Northern Cyprus Re-Issues Decree-Law on Foreign Property Purchases: Caps, Permits and Deadlines Stay in Force (2026)

Coastal town with residential buildings in Northern Cyprus

Table of Contents hide

1. Is this a new law or a continuation?

2. How long does it apply?

3. Who is affected

4. What the rules say

5. Deadlines for a new purchase

6. Transitional windows for older contracts

7. Investment and licensed intermediary rules

8. Frequently asked questions

8.1. Are these new rules?

8.2. Is there an end date?

8.3. Do the 6-month periods restart?

8.4. Is there independent media coverage?

9. Official sources

Northern Cyprus has re-issued its decree-law on foreigners buying property as No 119/2026, published on 6 October 2026. It repeals and replaces decree-law 89/2026 and keeps the same operative rules: a Council of Ministers purchase permit, caps per buyer, and registration and payment deadlines. It is a continuation, not a new regime. The text prints no end date. Information is current as of 23 October 2026.

Decree-law No 119/2026 appeared in the Official Gazette of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (Resmi Gazete No 196) on 6 October 2026 and is available as a PDF from the State Printing House. It enters into force on publication and is executed by the Ministry of Interior. This is a renewal of the previous decree-law of the same title, No 89/2026, and the chain named in its recitals runs 63/2026, then 89/2026, then 119/2026.

Is this a new law or a continuation?

A continuation. A word-by-word comparison of the Gazette texts of 89/2026 (Gazette No 147, 7 August 2026) and 119/2026 shows no substantive change in the operative articles 3 to 13. The only addition is an article that repeals 89/2026 when the new text takes effect.

Item	Decree-law 89/2026	Decree-law 119/2026
Gazette	No 147, 7 August 2026	No 196, 6 October 2026
Operative rules (arts. 3-13)	Permit, caps, deadlines	Same in substance
Status	Repealed on 6 October 2026	In force from publication

The stated reason is that amendments to the Immovable Property Acquisition and Long-term Leasing (Foreigners) Law, No 52/2008 (as amended by Law 39/2024), are on the agenda of the Assembly’s committee but have not been completed. The decree-law is therefore issued out of necessity. The text also says foreign buyers abroad often could not pay taxes and fees within the statutory deadlines.

How long does it apply?

Residential streets of Kyrenia in Northern Cyprus

A decree-law has limited duration and may be followed by an Assembly law. The 119/2026 text prints no end date, and no source we reviewed says when the Assembly will adopt the replacement amendments. As an unofficial estimate only: if a 90-day period applied from 6 October 2026, it would end around 4 January 2027. That figure is our own calculation, it is not stated in the text and it has not been checked against the Constitution. Do not treat it as a deadline.

Who is affected

Foreign natural and legal persons buying property in the TRNC. A company with any foreign share or capital counts as a foreign legal person.
Sellers, developers and agents, and the District Land Registry offices.
Foreign buyers who signed sale contracts before Law 39/2024 and are still unregistered or untransferred, and holders of trust agreements.

Not covered, according to the text: persons who are not foreign and who registered under the old Law 52/2008 rules before Law 39/2024 remain under that law. TRNC citizens buying property are outside this decree-law.

What the rules say

A purchase needs a Council of Ministers permit. The caps per buyer are:

Type of property	Limit
Land complying with building permit rules	Up to 1,338 m2, with only 1 house built on it
Apartments	Up to 3 (up to 6 for nationals of states that recognise the TRNC, with reciprocity)
Detached house	Plot up to 3,300 m2, no second house or apartment on it
Gated estate or mass-housing scheme	2 two-storey detached villas (3 for the same reciprocity group)

In an apartment project, no more than half of the units on the same parcel may go to foreigners who are first-degree relatives or in-laws of each other or of the same nationality. In zoned areas, at most 80% of units in housing projects may be sold to foreigners.

Deadlines for a new purchase

Coastal residential development in Northern Cyprus

1 month: after a stamped sale contract within the quota, register it at the District Land Registry and apply to the Ministry. Otherwise the contract is void by operation of law.
75 working days: transfer fees must be paid after the Council permit is published in the Gazette, otherwise the permit lapses.
1 year: the transfer must be completed after the permit is published, otherwise the permit lapses.

The Council of Ministers may extend deadlines by up to 6 months where non-completion is due to administrative fault. Connection of utilities is blocked while taxes and fees are unpaid, with site electricity and temporary construction water excepted.

Transitional windows for older contracts

Window	What must be done
6 months from entry into force	Register pre-Law-39/2024 sale contracts within quota and apply to the Ministry; notify over-quota contracts (fee 1% of the contract price, later 3%); register trust agreements
Then 24 months	Transfer existing over-quota contracts, or fall under the use-certificate rules, otherwise void
36 months	Transfer completed and handed-over homes with all taxes and fees paid; a reasonable-excuse notice can be given up to month 34
2 years	Application with a building permit or Planning Approval where unit title cannot be set up

The text counts the 6 months “from the date this decree-law enters into force”, which gives about 6 April 2027 (our calculation). The earlier decree-laws had their own start dates. It is not confirmed whether the clock restarted on 6 October 2026 or continues from the earlier decree-law, so owners of older contracts should check the deadline with the Ministry of Interior or the District Land Registry before relying on it.

Over-quota contracts that are not registered can end up as a 10-year use certificate, which gives use rights but not ownership. Holders can still request transfer once all taxes and fees are paid.

Investment and licensed intermediary rules

An investment means at least EUR 10,000,000 in tourism, education, health, industry, agriculture, technology or R&D. Build-and-sell housing does not count. The amount is deposited with a bank in the TRNC and used within 2 years, excluding land purchase.
A company with any foreign shareholding may buy up to 80,280 m2 for an investment, subject to the investment rules.
A licensed intermediary investor holds an annual licence, takes up to 10 homes a year (not land) under written agreement, and pays a fee of twice the monthly gross minimum wage to the Revenue and Tax Department.
Transfers between foreigners, and to first- or second-degree relatives, need the Ministry’s knowledge and approval.

Frequently asked questions

Are these new rules?

No. The operative articles are the same in substance as in 89/2026.

Is there an end date?

The text prints none. Validity is limited and an Assembly law may replace it.

Do the 6-month periods restart?

Not confirmed. The text counts from entry into force of this decree-law; confirm with the Ministry of Interior.

Is there independent media coverage?

None found. The facts here come from the official Gazette only.

Official sources

Checked on 23 October 2026. This article is general information, not legal or tax advice. Figures are taken from the Gazette text of 6 October 2026, which has an imperfect text layer, and rules may change. Verify with the Ministry of Interior, the Land Registry and a licensed TRNC lawyer.