Cyprus
Cyprus is the cheapest reputable euro-zone jurisdiction on the platform. A private limited company is filed under the Cyprus Companies Law, Cap. 113: a full EU member state, English-friendly statutory framework, and EU passporting and SEPA banking access from day one. The honest trade-offs are transparency and cost. Cyprus runs a public-facing beneficial-owner register, so your ownership is on record rather than anonymous; corporate income tax is low for the bloc but not zero; and every Cyprus company carries a statutory annual audit regardless of size. For a cross-border operator who wants a credible EU operating wrapper at the lowest reputable price band and is comfortable being on a public register, Cyprus is a practical and inexpensive choice.
- Tier
- REPUTABLE
- Formation
- 10 business days
- Apostille
- Supported
- UBO register
- Public
- EU list
- Off both EU lists
- FATF list
- Off the FATF lists
Figures verified February 2026 · Sources: EU Annex I/II and FATF list status, detailed in Plain talk below.
Can a non-resident form a Cyprus company?
Yes. A non-resident can form a Cyprus entity. Cyprus is a REPUTABLE jurisdiction. It onboards at a bank without the reflexive offshore-flag conversation. Formation is $2,249 all-in / ₿0.02825377 / 2,825,377 sats, paid in Bitcoin or USDT, and takes 10 business days.
- Tier
- REPUTABLE
- From price
- $2,249 all-in
- Formation time
- 10 business days
- EU / FATF status
- off both EU lists, off the FATF lists
- Public UBO register
- Yes
- Apostille
- Supported
What makes Cyprus different
- Full EU member state with EU passporting and SEPA business-banking access; not on any EU or FATF list.
- Cap. 113 is an English-language statute and English is the working language of the corporate-services market: the framework is familiar.
- Corporate income tax is 15% effective January 2026 (raised from 12.5% under OECD Pillar Two): low for the EU but not zero.
- IP-Box regime delivers roughly 2.5% effective tax on qualifying IP income for IP-holding companies.
- Cheapest reputable euro-zone jurisdiction at the formation tier on the platform, with a published 10-business-day formation timeline.
What you are actually buying with Cyprus
REPUTABLE means institution-grade acceptance. A compliance desk onboards this entity without the reflexive enhanced-due-diligence conversation an offshore flag triggers.
Cyprus banks within the EU and SEPA, which is a genuine advantage over offshore IBCs. The constraint is due diligence, not access: Cypriot banking has been deliberately heavy on source-of-funds and substance review since the 2013 deposit bail-in, so expect documentary onboarding and real questions about where the money comes from. Major US business-banking rails do not onboard a Cyprus Ltd. See the Banking page for named rails.
Cyprus runs a public-facing beneficial-owner register. Your ownership is on record, not anonymous. If privacy from public disclosure is your priority, this disqualifies Cyprus immediately; pick Wyoming or New Mexico instead.
It is low-tax, not no-tax. Corporate income tax is 15% effective January 2026 (up from 12.5% under Pillar Two), and the statutory annual audit is a mandatory recurring cost on every company regardless of size, baked into the $1,499/yr renewal. If you expected a zero-tax, zero-maintenance shell, a mid-tier offshore IBC is a different tool; Cyprus is a real EU company with real obligations.
What we collect, and what Cyprus filing requires
- Email, country of residence, intended use statement
- OFAC + EU + UN sanctions screen (every order)
- Tier 1 KYC (ID + proof of address + source-of-funds attestation): required on this SKU
- Beneficial owner identification per Cyprus and EU AML obligations, filed to the Cyprus UBO register
- Notarized passport copy and proof of address for each director and shareholder
- Director consent and the first subscriber documents naming the initial shareholder
The honest note: The licensed Cyprus corporate-services provider is a regulated firm statutorily required to identify the beneficial owner regardless of our platform-level tier. Cyprus also operates a public-facing UBO register, so beneficial-ownership data is filed to a register that is not private the way a US LLC is: your ownership is on record. Anonymous formation is not available on this SKU.
