension?

No. Salary is taxed under income tax from 0% to 35%, with a 50% exemption on pay above €55,000 for qualifying new arrivals. A foreign pension can be taxed at 5% above €5,000 a year. Both apply regardless of domicile.

## Contact

Aqualis Ltd, https://www.aqualis.com.cy