19.05.2023
Vice President of the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Keve) Andreas Demetriades this week drew attention to the worrying issue of soaring rental prices, which in many cases exceed the ability of Cypriots to afford to rent a house, let alone buy a property. In response, the chamber proposed to the Minister of Finance to implement various incentives for builders in order to significantly increase the supply of housing in Cyprus.
Speaking to the Cyprus News Agency (CNA) , Demetriades said that after speaking with local developers, it became clear that with the appropriate incentives, enough new apartments and houses could be built in a short period of time, perhaps even within a year and a half, to satisfy rental market in Cyprus.
In addition, Demetriades said that the executive committee of the Chamber of Commerce recently held a meeting with the Minister of Finance. The meeting addressed a number of issues affecting the business environment, including interest rates on loans, deposit rates and tax issues such as VAT exemptions for capital expenditures in certain sectors.
Highlighting the concerns of banks, Demetriades raised the issue of the exorbitant fees charged on money orders and anti-money laundering checks, which currently account for nearly 1% of total transactions.
Demetriades also said discussions were about other relevant issues, including loans from companies to managers, discrepancies between Social Security Administration fees and fees received from the tax commissioner, factors tangentially related to the Living Wage Allowance (CoLA), and rising energy consumption .
Moreover, anticipating the Treasury’s strategic plan, Demetriades stressed the importance of attracting investment from international players that could potentially unlock various projects on the island. “We expect that a strategic plan will be created by the state and, in particular, the Ministry of Finance to attract foreign direct investment,” he said. In addition, he called for comprehensive measures to restore the economy and optimize the work of public services.
Such reforms, he explained, should enable electronic and automated transactions between the private and public sectors, minimizing wastage of time for both individuals and the state.
Demetriades also stressed the importance of the Investment Promotion Act, which will facilitate expedited building permits for large and small projects by ensuring that permits are issued no later than one year.
Finally, Demetriades noted that the discussion also focused on the modernization of the justice system along with other necessary transformation initiatives to ensure the efficient functioning of the state and support the active participation of the private sector in Cyprus and abroad.
