During the Copenhagen European Council in December 2002, Cyprus officially confirmed the accession negotiations and was invited to join the European Union on 1st May 2004 and Cyprus officially adopted the Euro currency on 1st January 2008.

Further, Cyprus is a member of the United Nations, the Council of Europe and the British Commonwealth.

Cyprus is the third-largest island in the Mediterranean – Cyprus lies off the southern coast of Turkey and the western shore of Syria.  The highest peak is Mount Olympus at 6,406 ft (1,953 m)

The population is estimated at 730,000

The official language is Greek; however English is widely spoken by the majority of the population.  English is taught in schools and is widely used in commerce, industry and administration

Cyprus has two international airports, Larnaca and Paphos, handling approximately 360 scheduled flights each week, operated by most of the international airlines, as well as charter flights.

The last two decades have witnessed the gradual transformation of Cyprus into a reputable international business and financial centre.  Cyprus’ attractiveness as a business investment location is based on the following advantages:

• Strategic geographical location at the crossroads of three continents
• Favourable tax regime
• Compliance with the European Union Code of Conduct for Business Taxation and with the commitment to OECD for the elimination of harmful tax practices
• Wide network of agreements for avoidance of double taxation, including Austria, Canada, China, Denmark, France, Italy, Norway, Russia, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States, etc.
• Simple administrative procedures
• Well qualified lawyers with vast experience in company law and tax planning.  The legal system is based on British law.
• All International Audit Firms are long established in Cyprus
• Highly skilled and flexible labour force, being amongst the most highly qualified in the world
• Competitive level of wages and other costs
• Office space and living accommodation are plentiful and inexpensive keeping overheads low
• Well developed commercial infrastructure
• Advanced telecommunications network – probably the best in the Eastern Mediterranean region
• Voip, VPN, VSat, leased lines, Audiotex, Video Conferencing, Videotext, Electronic Mail, Message Handling and Voice Mail services are readily available