Over 5,100 Turkish Cypriots granted Cyprus citizenship since 2004
The interior ministry says 5,176 citizenships have been approved since 2004, with most granted before formal cabinet criteria took effect in 2007.
A total of 5,176 Turkish Cypriots have been granted Cypriot citizenship since 2004, according to figures released by the interior ministry, as reported by Cyprus Mail.
The largest share — 2,972 citizenships — was granted between 2004 and February 2007, before the cabinet set formal criteria for approving such cases. After the criteria took effect on February 14, 2007, the pace slowed sharply: 1,806 citizenships were granted up to 2013, and only 67 between 2014 and 2023. Since the criteria were revised on February 2, 2024, a further 331 have been granted.
These cases fall under the civil registry law, which covers children born in Cyprus to a foreign parent — in most cases a Turkish settler. Approval by the cabinet is required before registration, rather than processing through standard channels. The interior ministry said it keeps no record of pending applications, noting that what is submitted are requests or letters rather than formal applications, and that these are not logged in its system.
The criteria, set out in the cabinet's 2007 decision and revised in 2024, examine whether the foreign parent is a Turkish national or a national of another third country, where the parents married, and — where one parent is Turkish — the circumstances of their entry into Cyprus.
The issue is tied to Cyprus' EU accession in 2004, under which Turkish Cypriots in the north became entitled to EU citizenship as citizens of the Republic, though EU law remains suspended in the north. Holders of Cypriot citizenship enjoy the same rights as other EU citizens, including freedom of movement and residence across the union.
The legality of restricting citizenship under the civil registry law has been tested in court. In a case brought by Eda Hancer, born in Nicosia in 1978 to a Turkish Cypriot mother and Turkish father, the Supreme Court unanimously rejected her appeal, upholding a ruling that the article and cabinet criteria did not violate equality or amount to indirect discrimination. The court held that granting citizenship is a sovereign act subject to state discretion, not an automatic right.
Campaigners and affected families have criticised the provision, arguing it effectively excludes children whose Turkish Cypriot or Turkish parent settled in the north after 1974. A 2022 review found that under the 2007 criteria, exceptions were largely limited to children whose parents married outside Cyprus or whose relationship began independently of the Turkish invasion.
What it means for residents
The figures highlight how tightly citizenship for children of mixed marriages is controlled, and how much of the total dates back to a short window two decades ago. For families in this position, the practical result is that a Cypriot parent does not automatically secure a child's citizenship.
- Documents: Applications go through the cabinet, not standard immigration channels, so approvals can take years and there is no published queue to check progress against.
- Rights: Without citizenship, children of mixed marriages cannot claim the EU freedom of movement and residence that Cypriot citizenship provides.
- What to do: Families in this situation should seek legal advice on how the 2024 revised criteria apply to their specific case before submitting paperwork.
This text is written from the source article and is not a translation of it.
