Scientific Visa
The “Scientific Visa” allows researchers from third countries to enter, reside and work in Cyprus for more than three months. In 2009, Cyprus has amended the national law on Aliens and Immigration, according to the European Council’s directive on ‘a specific procedure for admitting third-country nationals for the purposes of scientific research’, to incorporate the procedure for granting work permission to researchers from third countries for more than three months for the implementation of scientific research activities.
As a first step, the Research Organization wishing to host a Third Country National Researcher needs to be approved by the Research and Innovation Foundation (RIF) in Cyprus. A list of organizations that have already been approved by RIF is available on the EURAXESS Cyprus website.
To obtain a Scientific Visa, researchers are then required to fill in an application form and submit it together with an application fee and supporting documents to their future employer/host organization in Cyprus.
The organization will then submit the Researcher’s documents to the Migration Authorities for evaluation.
The application for acquiring a visa / temporary residence permit is submitted to and handled by the Civil Registry and Migration Department. The Temporary Residence Permit lasts for one year, so it is very important to renew the temporary residence permit every year until the end of the employment. A Hosting Agreement needs to signed between the Research Organization and the Third Country National Researcher where the Researcher undertakes to complete the research project and the Organization undertakes to host the researcher.
EURAXESS Cyprus Network, acting as part of the EU initiative for supporting the mobility of researchers, is offering assistance to any Researcher wishing to relocate to Cyprus.
The following documents are available on the website of the Civil Registry and Migration Department that is handling the applications for admitting third-country nationals for the purposes of scientific research:
Application for the grant of a visa ton an alien to enter Cyprus
List of required documents to be submitted Application for the renewal of a temporary resident’s permit
Link: https://www.mip.gov.cy/dmmip/md.nsf/all/C3A721A1EDBDE076C225890C0044B3D5?opendocument
REQUIRED DOCUMENTS FOR THE ISSUE OF VISA / ENTRY PERMIT AND RESIDENCE PERMIT FOR THE PURPOSES OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH
RESEARCHER
REGISTRATION/ ENTRY PERMIT / RESIDENCE PERMIT
| DOCUMENT | ||
BEFORE THE ARRIVAL OF THE THIRD COUNTRY NATIONAL | ||
1 | Copy of valid passport or other travel document, with a validity that covers at least the duration of the intended stay or at least 2 years from the date of submission of the application. | |
2 | In case the third-country national is a minor, a parental authorization or an equivalent document for the intended stay. | |
3 | Original Certificate of a clear Criminal Record from the country of origin (if the third-country national is residing in a country other than the country of origin, the certificate may be issued from the country of residence). | |
4 | Οriginal medical examinations for Hepatitis B and C, AIDS/HIV, Syphilis and report of chest X-ray for Tuberculosis from the country of origin. | |
5 | Hosting Agreement signed between the third country national and the Research Organization. The hosting agreement shall contain, among other information, the title or purpose of the research activity or the research area, the start and end date or the estimated duration of the research activity, information on the working conditions of the researcher as well as information on the intended mobility in one or several second Member States if the mobility is known at the time of application. | |
6 | A written undertaking from the research organization that, in the event that a researcher remains illegally in the territory of Cyprus, that research organization is responsible for reimbursing the costs related to the stay and return incurred by public funds, according to Article 10 of the law. (L.7(I)2019) | |
AFTER THE ARRIVAL OF THE THIRD COUNTRY NATIONAL | ||
7 | Οriginal medical examinations for Hepatitis B and C, AIDS/HIV, Syphilis and report of chest X-ray for Tuberculosis from a public or private hospital of Cyprus stamped by a doctor. | |
8 | Copy of the passport’s or other travel document’s page with a stamp that shows the last arrival in Cyprus. | |
9 | Original entry permit (Μ70). | |
RESEARCHER
RENEWAL OF RESIDENCE PERMIT
| DOCUMENT | ||
1 | Copy of valid passport or other travel document, with a validity that covers at least the duration of the intended stay. | |
2 | Hosting Agreement signed between the third country national and the Research Organization. The hosting agreement shall contain, among other information, the title or purpose of the research activity or the research area, the start and end date or the estimated duration of the research activity, information on the working conditions of the researcher as well as information on the intended mobility in one or several second Member States if the mobility is known at the time of application. | |
3 | A written undertaking from the research organization that, in the event that a researcher remains illegally in the territory of Cyprus, that research organization is responsible for reimbursing the costs related to the stay and return incurred by public funds, according to Article 10 of the law. (L.7(I)2019) | |
4 | Copy of valid residence permit. | |
Fees
Application for issuance of an entry permit and a residence permit: €70
Application for issuance or renewal of a residence permit: €55
Registration in the Aliens’ Register (only in cases of first registration): €70
Public and private Organizations wishing to apply to host third country nationals, should also make sure that the have been approved as “research organizations” by RIF. Once they are approved, RIF informs the Civil Registry and Migration Department.
- Application Form: Application for the Approval of a Research Organization under the “Aliens and Immigration (Amending) Law of 2009 (N.29(I)/2009)”
- List of approved research organizations: List of Approved Research Organizations under the “Aliens and Immigration (Amending) Law of 2009 (N.29(I)2009)”
More information on the procedure to be followed can be found on the EURAXESS Portal: https://www.euraxess.org.cy/cyprus/information-assistance/entry-conditionsvisa
Contact person: Dr. Angelos Ntantos, +357 22 20 50 33, [email protected]
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