The Ministry of Interior of Cyprus announced that from July 1, Cyprus will not need to obtain licenses for planning and construction of small residential projects.
In particular, we are talking about private houses and apartment buildings with a maximum of 12 apartments.
According to the idea, the responsibility for the realization of such projects in Cyprus will be assumed by an architect and a civil engineer. It should be noted that the innovations are aimed at modernizing the existing procedures by introducing a more flexible licensing structure, which will reduce the processing time of other applications and improve the service to citizens, taking into account the activities of the Regional Local Government Organizations (EOA). Among other things, it will differentiate the process of required consultation with the various agencies, which include the EOA, Fire Department, Water Service and Department of Public Works.
At the same time, the implementation of the integrated information system "Hippodamos" will be promoted in all local authorities, which will allow the digital submission of applications for licenses of different categories.
The measures taken will significantly alleviate the current situation with delays in the review of documents. Bureaucratic red tape will be significantly reduced and the processing time of applications will be accelerated many times over," Cyprus Interior Minister Konstantinos Ioannou said.
Ioannou noted that another major problem causing delays in the issuance of urban planning permits was the lack of staff in the relevant department. To address this shortcoming, the Interior Ministry, in cooperation with municipal authorities, has hired 105 people who will undergo training and eventually become full-time employees of local governments. The hired people are expected to process several pending applications in existing municipalities by June 30, with the first 35 people starting work as early as January 15.
It has also emerged that staff who review applications for planning and building permits in different regions have used different methods of
assessing documents. This was the cause of delays and bureaucratic delays. To avoid similar situations in the future, a special group is developing guidelines for the introduction of uniform forms and procedures for the review of urban planning applications by all local authorities to ensure uniformity and eliminate time-consuming bureaucratic procedures that often cause delays in issuing a decision.