Customs and daily life

Daily life

• Languages: Greek and Turkish official, English widely spoken; French, German and Russian are spoken in tourism.
• Time: GMT+2, summer time from the last Sunday in March to the last Sunday in October.
• Administrations: Monday to Friday, opening between 7:30 and 8:30, closing between 15:00 and 16:00.
• Private offices: generally 8:00-13:00 and 15:00-18:00 (from 15 September to 31 May), 8:00-13:00 and 16:00-19:00 (from 1 June to 14 September). According to EURES, many offices work from 8:00 to 17:30 with a break from 13:00 to 14:30, and a free afternoon during the week (often Wednesday) is common.
• Shops: generally from 7:00 to 21:00 Monday to Saturday; on Sundays, opening around 11:00 and closing between 14:00 and 22:00. Some still close on Wednesday and Saturday afternoons; in tourist areas, they stay open late and on Sundays. Optional break from 14:00 to 17:00 from 15 June to 31 August. Closing at 18:00 on Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve and Good Friday.
• Meals: breakfast from 7:00 to 10:00, lunch from 12:00 to 15:00, dinner from 19:00 and late in the evening.
• Pharmacies: from May to September, Monday to Friday 8:00-13:30 and 16:00-19:30; from October to April, Monday to Friday 8:00-13:30 and 15:00-18:30; all year, Wednesday and Saturday mornings only (8:00-13:30). On-duty pharmacies: 11892 or voice servers by town. On-duty private doctors at weekends and on public holidays: information on 17000.
• Tipping: at your discretion, appreciated in hotels and restaurants; taxi drivers, porters and hairdressers also appreciate a small tip.
• Payment: the euro; Visa and Mastercard cards widely accepted (especially in big cities and tourist areas), contactless available on almost all payment terminals. €10,000 or more in cash (or gold) on entry or exit, including from or to another EU country: customs declaration.
• Transport: no train or metro; urban, intercity and rural buses (limited frequency in villages) and airport shuttles, and taxis.
• Formal address, politeness, attitude to appointments: not described in the official sources read. To be confirmed.

Public holidays

Fixed: 1 January, 6 January (Epiphany), 25 March (Greek national day), 1 April (Cypriot national day), 1 May, 15 August, 1 October (independence), 28 October, 24, 25 and 26 December. Movable (Orthodox calendar), in 2026: Clean Monday (Πράσινη Δευτέρα) on 23 February, Good Friday on 10 April, Easter on 12 April, Easter Monday on 13 April, Whit Monday (Κατακλυσμός, Festival of the Flood) on 1 June. In 2027: 15 March, 30 April, 2 May, 3 May and 21 June. Banks also close on Easter Tuesday, but not on Christmas Eve. Public services, businesses, banks and shops close on public holidays, except many shops in seaside resorts.

Emergencies

• 112: ambulance, fire brigade and police, across the island, in English too.
• 1460: complaints to the police. 1498: drug information.
• 11892: night pharmacies.
• 17000: information on on-duty private doctors at weekends and on public holidays; it is also the GeSY information line, free from Cyprus (see CY-SANTE-TOUS-001).
• 1441: sea and air rescue coordination centre.

Work culture

• Usual duration of 38 to 40 hours per week depending on agreements; 48 hours maximum with overtime.
• At least 11 hours of rest per 24 hours and a rest period of 35 consecutive hours per week; 15-minute break beyond 6 hours of work.
• Work from 23:00 to 6:00 is night work, limited to 8 hours per 24 hours.

Common pitfalls

• Relying on your country's Easter: the holidays follow the Orthodox calendar (Easter on 12 April in 2026, against 5 April for Catholic Easter).
• Going to an administration in the afternoon: they close between 15:00 and 16:00.
• The north of the island: the northern part is not controlled by the Republic of Cyprus; the rules and services described here do not apply there. Cyprus is in the EU, but it only takes part in Schengen cooperation: internal border controls have not yet been abolished there by the Council, and it is not counted among the 29 countries of the Schengen area (European Commission). Keep your ID document to travel (see CY-SEJOUR-TOUS-001).

What changes by country of origin

• EU and EEA citizens and Swiss people: European Health Insurance Card for temporary stays; once settled, registration with GeSY (see CY-SANTE-TOUS-001).
• British people (including Scottish): same daily life; residence under third-country rules.