Government bodies accept documents only in Greek or English. Cyprus has bilateral agreements with a number of countries that exempt documents from the apostille, but a sworn translation is still required.
What to legalise and how
- Documents from most countries need an apostille under the Hague Convention.
- Documents from countries with a bilateral agreement (Russia and Serbia among them) need no apostille or legalisation — the issuing body's signature and seal are enough. A translation is still required.
- Translation is done by a sworn translator or the consulate. Translations are certified through the Press and Information Office.
- In practice a criminal record certificate must be no more than 6 months old.
If the country is not in the Hague Convention
Then diplomatic legalisation is needed — a chain of certifications rather than a single stamp:
- The document is certified by the foreign ministry of the country that issued it.
- The signature of that ministry's official is certified by the Cypriot embassy or consulate in that country. If Cyprus has no mission there — by the issuing country's consulate in a third country, and then by the Cypriot consulate in that same third country.
- The Cypriot consul's signature is certified by the relevant department of the Cyprus Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Documents from EU countries
Under EU Regulation 2016/1191, since 16 February 2019 public documents from EU countries need no apostille at all. This covers certificates of birth, death, marriage, divorce, civil partnership, residence, nationality, absence of a criminal record and several others. You can request a multilingual standard form with them — then no official translation is needed.
The mukhtar and the certifying officer
The mukhtar is the head of a community or district who certifies signatures and documents. For immigration purposes they certify rental contracts and various declarations. Each district has its own mukhtar; if yours is on holiday you can go to another, but always call ahead — opening hours vary.
A power of attorney for your home country
Three workable options, from the community's experience:
- Book an appointment at your country's consulate in Cyprus. Slots can be booked up for a long time, but cancellations do appear — check regularly.
- Have a local power of attorney drawn up by a certifying officer and apostilled. It isn't accepted everywhere — check in advance with the receiving party.
- Have a power of attorney drawn up by a notary in a third country where your consular services are easier to access — more expensive, but faster.