Greece vs Cyprus.
Two countries' verified rules for an early retiree, side by side. There is no winner here — a lower cost, a wealth tax and an exit tax pull in different directions, and which ones matter is yours to weigh.
At a glance.
Price it in your money
Tell me where you live now and what you spend a month, and every cost here becomes your number — the same life, priced country by country, in your own currency.
A guide, not a quote. I move your monthly spend by each country’s official price level (Eurostat and the World Bank, whole-economy, EU-27 = 100) — no exchange rates, so it stays in your own currency. But averages hide rent and the city you pick, and changing country is rarely a straight swap. Read these as the right ballpark, then price the real thing.
| Measure | Greece | Cyprus |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of living | 87 | 89 |
| A €2,500-a-month life | €2,190/mo | €2,230/mo |
| The ×30 number it implies | €788,000 | €803,000 |
| Housing — to buy | €1,792/m² | — |
| Housing — to rent | €12.7/m² · Athens | — |
| Housing vs the EU | −29% | −8% |
| Getting in | ||
| The route in | The FIP permit | The 'pink slip' |
| Golden visa | Open | Open |
| Years to a passport | 7 yrs | 8 yrs |
| The patterns each carries | ||
| Lower tax if you hold | no | no |
| Yearly tax on holdings | no | no |
| Taxes unsold gains | no | no |
| Exit tax | no | no |
| Deals for new residents | yes | yes |
| No wealth tax | yes | yes |
A “yes” is not a point scored: “no wealth tax” and “exit tax on leaving” pull opposite ways. Read the column against your own plan, not as a score.
The rules that matter, in full.
Greece
EU fund gains tax-free — and a 7% deal for arriving pensioners.
Gains on EU/EEA UCITS funds and ETFs are exempt from income tax for residents. Gains on individual listed shares are exempt too when you hold under 0.5% of the company — a small levy on the sale amount applies instead — while non-EU funds (US-domiciled ETFs included) fall under the 15% securities rate. Dividends take a flat 5%.
None on portfolios — Greece's annual property tax is a real-estate matter.
None on private portfolios.
Two standing deals for movers: a €100,000-a-year lump-sum regime for wealthy new residents (tied to investing €500,000 in Greece), and a flat 7% on ALL foreign income — not just the pension — for foreign pensioners relocating, running fifteen years. Weather, not climate: confirm in writing, close to the move.
Nothing moved for investors in 2026 — but the fund exemption is the load-bearing fact here; have a Greek adviser confirm your exact fund's treatment before you count on it.
Cyprus
Securities gains simply untaxed — and a rewritten code since January.
Gains on shares, bonds and fund units sit outside Cyprus tax entirely for individuals — capital gains tax touches only Cypriot real estate.
Dividends and interest escape income tax but carry the 'defence contribution' for domiciled residents — while non-doms pay none of it for seventeen years, only a small capped health levy. This is a large part of why Cyprus is where European FIRE movers actually go.
Cyprus rewrote its tax code effective January 2026: the dividend defence contribution fell from 17% to 5% on post-2026 profits, the 60-day residency rule was loosened, and the non-dom window gained a paid extension beyond year seventeen. New law — the details are still settling.
No wealth tax, and no exit tax on private portfolios.
The reform is six months old and professionals still argue points of it — the interest rules for individuals especially. Any plan built on Cyprus deserves a local adviser and a current reading.
None of this is tax or investment advice — it's education, kept deliberately at the level that survives fact-checking. Rules shift with every budget round; the specifics of your situation belong with a licensed adviser in your country. I'm happily not one.
Greece verified 8 July 2026 · Cyprus verified 8 July 2026. What's changed on the map
Bring me a challenge.
The Exit Audit, then ninety minutes: a straight verdict, real alternatives with their pros and cons, and your first move. If you want someone to nod along, I’m the wrong person to pay.
Ninety minutes, online, €600 — the Exit Audit included.