Work

Steps

1. Search before leaving on the EURES portal, the best tool for finding a job before departure according to EURES Cyprus.
2. Once resident, register as a jobseeker at the labour office of your district (District Labour Office), with your passport or ID card. Online registration also exists on the public employment service portal; it is only validated after a call from an officer on a Cypriot phone number. A non-resident cannot register as unemployed.
3. Check your written terms: the employer must give you in writing the place of work, the position, the start date, paid leave, the salary and its supplements, the hours and days of work.
4. Have your employer register you with the Social Insurance Services, then with the GeSY health system (see CY-SANTE-TOUS-001).
5. Regulated profession? Request recognition of your qualification from the competent authority; the national reference point for professional qualifications is at the Department of Labour.

Documents

• Passport or ID card, residence registration certificate (see CY-SEJOUR-TOUS-001), tax number (see CY-NIF-TOUS-001).
• Diplomas and proof of employment (with translation if requested).
• Form U1 from your former unemployment fund to have your periods worked in another EU country counted, or U2 to keep your benefit while looking in Cyprus.

Costs and timelines

• Minimum wage (orders of 2022 and 2025, since 01/01/2026): €979 gross per month before 6 months of continuous service with the same employer, €1,088 afterwards, for full-time. It is revised every two years.
• Excluded from the national minimum wage: domestic workers, agricultural and livestock workers, seafarers; the hotel industry has its own order (No. 55/2025) with minimums by category.
• Working time: 38 to 40 hours per week in most companies (38 to 42 in shops); 48 hours maximum, overtime included. Rest of 11 consecutive hours per day and at least 35 consecutive hours per week; 15-minute break beyond 6 hours of work per day.
• Paid leave: 20 working days (5-day week) or 24 (6-day week) after a year of work; 14 to 17 public holidays per year.
• Probation period: during the first 26 weeks, the law provides for no notice. The employer may also provide for a longer probation period, up to 104 weeks at most, provided it was set in writing at hiring; during this probation, they do not have to give notice (Department of Labour).
• Minimum statutory notice given by the employer (termination of employment law, Department of Labour guide), in writing: 1 week from 26 to 51 weeks of service, 2 weeks from 52 to 103, 4 weeks from 104 to 155, 5 weeks from 156 to 207, 6 weeks from 208 to 259, 7 weeks from 260 to 311, 8 weeks from 312 weeks (6 years). The employer may pay the notice instead of having it worked. During notice, by agreement with your employer, you may have up to 8 hours per week (40 hours in total) to look for a job, without loss of pay.
• Notice if you resign: 1 week from 26 to 51 weeks of service, 2 weeks from 52 to 259, 3 weeks from 260. Your contract or a collective agreement may provide for longer.
• Unemployment: the Cypriot benefit is paid for 156 days at most per period of unemployment, if you meet the contribution conditions; your insurance periods in another EU country count (form U1). First register at the labour office of your district, then at the social insurance office; the application can also be made online with CY Login (information: 1450). You notably need to have contributed enough (at least 26 weeks since the start of insurance and a minimum of insurance points in the reference year), be fit and available for work, and not carry out an activity that earns more than one twelfth of the annual amount of basic insurable earnings; the self-employed are not entitled to it (European Commission, July 2026). The benefit is paid from the 4th day of unemployment: its basic rate is 60% of the weekly value of the basic insurance points of the reference year, plus 50% of those of the supplementary insurance, with increases for a spouse or dependants. The exact amount depends on your contributory earnings; the Social Insurance Services calculate it. With a U2, you keep the benefit from your former country for at least 3 months (up to 6 depending on that country), provided you have been registered as unemployed at home for at least 4 weeks (exceptions exist) and you register at the labour office in Cyprus within 7 days.
• 2025 social contributions (EURES): 8.8% for the employee and 8.8% for the employer, plus the GeSY contribution of 2.65% for the employee.

Common pitfalls

• Accepting less than the minimum. The employer cannot pay less than the order, even with your agreement.
• Resigning during probation without a plan B. During the first 26 weeks (or a longer probation set in writing), your employer can also dismiss you without notice.
• Registering as unemployed without a Cypriot number. Online registration only succeeds after a call on a number from a Cypriot operator.
• Not checking your social insurance registration. Without it, no unemployment or pension rights, and no access to GeSY.
• Believing that a job in the hotel industry follows the national minimum. This sector has its own minimums.

What changes by country of origin

• EU and EEA citizens and Swiss people: no work permit; residence registration beyond 3 months.
• British people (including Scottish): you need a residence permit that allows work, except for rights acquired before 01/01/2021 (see CY-SEJOUR-TOUS-001). The use of forms U1 and U2 is to be confirmed.