Guidance

Cyprus: Knowledge Base profile

Published 7 March 2024

About: Cyprus

This document contains useful information about Cyprus which will assist HM Passport Office staff process passport applications. This information covers areas in the north of Cyprus and the Republic of Cyprus.

Contacts

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Publication

Below is information on when this version of the document was published:

• version 3.0
• published for Home Office staff on 1 March 2024

Changes from last version of this document

This document has been updated with minor formatting changes.

Cyprus: names

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about names in Cyprus.

Names in Cyprus consist of:

• at least one forename
• a family surname

A mother’s surname must be the same as the father’s surname on a child’s birth certificate, whether the parents are married or not.

Change of name

Parents can change the forenames of a child within the first year. Surnames can only be changed by a court order. The exception to this is a spelling change which can be done without a Court order.

Previously Cypriots took their father’s (or husband’s, in the case of married woman) forename as their surname, meaning there was no common surname throughout the extended family. This practice stopped for:

• Greek Cypriots in 1960
• Turkish Cypriots in 1989

Names: Turkish Cypriots

For a Cypriot of Turkish descent, it was compulsory for the surname to be changed, as every family had to have a unique surname.

This can mean documents do not match if they were issued:

• outside Cyprus
• before the change of surname

In this case you must ask the customer for a Soyadi Varakasi (Surname certificate) to prove the change of name to the new surname.

If the applicant has lost their name change documents, the authorities in the north of Cyprus can issue a letter stating that they are the same person.

The authorities in the north of Cyprus use the Turkish Alphabet and the spelling may be different from that appearing on a birth certificate due to the transliteration of Turkish characters.

Following marriage, a Turkish Cypriot woman may:

• keep her maiden name
• change to her husband’s surname
• add her husband’s surname after her maiden name

Names: Greek Cypriots

For Cypriots of Greek descent names changes after birth can occur, for example, an additional forename may be added during a baptism.

Where a child has been baptised after a birth registration and given an additional name, the baptism certificate can be accepted as confirmation of the middle name.

Cyprus: nationality

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about nationality in Cyprus.

Dual nationality is recognised in Cyprus.

Cyprus: legitimacy and parental responsibility

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about legitimacy and parental responsibility in Cyprus.

Legitimacy

From 1 December 1978, Cyprus no longer recognises a difference between legitimate and illegitimate births. This means that all births are considered legitimate whether a child’s parents are married or not.

For children born before 1 December 1978 in Cyprus, they are considered:

• legitimate if their parents were married at the time of the birth
• legitimate from the time of the marriage if the parents marry after the birth but before 1 December 1978
• illegitimate if their parents never marry or married after 1 December 1978

Parental responsibility

Parental responsibility is shared equally between both parents in Cyprus. Where parents’ divorce, parental responsibility is determined by the courts.

Cyprus: adoption

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about adoption in Cyprus.

Adoption is legal in Cyprus.

Adoption takes place through a court and a new birth certificate will be issued. There is no reference on the birth certificate showing that an adoption has taken place.

Cyprus: surrogacy

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about surrogacy in Cyprus.

Surrogacy is unregulated in Cyprus.

Where a child has been born through a surrogacy agreement in another country and has since been taken to Cyprus, there are no regulations for the registration of the child.

Cyprus: gender recognition

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about gender recognition in Cyprus.

Transgender citizens have been recognised in Cyprus since 2015.

Cyprus: documents

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about documents in Cyprus.

All birth, marriage and death registrations are held at district offices.

Following the withdrawal of the UK from the EU, HM Passport Office cannot accept Multilingual Standard Forms (MSFs) issued by member states. An MSF will:

• contains a reference to the convention signed at Vienna on September 8 1976, this may be on the reverse of the document
• be marked as a Formul A (birth certificate), normally in the top right corner on the front of the document in the language of the country where the document was issued
  • there will also be marriage certificates and death certificates that will have a different Formul version that is also not acceptable

These documents are an extract of a civil registration record translated into the language needed and not a full, original certificate.

Addresses will have an indicator to show it is in the north of Cyprus. For example, it may say:

• Turkey
• the north of Cyprus
• Mersin 10 (this is a code used by the authorities to identify it as the north of Cyprus)
• Telephone numbers start with 0090 (this is 00357 in the Republic of Cyprus)

Birth certificates

Birth registration in Cyprus differs depending on where the birth took place. In civilian birth registration Cyprus, it is usual for the surname of the mother to be the same surname as the father’s whether the parents are married are not.

Birth in a British military base

There are two British bases in Cyprus:

• Akrotiri
• Dhekelia

All birth certificates issued to serving military personnel and support staff are produced by the bases.

Birth in the Republic of Cyprus

In Cyprus it is a legal requirement for birth certificates to be issued to everyone. If both parents are listed on the hospital document, the birth certificate will be issued in both their names. If the father is not named on the hospital document, he will not be named on the birth certificate. When a woman is married, her husband will be considered as the father for birth registration purposes.

In the Republic of Cyprus, all births must be registered within 3 months and can be done by a close relative with the same surname as the child. Late registrations are allowed up to 12 months, after 12 months a court order is needed. For HM Passport Office purposes, if a certificate is provided where the registration date was more than 3 months after the date of birth, customers must provide a letter from the registration office advising that no changes have been made to the child’s details.

Birth in the north of Cyprus

Births must be registered within 12 months of the date of birth in the north of Cyprus. Late registrations are allowed. For registrations over 12 months, the parents must go to court.

Replacement birth certificates can be obtained where a person’s name has been spelled incorrectly. The new certificate will not show the change, it will be recorded as a marginal note made in the original entry held at the district office.

Marriage certificates

In the Republic of Cyprus both religious and civil marriages are recognised if a registered minister of religion conducts them. In Greek Orthodox religious marriage services, the fathers’ forenames appear as the bride and groom’s middle names on the certificate.

In the north of Cyprus, couples must have a civil ceremony for the marriage to be recognised.

A copy of a marriage certificate can be requested from the Ministry of Interior or local authority where the marriage took place.

Death certificates

In the Republic of Cyprus deaths must be registered within 1 year of death and burials cannot take place before a death certificate is issued.

The District Administration Office in the district where the death occurred issue death certificates. The death certificate will be in Greek, Turkish and English.

In the north of Cyprus deaths must be registered within one year of death. Late registrations are allowed. After one year, the death must be notified through court.

Islamic death certificates are usually issued after the burial has taken place.

A handwritten death certificate will be issued by the state hospital if an overseas citizen dies whilst visiting Cyprus. HM Passport Office cannot accept this certificate.

There may be occasions where deceased foreign nationals have been repatriated through the Republic of Cyprus with a north of Cyprus death certificate issued. Because the Republic of Cyprus does not recognise documents from the north of Cyprus a second death certificate is issued with the date of death being when the deceased was transferred to the Republic of Cyprus.

Identity documents

In the Republic of Cyprus identity cards are not compulsory. They can be held by those of Cypriot descent. Anyone holding British dual nationality will be identified as British Cypriot. Foreign nationals resident in Cyprus must apply for an Alien Registration certificate.

Identity cards are compulsory for all Turkish Cypriots in the north of Cyprus over the age of 12. These are known as Kimlik cards. Names on Kimlik cards and passports must match. Dual nationals can hold a Kimlik card, but these do not show they are dual nationals.

Identity cards are issued locally in each region.