How to license your dog in Cyprus and what it costs
Checked: Changed:
In short
- Who it applies to
- Anyone keeping a dog older than two months, whatever their citizenship or residence status. By law the owner must be at least 16 years old.
- What it costs
- €20.50 a year per dog — the same for males and females, neutered or not. Dangerous breeds cost €170, hunting dogs €24 each. An assistance dog, a state service dog and one neutered dog belonging to a pensioner on guaranteed minimum income are free. The amount is set by law and is the same across the country.
- How long it takes
- The law sets no processing time. What it does set is validity: the licence runs until 31 December of the same year, and the renewal application is filed between 1 November and 31 December. In the first year you pay the part of the fee covering the rest of the year.
- Where to apply
- At the municipal council (Δημοτικό Συμβούλιο) of the place where the dog normally lives, or at the community council (Κοινοτικό Συμβούλιο) outside municipal boundaries. The microchip and the registry number come from a private vet; the registry itself is kept by the Veterinary Services (Κτηνιατρικές Υπηρεσίες).
- If your case differs
- If you sell or give the dog away, the licence is transferred to the new owner on a joint application, and the dog may not move to its new home until the transfer is complete. A death must be reported within 7 working days with a vet's certificate; a loss or theft within 2 working days.
Deadlines and conditions
| Condition | Legal basis |
|---|---|
| a licence is required for a dog older than 2 months | Law 184(Ι)/2002, art. 3(1). |
| only a person aged 16 or over may be the owner | Law 184(Ι)/2002, art. 2 (definition of «ιδιοκτήτης σκύλου») and art. 6(1)(β). |
| €20.50 a year per dog, regardless of sex or neutering | Third Schedule (Τρίτος Πίνακας) as amended by Law 118(Ι)/2026. |
| €170 a year for a dog of a dangerous breed listed in the Fifth Schedule | Third Schedule as amended by Law 118(Ι)/2026. |
| €24 a year for a hunting dog | Third Schedule as amended by Law 118(Ι)/2026 — with a valid hunting licence and registration on the platform of the Game and Fauna Service. |
| the hunting rate covers 4 dogs; from the fifth on the ordinary fee applies | Third Schedule as amended by Law 118(Ι)/2026: «για κάθε κυνηγετικό σκύλο πέραν των τεσσάρων (4), ισχύουν τα τέλη όπως για τους υπόλοιπους σκύλους». |
| the licence is valid until 31 December of the same year | Law 184(Ι)/2002, art. 3(3)(α)(i). |
| the renewal is filed in the 2 months before expiry — from 1 November to 31 December | Law 184(Ι)/2002, art. 3(3)(α)(ii). |
| the renewal requires a health booklet updated within the last 12 months | Law 184(Ι)/2002, art. 3(3)(α)(i). |
| a fine of up to €2,000 on a first conviction — or up to a year in prison, or both | Law 184(Ι)/2002, art. 18 — first conviction: up to 12 months in prison, or the fine, or both. |
| a fine of up to €4,000 on a repeat conviction | Law 184(Ι)/2002, art. 18 — second and further convictions: up to 24 months in prison, or the fine, or both. |
| a dangerous-breed dog already in the country must be neutered within 30 days | Law 184(Ι)/2002, art. 11(2)(α) as amended in 2026. |
| the death of a dog is reported within 7 working days | Law 184(Ι)/2002, art. 3(6)(β). |
| a loss or theft is reported within 2 working days, and so is finding the dog again | Law 184(Ι)/2002, art. 3(6)(γ). |
Your case
If you have an ordinary dog — any breed except the four in the Fifth Schedule
The fee is €20.50 a year; sex and neutering make no difference. The council needs the health booklet from a private vet, the registration and microchipping certificate, and the payment receipt.
If it is a Pit Bull Terrier, Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino, Fila Brasileiro, or a cross in which those traits prevail
Import, breeding and sale are prohibited; a dog already in the country is kept under a separate regime: neutering within 30 days, third-party liability insurance, an approved muzzle, a leash and a handler aged at least 16 outside the home. The fee is €170 a year.
If the dog is a hunting dog, you hold a valid hunting licence and the dog is on the Game and Fauna Service platform
The fee is €24 a year for each such dog — but only for the first four; from the fifth on the ordinary fee applies.
If it is an assistance dog, a dog of the security forces or another state service, or one neutered dog belonging to a pensioner on guaranteed minimum income
The licence is issued and renewed free of charge. An assistance dog needs a certificate from an organisation in the IGDF or Assistance Dogs International; the pensioner needs a confirmation from the state services, checked before the licence is granted.
Take the amount and the deadline from the law; go to the council only for the procedure
What municipal websites get wrong:
- validity given as “one year from the date of issue” instead of “until 31 December” — both Nicosia and Larnaca say this
- the age threshold given as six months: six months belong to something else, the licence starts at two
- the fee not published at all and quoted by phone after you apply
- an application form with the fee in Cyprus pounds, a currency withdrawn in 2008
- fines converted from pounds, on the site of an abolished municipality that still calls itself the competent authority
Sources
- The Dogs Law 184(I)/2002, consolidated version in forcewww.cylaw.orgThe rule itself: Article 3 — the licence, its validity and renewal; the Third Schedule — the fees; Article 11 — dangerous breeds; Article 18 — penalties.
- Law 118(I)/2026 (Gazette of 12 May 2026)www.cylaw.orgWhat replaced the Third Schedule: Article 19 sets the current amounts. The same law deleted the out-of-court settlement articles — since that date the Dogs Law has none.
- Law 56(I)/2026 (Gazette of 8 April 2026)www.cylaw.orgThe repealed tariff that lasted 34 days: Article 22. It matters not in itself but as the explanation for the other figures found elsewhere.
- Veterinary Services of Cypruswww.moa.gov.cyThe authority that keeps the national dog registry and is responsible for microchipping — the step without which the council will not accept the application.