ANTI-PIRACY LAW IN CYPRUS
Cyprus is one of the most important maritime locations in the world. Precisely, Cyprus is the third largest maritime fleet in the EU and the tenth largest fleet in the world. The ideal geographical location of Cyprus between Europe, Asia and Africa and the considerable tax incentives contribute to making the island a market leader in ship management activities. Shipping is one of the most...
LIMASSOL: AN IDEAL LOCATION TO GET MARRIED
Civil marriage in Cyprus is governed by the provisions of Marriage Law (104(I)/2003) and it is under the jurisdiction of municipalities. Specifically, a civil wedding is officiated by the Mayor, or any other member of the municipal council, authorised by the Mayor. Additionally, a wedding ceremony could be performed by an individual authorised by the Minister of Interior for this particular...
CIVIL PARTNERSHIP IN CYPRUS
The civil partnership (Law 184(I)/2015) legitimises the union between two individuals, regardless of gender. In other words, the civil partnership permits same-sex and opposite-sex couples to legitimise their relationship. Therefore, the approval of civil partnership by the National Parliament marks a progress concerning LGBTQI rights and equality in Cyprus.
Following the approval of civil...
CYPRUS: MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS
The major legislation that regulates mergers and acquisitions in Cyprus is the Companies Law (Cap. 113). In particular, sections 198-202 contain provisions about mergers, reconstruction and amalgamation of companies, and exchange of shares between two or more companies. Other important legislations are the Control of Concentration Between Enterprises Law (22(I)/ 1999) and the Safeguarding and...
COMPETITION LAW IN CYPRUS
The Association Agreement between Cyprus and the European Economic Community entered into force in the late 1980’s. As a result, Cyprus was obliged to establish legislation for the protection of competition and regulate unfair competition practices.
Specifically, the protection against unfair competition is regulated by the following two legislations:
the Protection of Competition Law (207...
SHIPPING: RESTRICTIVE MEASURES IN VIEW OF THE SITUATION IN LIBYA
On the 31st of July 2015 and 18th of January 2016 the EU adopted the following legislative instruments concerning restrictive measures against Libya:
EU Council Decision (CFSP) 2015/1333 of 31st July 2015 repealing EU Council Decision 2011/137/CFSP;
Council Regulation (EU) 2016/44 of 18th January 2016 repealing Regulation (EU) No. 204/2011;
The Circular No. 9/2016 issued by the Department of...
BANK SECRECY IN CYPRUS
Banking is one of the most important sectors of the economy since it influences investment and consumption. Confidentiality is a cornerstone element of an effective and efficient bank system. In Cyprus, bank secrecy is regulated by section 29 (1) of the Banking Law (66 (I)/97).
According to the provisions of section 29(1), it is prohibited for any member of the administrative and management...
PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION IN CYPRUS
Personal data defines any information relating to a natural living person. Some illuminating examples are the number of our identity card, passport, date of birth, mailing address, email, etc. In many cases, individuals need to provide their personal data to third parties for many reasons, such as to order a product online, to request a service, to answer a survey, to open a bank account, to...
PANAMA PAPERS AND PROFESSIONAL SECRECY
The leak of 11.5 million confidential documents of the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca revealed how rich and powerful people use tax havens to hide their wealth. Particularly, these papers, also known as Panama Papers, demonstrate how Mossack Fonseca assisted its clients to avoid tax, dodge sanctions and launder money. Mossack Fonseca is one of the largest law firms in Panama and operates...
CONFIDENTIALITY AND DATA PROTECTION IN CYPRUS
Confidentiality and data protection are two vital issues in almost all business, social and employment matters. Specifically, data protection is an emerging topic that public and private organisations need to address carefully and develop the necessary policies in order to protect sensitive information when they perform their daily operations and also when they try to establish new business...