Cyprus

The Republic of Cyprus is an eastern Mediterranean island strategically located at the crossroads of three continents; Europe, Asia, and Africa. A European Union member since May 1, 2004 and a member of the Euro-Zone since January 1, 2008 Cyprus also enjoys excellent business relations and flight connections with the Middle East. Cyprus enjoys a strong economy despite the recent worldwide economic downturn and its growth was less affected than most thanks to conservative government fiscal management and industry focus on financial services and tourism. The country enjoys low inflation and low unemployment rates and consumer purchasing power is high at an estimated per capita GDP of$24 billion in 2008. With the lowest corporate tax rate in the European Union (EU) at only 10%, the island is an ideal jurisdiction for Holding Companies. Moreover, it has over 40 bilateral tax treaties, including with the United States. Cyprus has no withholding tax imposed on dividend income, interest, or royalty payments effected to non-Cypriot beneficiaries. Profits from overseas permanent establishments are tax exempt. In the World Bank “Ease of Doing Business” survey, Cyprus ranked36th out of 185 nations.

The banking, accounting, legal, and financial services are extremely efficient and one of the strong points of the economy. The labor force is largely multilingual and highly qualified and the labor costs are low compared to the EU average. Cyprus has an advanced telecommunications network and infrastructure, as well as, a wide network of air-routes offering excellent connections with Europe, Africa, and Asia, as well as modern ports and first-rate sea connectivity. Cyprus ranks among the 10 leading maritime nations in the world and is a highly reputable international shipping center with a merchant fleet exceeding 21 million gross tonnage (accounting for 16% of the EU fleet) and nearly 2000 vessels. It constitutes one of the largest ship-management centers in the world with around 50 ship-management companies and marine-related foreign enterprises that conduct their international activities in the country. Cyprus has also developed into a transshipment center for Asia Pacific trade with Europe and with shipping markets situated along the coasts of the Levant and Black Sea, or the North Adriatic. The island is a natural hub for other main-line deep sea trades passing through the Mediterranean, to North Africa and the Middle East.

NOTES:

1. Average of annualized interest rates commercial banks charge on new loans.
2. CPI Score is published by Transparency International and relates to the perceptions of the degree of corruption as seen by business people and country analysts and ranges between 100 (highly clean) and 0 (highly corrupt).
3. Depending on shareholder residency status
4. Ease of Doing Business Ranking is determined by the World Bank Group and is ranked out of a total of 185 countries.www.doingbusiness.org

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Click the links below for articles with more information on Franchising in Cyprus

Cyprus - A Growing Market for Franchising(2015)

Reform of European Union Rules of Distribution(2010)

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* CPI Scoreis published by Transparency International and relates to the perceptions of the degree of corruption as seen by business people and country analysts and ranges between 100 (highly clean) and 0 (highly corrupt).

**Ease of Doing Business Rankingis determined by the World Bank Group and is ranked out of a possible 185 countries.www.doingbusiness.org

Most recent statistics have been taken from the CIA World Factbook unless noted otherwise.