Five years have passed since Cyprus closed its Citizenship by Investment Program and began a large-scale investigation into dozens of suspicious naturalizations. The island nation is still feeling the effects of the scandal, which undermined its international reputation and called into question the effectiveness of its national institutions.
The investigation concerns nearly two hundred cases, many of which involve foreign investors and offshore companies. The investigative procedures have been drawn out, with some cases taking more than four years to process.
The case involves hundreds of participants and dozens of ongoing investigations
According to the police and the Office of the Prosecutor General, 195 suspicious cases of citizenship granting have come to light since 2021, of which 28 have been closed due to a lack of evidence of a crime. The remaining cases involve hundreds of individuals and legal entities, making the investigative process extremely complex.
So far, only four cases have gone to court. One of these cases, filed in May 2021, involves eight defendants, including a lawyer, his law firm, and companies that provided administrative services. The court initially acquitted the defendants, but the Attorney General appealed the decision in February 2025, and the case was sent back for retrial.
To date, criminal cases have been opened against 26 individuals and legal entities charged with corruption, fraud, providing false information, and other crimes related to "golden" passports.
The Attorney General's Office emphasizes that it is keeping the investigations under constant review and holding regular meetings with the police to provide guidance on each case. All materials from the commission that previously examined the case have been handed over to the police to initiate criminal proceedings.
Stripping citizenship: dozens of investors and their families hit hard
The investment citizenship scandal has resulted in court cases and the mass revocation of Cypriot passports. According to official data from the Cypriot Ministry of the Interior, 306 individuals, including 88 investors and 218 members of their families, have had their passports revoked since 2021.
This practice applies to individuals who obtained passports through violations, provided false information, or ended up on international sanctions lists. More than a hundred people have already lost their Cypriot documents, which means they have also lost their EU passports.
International pressure and legal deadlocks
The key difficulty in the investigations is the transnational nature of the cases. Many of the investors came from Asia and the Middle East, and local authorities often do not respond to requests from the Cypriot police. This leads to serious delays; some cases have remained under investigation for up to four years.
Cypriot law enforcement agencies must resubmit requests for judicial assistance, but progress remains slow. Meanwhile, the Attorney General's Office and the police are collaborating closely to minimize errors and ensure the courts have solid evidence.
"The problem was in the control, not in the program itself."
Dimitra Kalogirou, the former head of the Securities and Exchange Commission and chair of several investigative commissions, emphasizes that the concept of investment citizenship was not flawed. According to Kalogirou, the program played an important role after the 2013 banking crisis, helping to attract billions of euros to the Cypriot economy.
The main failure was the lack of proper control. Reports by independent commissions state that 53% of all naturalizations did not meet the established criteria. In some cases, passports were issued to individuals with criminal records or who were wanted by the authorities.
Prospects include new rules and tighter oversight
Currently, the Cypriot authorities are attempting to regain the trust of their international partners and investors. At the EU level, uniform standards for all investment-based residency programs are being discussed to prevent another "golden passport" scandal.
Starting in 2023, the Cypriot government tightened the rules for issuing residence permits in exchange for investment. Checks are now more detailed, and candidates are monitored by national authorities and international databases.
However, experts note that Cyprus's reputation has already been damaged. The question remains: Will the country be able to prove that it has learned from the scandal and can combine capital attraction with transparency and the rule of law?