Moving to Cyprus from Israel.
Cyprus is close, and many Israeli founders run companies here. Israel's rules on tax residency and on companies managed from Israel decide what that means for your tax. These are the questions Israeli clients ask us first, answered from the official sources.
Updated
The short version
- No visa for stays of up to 90 days in any 180; longer stays need a residence permit.
- There is no Israel–Cyprus tax treaty, so no rule settles a double residence for you: the facts of your life do.
- Leaving Israel can trigger exit tax on your assets, paid on leaving or when you sell.
- A Cyprus company run from Israel is an Israeli company for tax, and Cyprus's 15% rate does not take a passive company out of Israel's CFC rules.
- Bituach Leumi keeps treating you as resident for up to five years unless you end it.
Moving and residence
- Can Israelis live in Cyprus?Yes. Israelis can visit Cyprus without a visa for up to 90 days in any 180; to stay longer, you need a residence permit from the Migration Department, and which one depends on what you will do here.
- Do Israelis need a visa for Cyprus, and how long can they stay?No visa is needed for stays of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. Cyprus is not yet a full member of the Schengen area, so its permits and day counts are separate from Schengen's.
Tax
- Is there a tax treaty between Israel and Cyprus?No. Neither country's list of tax treaties includes the other, and Israel's notification under the OECD's multilateral tax convention leaves Cyprus out. Israel relieves double taxation only through its own foreign tax credit.
- How do I stop being an Israeli tax resident when I move to Cyprus?By moving your centre of life out of Israel. Israel presumes you are resident if you spend 183 days or more there in a tax year, or 30 days in the year and 425 days over that year and the two before; both presumptions can be rebutted.
- Is there an exit tax when leaving Israel for Cyprus?Yes. When you stop being an Israeli resident, your assets are treated as sold on the day before. You can pay the tax then, or wait until you actually sell; if you wait, the Israeli share of the gain is the real gain multiplied by the time you held the asset before leaving, divided by the total time you held it.
Your company
- Where is my Cyprus company taxed if I run it from Israel?In Israel. A company is an Israeli resident if it is incorporated in Israel or if its business is controlled and managed from Israel, so a Cyprus company run from Israel is taxed there.
- Is my Cyprus company a controlled foreign company under Israeli tax rules?It can be. An Israeli resident with 10% or more of the means of control can be taxed on profits the company has not paid out, if its income is mostly passive and taxed at an effective rate of 15% or less. Cyprus's 15% rate does not take a passive company out of the rules.
Property, insurance and everyday life
- What happens with Bituach Leumi when I move to Cyprus?For the first five years abroad, the National Insurance Institute normally keeps treating you as resident. That keeps your benefits and state health cover, but contributions stay due: at least NIS 266 a month with no income, in 2026.
- Can an Israeli buy an apartment in Cyprus?Yes, with permission. As a buyer from outside the EU, you need the Council of Ministers' permission under the Immovable Property (Restriction of Purchase by Aliens) Law, Cap. 109; without it, the property cannot be validly registered in your name.
Sources
- Gov.cy: visas gov.cy
- Cyprus Ministry of Foreign Affairs: visa-exempt nationalities (Annex 1) gov.cy
- Migration Department: digital nomads and family members gov.cy
- Migration Department: legislation and policy gov.cy
- Migration Department: immigration permits for investors gov.cy
- Migration Department: visitors and family members gov.cy
- European Union: who should apply for ETIAS travel-europe.europa.eu
- European Commission: EES and ETIAS, what travellers need to know (April 2026) home-affairs.ec.europa.eu
- Cyprus Ministry of Finance: double tax treaties (list) gov.cy
- Israel Ministry of Finance: international agreements (Hebrew) gov.il
- OECD: Israel's position under the multilateral convention (MLI), at deposit oecd.org
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries: Israel, foreign tax relief and treaties taxsummaries.pwc.com
- Globes: Tax Authority targets Israelis' ties with Cyprus (18 March 2024) en.globes.co.il
- Israel Tax Authority: draft bill on individual tax residency, 2 July 2025 (Hebrew) gov.il
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries: Israel, individual residence taxsummaries.pwc.com
- Israel Tax Authority: Form 1348, residency declaration (Hebrew) gov.il
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries: Israel, income determination and exit tax taxsummaries.pwc.com
- Israel Tax Authority: Form 1346, reportable tax positions (Hebrew) gov.il
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries: Israel, corporate residence taxsummaries.pwc.com
- Law 244(I)/2025 amending the Income Tax Law (CyLaw) cylaw.org
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries: Israel, group taxation and CFC rules taxsummaries.pwc.com
- Cyprus Tax Department: Tax Reform 2026 gov.cy
- National Insurance Institute: residency when living abroad (Hebrew) btl.gov.il
- National Insurance Institute: ending residency (Hebrew) btl.gov.il
- National Insurance Institute: contributions while abroad (Hebrew) btl.gov.il
- National Insurance Institute: waiting period for health services (Hebrew) btl.gov.il
- National Insurance Institute: social security agreements (Hebrew) btl.gov.il
- Immovable Property (Restriction of Purchase by Aliens) Law, Cap. 109 (CyLaw) cylaw.org
Information, not advice. These answers describe the published rules as they stand on 12 October 2026. Tax and residence rules depend on your own circumstances; check your position with a qualified tax adviser before you act on them.
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