CySEC CIF Licensing
Cyprus Investment Firm (CIF) licences issued by CySEC provide access to the EU single market via MiFID II passporting — covering retail and professional clients across all 27 EU member states.
Industry Guide
Cyprus Investment Firm (CIF) licensing via CySEC, 15% CIT, and EU passporting put Cyprus at the centre of European forex and prop trading.
— Key Advantages
Cyprus Investment Firm (CIF) licences issued by CySEC provide access to the EU single market via MiFID II passporting — covering retail and professional clients across all 27 EU member states.
Trading income, management fees, and performance fees earned by a Cyprus CIF or prop trading company are taxed at 15% CIT — one of the lowest rates for regulated financial firms in the EU.
Cyprus applies the OECD Pillar Two global minimum tax only to groups with consolidated revenues exceeding €750M, meaning most prop trading firms and mid-size brokers are unaffected.
A CySEC-regulated CIF can passport its services into any EU or EEA member state without requiring separate local licences, dramatically reducing regulatory overhead for multi-market operations.
Principals and key employees who establish Cyprus tax residency under the non-dom regime pay 0% dividend SDC and may qualify for a 50% income tax exemption on employment income above €55,000.
Cyprus has a mature ecosystem of CySEC compliance advisers, approved AML compliance officers, and regulatory lawyers specialising in forex and prop trading firm authorisations.
— At a Glance
— The Process
Form a Cyprus private limited company with objects appropriate for investment firm or prop trading activities, together with any required share capital.
If you manage client funds or provide investment services to third parties, apply for a CySEC CIF licence. We coordinate with your regulatory counsel.
Set up EUR accounts with Cyprus-licensed banks and arrange prime brokerage or liquidity provider agreements appropriate for your trading activities.
File annual audited accounts, CIT return, CySEC regulatory reports, and AML/KYC documentation. Our team manages the full compliance cycle.
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