Alpha News

Housing Policy Overhaul: Increased Grants and Revised Criteria in Cyprus

Published February 18, 2026, 12:27

The Ministry of Interior has announced a major overhaul of its housing policy, with significant increases in grants reaching up to €100,000 for eligible applicants. Minister of Interior, Constantinos Ioannou, presented the corrective measures to existing schemes, as well as new solutions for student and worker housing. The government aims to accelerate licensing and strengthen the KΟAG to increase housing supply and reduce prices. The Urban Planning Incentives and Build to Rent schemes have already garnered significant interest from the construction sector, with 39 applications for building permits expected to lead to over 2,500 new units, of which 275 are affordable homes. Additionally, 22 applications utilize the building factor purchase option, generating €11.5 million for the KΟAG's Affordable Housing Special Fund. The Build to Rent scheme is being revised to make it more attractive, allowing the free disposal of the entire buildable area, while maintaining the obligation to allocate units resulting from the additional building factor to affordable rent for four years. The 'Renovate-Rent' scheme had lower performance than expected, with a total of 76 applications, of which 40 were approved and 16 were rejected. However, the scheme is being revised with an increase in grants of €5,000 per unit, the possibility of utilizing non-residential spaces, and an extension of eligibility criteria.