The Law Office has been given a total of 22 cases related to Cyprus’ Golden Passport program for evaluation and subsequent action.

According to local media sources, there is enough evidence to support possible criminal charges against the participating investors.

Investigations into these cases, which have been ongoing for more than two years, are connected to the naturalization of foreign investors and businesses by the same provider.

The Citizenship by Investment Program (CIP), often known as the Cyprus Golden Passport Scheme, permitted wealthy overseas investors to become citizens of Cyprus by making a financial donation and fulfilling certain requirements.

However, as revealed in a story by Al Jazeera titled “The Cyprus Papers,” the program came under fire for alleged illicit activities like corruption and money laundering. As a result, the program was discontinued by Cypriot authorities in 2020.

Under this program, Cyprus issued around 7,000 golden passports between 2007 and 2020, with a minimum investment requirement of €2 million from overseas investors. Investors from Asia and Russia were very fond of it.

It happens frequently for the Cyprus Golden Passport Scheme to involve wrongdoing. Four people have recently been charged with violating the program’s guidelines by allegedly helping visitors get golden passports in exchange for bribery. On October 11, they will appear in court for the first time.

Cyprus cancelled 222 passports issued under the Citizenship by Investment program in January of this year. This number includes 63 investors and 159 members of their family, such as partners, kids, and parents.

The Audit Office also revealed illegal CIP-related operations, emphasizing that the scheme remained corrupt throughout its operation and causing significant losses in tax revenue. It was implied that certain government officials’ activities in Cyprus would be considered crimes.

The government will provide a thorough response to these revelations, according to government spokesman Marios Pelekanos, after carefully examining the report’s findings, taking into account the findings of the independent Nicolatos inquiry, and taking the attorney general’s recommendations into consideration. According to the Audit Office’s findings, numerous golden passports granted by the Cypriot government were illegally obtained by foreigners.