Northern Cyprus As Best Place to Retire
Moving overseas for the retirement allows you to reduce the cost and expenditure during the retirement as you seek more adventure and utmost happiness for yourself. Northern Cyprus is one of the best affordable options for this type of retirement. The foreign currencies such as British Pound, Dollar, Lira and Euro made the the Aphrodite island increasingly a realistic option for the retirees, a region with the quality living standards same as Eurozone.
There are factors which a person may considering before moving: Like the cost of living, affordability of real estate, infrastructure, residency options, taxes, health care, recreation, international access, crime rates, expat community options and the language spoken in that specific destination. Retirees have an opportunity to relocate to countries that better suits their interests and budget. But, the challenge is finding a place that will meet all of your retirement needs.
A survey commissioned by NatWest Bank relating to retiring abroad, the nations people favour for their overseas retirement and the reasons for considering leaving the UK behind revealed many interesting findings such as the fact that cost and standard of living are driving factors behind many would-be expatriate retirees’ thoughts about moving abroad when they retire. British pubs’ serving all day breakfasts now to be found in corners of Northern Cyprus and the shops, banks, roads and even flights to and from the island are far busier!In terms of the realities of retiring to Northern Cyprus there are many facts and aspects to consider.First things first, property in TRNC may have gone up in value but it is still for sale at a fraction of the price it is in the UK or in south Cyprus for example.
Next up, if you’re going to be living in North Cyprus year round, get central heating put in to your villa or apartment. Don’t argue – just do it! Temperatures dropped so low in Cyprus sometimes that earlier this month snow fell in lower lying areas and elsewhere there were hail storms and horrible howling winds. For a short period of the year, the weather in Cyprus is horrible, you will want and need central heating and you will regret it if you do not have it.
Living Cost: The cost of day to day living in TRNC can be more than affordable. However – if you insist on being a heavy consumer of electricity and petrol you will find your expenses soon increased each month. Also, if you insist on shopping in Tempo and Lemar for English brand products rather than buying in season fruit and vegetables and whatever is more readily available like on Sunday Market, you will again see your living expenses stack up! Simply to put it, if you shop like the locals do and think about what you consume you will enjoy an affordable cost of living. Another good news is for those who like eating out and going to the pub for socialise sometimes is that there are so many pubs and cafes and restaurants and the vast majority of them are affordable if not cheap, so you will be able to enjoy a varied and enjoyable social side of life for less when living in TRNC.
Legal Matter: As a British retiree or someone from Nordic region retiring to the island who holds an EU passport, you can take up residency in Northern Cyprus easily. You have to begin the residency process within three months upon arrival on the island. You go to the main police station in Girne (Kyrenia), Famagusta or Lefkosa with your passport, you then have to have a brief medical test at an authorized clinic, provide proof of your address and that you have the means to support yourself, get what’s called your ‘in and out certificate’ from the main police station in Nicosia, (this is a piece of paper showing how many times you have entered and left the country prior to applying for residency), and then you take all the paper work to the immigration department in Lefkosa (Nicosia) and lay back waiting for a stamp to appear in your passport! It sounds complicated but it really isn’t – however, because it does require you to put in a few hour’s leg work running between all the official offices, you can employ a runner to do all the hard work for you, while you doing whatever you want to do. To find a runner contact the British Residents’ Society, or ask round the local pub for some help! You need to renew your residency every year for five years and then you can apply for permanent residency. The rules change all the time though, so just ask or read the current news for new update.
Pension Funds:Turkish İşbank It's very easy to access your pension income while you live in Northern Cyprus – the best way is to retain your foreign bank account and credit cards, so that you can get the money paid into that and either access the cash through sweep card when you need money, or open an account at one of the local bank in the TRNC like and pay a cheque from the original account in your country each month. If you do an international transfer it will cost you a fortune, but if you pay a cheque into your account it costs little or nothing – however, it can take a month to clear!
As you will be resident in Northern Cyprus you can de-register for tax in your previous nation by contacting the tax authority there and telling them that you have moved abroad. When they accept that you are no longer tax resident you become liable for income tax on your pension in Northern Cyprus. However, this is only on the money you remit to the country and you should take advice on how to handle your financial affairs from a tax adviser or accountant. There are many Brits and Nordics living on the island who keep all of their money in an account external to the nation and therefore pay little or no tax. Whether this is legal or advisable for you depends on your own personal circumstances – again, we reiterate that you must take advice and this article does NOT constitute a complete advice!
Finally – in terms of considering Northern Cyprus as an attractive retirement destination it does have a great deal in its favour. The Aphrodite island is very beautiful, and the most of year it has a fabulous climate. Real estate if you planing to buy property which is affordable, plus the cost of living can be cheap. The living standard can be on a par with other European nations like UK. You can legally move to the island and potentially even reduce your tax bill. Health care is affordable and readily available – although retiring expats should consider a private health insurance policy. If you look at health insurance make sure you’re covered in North Cyprus and also think about what you would do if you needed long term care.
As a potential nation for oversea's retirement, Northern Cyprus is certainly a strong contender.
