Travelling to another European country requires you to have a travel document and legal permission to enter that country and is subject to the country’s laws and conditions for securing an entry visa.

In order to relocate to another European country as an asylum seeker or beneficiary of international protection, you need to fulfill certain criteria and enter into an available relocation programme. Only a small percentage of applicants are eligible for such programmes and this usually includes persons from specific nationalities, persons that have lived in Cyprus for a long time or applicants that are likely to receive international protection. Up until today, the number of relocations between European countries has been quite limited.

In order to resettle to the USA or any other country you need to enter into a resettlement programme that is offered by the country to which you wish to resettle. Cyprus does not currently have any resettlement agreements with other third countries and specifically USA or Canada.

Every asylum application is examined on a case-by-case basis. Some African countries are included in Cyprus’ national list of safe countries of origin, which means that there is a presumption that the general and security situation in these countries is safe, and applications made from applicants coming from these countries may be examined under an accelerated procedure. Some examples of such countries are Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana. 

Depending on the outcome of your asylum application, you may be entitled to reunite with your family members in Cyprus. The right to family reunification is only granted to persons who are recognized as refugees. Persons who are still asylum seekers or who are granted with subsidiary protection do not have the right to family reunification. You can only reunite with immediate and nuclear family members and not with extended family members and other restrictions apply.

When your application for asylum is submitted, you will have your fingerprints taken, as well as the fingerprints of any other member of your family. Children that are under the age of 14 do not have to give their fingerprints. 

A child born in Cyprus to foreign parents, does not automatically obtain the right to the Cypriot nationality. This also applies to the parents of the child born in Cyprus. If one of the parents is a Cypriot citizen, then the child has a right to the Cypriot citizenship.

A child born in Cyprus does not automatically obtain a residence permit by the mere fact of being born in Cyprus. The residence permit of the child depends on the legal status of the parents.  For example, if the parents are asylum seekers, then the child is also registered and included in the asylum procedure.

A number of migrants travel to the occupied territories of the Republic of Cyprus with student or other visas, and then decide to cross and come to the parts of the island where the Cypriot government has effective control. Due to the political situation, any crossings without legal authorization from the areas that are under Turkish occupation to the areas that are not, are considered illegal and migrants may be apprehended and be subject to penalties.