Buying process
Safe from viewing to keys.
As a property agent I help you buy property on Northern Cyprus – and only here. I know the people, the culture, the history, the nature and, not least, the property market, and I help you find a home that fits your budget and needs. My help costs you nothing. The transaction itself is handled legally by experienced local lawyers who specialise in property and make sure all documents and permits are completed in the right order. Almost all property sales on Northern Cyprus are in British pounds (GBP) – a legacy of the time when Cyprus was a British crown colony, until independence in 1960.
- 1
Choose a home and a lawyer
Once you have found the home you want to buy, you contact the lawyer you would like to act for you. If you wish, I attend all meetings with the lawyer and help with translations and explanations in Norwegian.
- 2
Power of attorney (POA)
You sign a Power of Attorney (POA), which is registered and authorises the lawyer to sign on your behalf. It is required for all types of property purchase. You can then go home and let your impressions settle, and after a few weeks the lawyer emails you the draft contract – which I'm happy to read through for you.
- 3
Reservation deposit
To make sure the property is not sold to anyone else during the process, you pay a deposit of normally GBP 5,000 to the lawyer or directly to the developer. The deposit is non-refundable, but it is deducted from the purchase price and included in the contract.
- 4
Land Registry check
The lawyer obtains an extract from the Land Registry showing who owns the property, whether a title deed has been issued, any encumbrances, the size of the property and its previous ownership. After around 21 days the purchase contract is issued, including this information.
- 5
Signing and registration
If everything is in order, you confirm by email that the lawyer holding your POA should sign on your behalf. Once the contract has been signed by both the buyer's and the seller's lawyers, it is registered with the Land Registry within 21 days, and your lawyer applies to the authorities for permission to purchase. You are also registered with the tax office, and a notary public stamps all documents to make them official. From this point you are protected against the seller taking out a loan on the property or selling it to someone else.
- 6
Police certificate and title deed
You provide the lawyer with a police certificate in English. You can order it quickly at politiet.no, stating the purpose as buying a holiday home on Northern Cyprus – ask for it in English and sent by post, not to your digital mailbox, as digital certificates are not accepted. You also need proof of your residential address in Norway (for example an electricity bill or official papers). The lawyer then applies for the title deed, which is usually issued within 12–18 months, once the Permission to Purchase (PTP) has been approved.
About title deeds and the Land Registry
All land and property on both the northern and southern sides of Cyprus is recorded in the Land Registry. Should anyone later claim ownership of a property, the claim must be documented in writing with an extract from the Land Registry. Claims from former owners in the south are handled by the Immovable Property Commission (IPC), which can award compensation from the state in Northern Cyprus without the buyer of the property being affected. I only broker property with Pre-74 Turkish Title Deeds or Exchange Land title deeds, which I consider completely secure.
Taxes and fees.
All property on Northern Cyprus is sold in British pounds (GBP), and the following taxes and fees are added to the purchase price. The rates were changed and reduced with immediate effect on 16 May 2025, and apply until the law is amended again.
9 %
Transfer fee
Reduced from 12%. 6% is paid when the contract is registered with the Land Registry, and the final 3% when the title deed is issued after the Permission to Purchase (PTP) has been granted – which can take up to 18 months. The deed should be collected shortly after it is ready.
0,5 %
Stamp duty
Paid to the tax office when the contract is registered with the Land Registry. The lawyer invoices it at contract signing, together with the first 6% of the transfer fee.
5 %
VAT on new builds
Applies to new-build purchases and is paid to the tax office via the lawyer. It does not apply to resale homes where the title deed has already been issued.
2,25–6,25 %
Seller's capital gains tax (stopaj)
Paid by the seller or developer on sale – not by you as the buyer.
Lawyer's feeThe lawyer's fee for a property purchase is around GBP 2,000–2,500 per property.
How much can foreigners own?Under the new property law passed on 21 May 2024, foreigners may, from 16 May 2025, own up to three apartments or two detached villas per person. It is no longer possible, as it was before 21 May 2024, to hold additional properties through separate companies (trusts) set up by lawyers. Foreigners may buy an undeveloped plot of up to 1 dönüm (1,338 m²), or up to 3,300 m² of land with a villa. The entitlement used to apply per household but was changed to per person in 2017. It can therefore be wise to register the home in the name of a spouse, partner or family member, so that the other person's entitlement can be used later if you want to change homes or invest in a rental property.
Rates apply from 16.05.2025 until the law is changed.
Lawyers Gunn can recommend
I can recommend the following law firms to handle your property purchase on Northern Cyprus. They have offices in Kyrenia, were educated in the UK – Northern Cyprus law is largely based on British law – and have long, solid experience of property transactions on Northern Cyprus.
Naomi Mehmet & Partners
Mrs. Naomi Mehmet
nmplegal.comAdvocate Gizem Aksun (LLB, LLM)
Gizem Aksun
Call me for a friendly chat about homes
Gunn Eidhamar · Green Tools AS
