Is Cyprus a Mecca for influencers?

Cyprus has long been a safe haven for international businesses, benefitting from one of Europe’s lowest corporate tax rates which has only recently risen to 15 per cent.

The relatively low tax rate has in recent years drawn an increased number of digital content creators from across the globe to relocate to the island, but their income turns out to be somewhat harder to review than the balance sheets of ordinary companies.

So why is Cyprus such an attractive location for content creators?

“Back in Germany I gave half of my money to taxes but I didn’t even care because it was so normal; now I live in Cyprus and I pay 12.5 per cent corporate tax and 2.5 per cent on corporate gains,” says content creator Rico Go in one of his YouTube videos posted in 2022, before the slightly higher new corporate tax rate of 15 per cent was introduced in January.

Rico Go appears to have his own business registered on the island and additionally creates clickbaity content for his 145,000 YouTube subscribers.

He is part of a whole subgenre of influencers that has emerged around the island, consisting of digital content creators who actively advertise Cyprus and its location as a low-tax business location in the sun.

As part of his content, Rico Go also actively advertises the company “tax.one”, advertising its services with the slogan “Escape high taxes. Protect your wealth. Gain freedom.”

The company offers “tax and wealth advisory and relocation services” for both Cyprus and the United Arab Emirates. A first counselling call can be booked for as little as €200.

A photo on the website shows him and a colleague in front of a screen at a presentation bearing the headline, “I hate paying taxes just like you.” Neither he nor tax.one responded to the Cyprus Mail’s request for comment.

Two other German influencers, Alina and Jonathan Schoek, with a following of over 600,000 on YouTube, have simultaneously started offering services to help people relocate soon after they themselves moved to the island in 2022.

Together with David Aufinger, Jonathan Schoek has launched the website “Zypern Lifestyle”, offering both a free first consultation call and a digital video course on Cyprus as a business location for €330.

“Our video course and exclusive community will ensure you get off to a successful start in Cyprus!” the website reads.

Speaking to the Cyprus Mail, Aufinger elaborates on the services offered by their company.

“We do not provide legal or tax advice, but act as an interface between expatriates and local authorities as well as legal and tax partners (lawyers, tax advisors, notaries),” he says.

One of the key reasons Cyprus is an attractive business location, as highlighted on their website, is the 60-day rule, which makes the island an ideal base for digital nomads and travelling business people.

This rule, dating back to 2002 and last amended in 2017, provides that a Cyprus tax resident is a permanent resident of the Republic, who lives in the country for a minimum of 60 days per year – while not exceeding a stay of more than 183 in any other country – carries out business activity in the country and does not fulfil other tax residency requirements in other countries.

“Cypriot law has not yet dealt with the activity of influencers, nor are there specific legal provisions or case-law targeting influencers,” law professor and dean at the University of Nicosia’s school of law Achilleas Emilianides tells the Cyprus Mail.

Emilianides is a well-known figure who frequently provides commentary on legal issues on the island to the media. In 2024, he contributed to the European Audiovisual Observatory’s (EAO) summary of national rules applicable to influencers within the EU, providing an overview of the lack of legislation in Cyprus.

“This means that general provisions that might be applicable to influencers are typically neglected and the activity of influencers remains, in practice, unregulated,” he explains.

“This is problematic as it leads to lesser protection for consumers and the public at large,” he adds.

So what exactly makes an influencer?

Setting aside the lack of legislation regarding influencer activity, the question of who is regarded as an influencer comes to the fore.

As per the EAO’s country summary, the Republic’s legislation does, at this point, not provide a definition for the concept ‘influencer’. However, a guide to influencer marketing by the Cyprus Advertising Regulation Organisation (CARO) lays out some criteria, which prove helpful to further refine the term.

According to CARO, influencers may be considered as audiovisual media service (AVMS) providers. This is, given that their activities meet the criteria set out in the second article of the consolidated Law on Radio and Television Organisations.

And a brief glance at the website of the German social media influencer Romina Palm, with a following of 1.3 million on Instagram, indeed lists the Cyprus Radio and Television Authority (CRTA) as the supervisory authority of her company.

Palm has registered her company in Cyprus and has been living on and off the island together with her daughter and her fiance Christian Wolf since 2025.

Her partner, a fitness influencer himself, sells his own brand of dietary supplements, which he broadly advertises on his individual Instagram account, followed by 1.5 million users.

A video from July 2025 entitled “We are home” shows the two standing in front of a pool with a seaside view. While they appear to own or rent a house on the island, they make no secret of regularly travelling between Cyprus, South Africa and Germany for longer periods.

Palm’s management told the Cyprus Mail that she is currently unavailable for a comment.

What has been done and what needs to be done?

The couple are just two of the many content creators that have moved to the island in recent years. In addition to lifestyle influencers, Cyprus currently registers the world’s highest share of female OnlyFans content creators, the majority of which are non-Cypriot.

These influencers, whether they focus on lifestyle, finance or erotic content, are emblematic of a whole community which has in recent years settled on the island, operating across multiple digital revenue streams ranging from advertising to courses and paid consultations.

Judging by the way of living they display online, substantial sums appear to be at stake here, raising the question of whether Cyprus has the law-enforcement capacity to oversee their activities.

In October 2025, the Cyprus tax department uncovered around 300 individuals and legal entities, including several foreign residents, who had earned income through OnlyFans and other online platforms without declaring it.

“The tax department, in the context of available resources and priorities, take all necessary measures in and for the particular category to gather the required information and in cases where there is a failure to tax compliance undertake necessary steps,” the finance ministry told the Cyprus Mail.

The finance ministry, however, could not provide further information on how many influencers are currently registered in the Republic, stressing that they did not fall within a specific category of taxpayers.

Starting in spring 2025, Cyprus has been adopting a more rigorous approach towards the scrutiny of influencers, with tax and consumer protection authorities intensifying efforts to address the issues of undeclared income and misleading advertising, using advanced digital tools and data from social media platforms.

However, Cyprus is not the only country lacking relevant legislation. As of 2024, only two European countries had introduced a legal definition of the concept ‘influencer’.

But there seems to be progress. In March 2024, the Cyprus Advertising and Regulation Organisation (CARO) and the Consumer Protection Service (CPS) of the commerce ministry signed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding, aimed at informing consumers about the commercial intent behind influencer content on social media platforms.

“In principle, having influencers moving to Cyprus is positive, as this is a growing commercial activity. However, this can only be positive if influencers have proper supervision, are aware of their obligations, pay taxes etc,” says Emilianides.

He cautions, however, of Cyprus risking becoming attractive to influencers for the wrong reasons.

He suggests a statutory definition of the concept of an influencer and specifications for their obligations towards regulators and the public.

“If Cyprus is effectively a tax-haven and place where influencers come because there is no regulation/supervision, then this would be a negative development.”