Issued by Cyprus | Eligibility requirements Cypriot citizenship | |
Valid in Cyprus
European Economic Area
Switzerland
Serbia Type of document Compulsory identity document | ||
The Cypriot Identity Card is issued to citizens of the Republic of Cyprus. It can be used as a travel document when visiting countries in the European Union and European Economic Area, as well as the countries of Switzerland and Serbia.
Contents
- Physical Appearance
- Identity information page
- National Aliens ID Card of Cyprus
- ID Cards of citizens of North Cyprus
- References
As of February 2015 the Republic of Cyprus started issuing new biometric identity cards. [missing image and description]
Physical Appearance
The color of the current Cypriot Identity Card is a light shade of cyan.
The coat of arms of the Republic of Cyprus is situated in the center on both sides of the card.
On the top left of the front side, the name of the Republic of Cyprus is printed in English, Greek (Κυπριακή Δημοκρατία [cipɾiaˈci ðimokɾaˈti.a]) and Turkish (Kıbrıs Cumhuriyeti [ˈkɯbɾɯs d͡ʒumhuɾijeˈti] and is situated to the right of a smaller grayscale coat of arms. The Identity Card is valid for 10 years from the time of issue.
Identity information page
Cypriot National Identity Card includes the following data:
Front
Back
The acquisition and possession of Civil Identity Card is compulsory for any eligible person who has completed twelve years of age.
National Alien's ID Card of Cyprus
The Cypriot Alien's identity card used to be issued to citizens of other EU member states or nationals of third countries, who at the time of application were legal residents of the Republic. It is still practically used in Cyprus for personal identification; however it cannot be used as a travel document. The latest is the main reason the Government of Cyprus stopped issuing such Identity Cards to foreigners in April, 2011 as holders of such IDs were under an impression that as legal residents of a European member country, they could use their IDs to travel within the EU.
Civil Registry and Migration Department announced in 2011 that the Ministry of Interior was at that time looking at introducing a new type of card to replace the troublesome non-national Cyprus ID card. It will be called a residence card and will look similar to an ID card
ID Cards of citizens of North Cyprus
ID Cards of North Cyprus are issued to citizens of self-titled Turkish Republic of North Cyprus, which is recognized only by Republic of Turkey. Citizens of Northern Cyprus are persons granted citizenship by the Government of Northern Cyprus, which was established as a result of occupation of Cyprus by Turkey in 1974, the cause of which had divided the Greek and Turkish communities of the island dating to the year of 1963.
As a result of its unrecognized status by most National Governments, holders of North Cypriot ID Cards or passports do not have the right of free movement. These IDs can be used as travel documents when entering Turkey or the Republic of Cyprus through official check points.
It is important to note that every Turkish Cypriot is entitled to citizenship of Republic of Turkey, however many Turkish Cypriots who are born in Cyprus and can trace their Cypriot and legal residence before the partition can apply and receive a Cypriot passport from the recognized Republic of Cyprus.