Where Cyprus entities bank
Cyprus banks within the EU and SEPA, which is a genuine advantage over offshore IBCs. The constraint is due diligence, not access: Cypriot banking has been deliberately heavy on source-of-funds and substance review since the 2013 deposit bail-in, so expect documentary onboarding and real questions about where the money comes from. Major US business-banking rails do not onboard a Cyprus Ltd. See the Banking page for named rails.
Full banking rankingWhen this jurisdiction is right (and wrong)
If you want EU passporting and SEPA banking at the lowest reputable price band, Cyprus is the most efficient route on the platform. At $2,249 all-in it is the cheapest credible euro-zone formation we offer, and the entity is a full EU company, not an offshore vehicle that counterparties second-guess.
If you are holding IP and your income qualifies for the Cyprus IP-Box, the effective rate of roughly 2.5% on qualifying income is among the most competitive in the EU. For a genuine IP-holding structure with substance, that is a real and legitimate advantage.
If you are a cross-border founder who needs an EU operating wrapper to invoice EU customers, register for VAT, and bank in euros, Cyprus does that cleanly, in English, with a 10-business-day formation timeline once your Tier 1 KYC is complete.
Cyprus runs a public-facing beneficial-owner register. Your ownership is on record, not anonymous. If privacy from public disclosure is your priority, this disqualifies Cyprus immediately; pick Wyoming or New Mexico instead.
It is low-tax, not no-tax. Corporate income tax is 15% effective January 2026 (up from 12.5% under Pillar Two), and the statutory annual audit is a mandatory recurring cost on every company regardless of size, baked into the $1,499/yr renewal. If you expected a zero-tax, zero-maintenance shell, a mid-tier offshore IBC is a different tool; Cyprus is a real EU company with real obligations.
Banking due diligence is heavy and substance expectations are real. Cypriot banks scrutinize source-of-funds hard, and the jurisdiction still carries a historical offshore-ish reputation that draws extra questions from some counterparties even though Cyprus is on no EU or FATF list. Plan to document your funds clearly and expect a slower onboarding than the headline EU-access framing suggests.
Common Cyprus questions
Is my ownership public in Cyprus?
Yes, to a meaningful degree. Cyprus operates a beneficial-owner register, and your beneficial ownership is filed to it rather than kept private the way a US LLC keeps it off the state record. Cyprus is on no EU or FATF list, so this is a transparency feature, not a red flag, but if anonymity from public-facing disclosure matters to you, Cyprus is the wrong pick. Choose Wyoming or New Mexico for that. General information, not legal advice.
What's the total cost?
$2,249 is the all-in Year-1 price for the Cyprus Private Limited Company, filed through the licensed corporate-services provider. Year-2 onward is $1,499/yr, which covers the mandatory statutory annual audit, the company secretary, and the registered office and agent. You settle the whole order in BTC (on-chain and Lightning) or USDT via BitSettle.
How long does formation take?
About 10 business days for the company-formation step once we have your completed Tier 1 KYC and the director and shareholder documentation. Apostille, which Cyprus supports, adds 5 to 10 business days where your bank requires legalized documents. Bank-account opening is a separate process and is the real gate; budget extra time for source-of-funds review.
Why is there a mandatory annual audit?
Cyprus company law requires every company to file audited financial statements regardless of size; there is no small-company exemption the way some jurisdictions allow. That audit is a recurring cost, and we fold it into the $1,499/yr renewal alongside the company secretary and registered office rather than billing it as a surprise later. It is an ongoing obligation, not a one-time setup item.
Can I form a Cyprus Ltd in Bitcoin?
Yes via OffshoreGuy. The Registrar of Companies and the local provider settle in euros; we pay them from our operating account. You settle the bundled invoice in BTC (on-chain and Lightning) or USDT via BitSettle, the ecosystem's Bitcoin and USDT settlement rail, and we handle the fiat leg off-platform.