I went to collect a friend from Paphos Airport at 6pm last night. I saw that there were 4 flights all arriving about the same time so knew it would be busy but WOW. My friend only had hand luggage and from getting on the transfer bus from the aircraft to coming through the door in arrivals..1hr 40 minutes!!! When he got off the bus, the end of the line for immigration was out on the tarmac…only 2 desks open and they were meticulously checking all passports…

Let us hope they will be using the passport checks to weed out Expats who live here (over 3 months etc) but have not informed the UK Authorities, and so still claim some UK Benefits they are not entitled to, obtain EHIC card etc, and do not take out Cyprus residency, obligatory after 3 months (yellow slip), and avoid private health insurance costs here by using the EHIC card pretending to be visitors.
Geoff.

Let us hope they will be using the passport checks to weed out Expats who live here (over 3 months etc) but have not informed the UK Authorities, and so still claim some UK Benefits they are not entitled to, obtain EHIC card etc, and do not take out Cyprus residency, obligatory after 3 months (yellow slip), and avoid private health insurance costs here by using the EHIC card pretending to be visitors.
Geoff.

Extract from the Government web site
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/living-in-cyprus

“Residency requirements
EU Citizens who wish to reside in the Republic of Cyprus for more than 3 months are required to apply for a residence permit (yellow slip). You can apply through the local immigration office of the Ministry of Interior Republic of Cyprus using form MEU1A. A fee is payable but the permit does not need to be renewed.”

Thanks for that link, which also mentions what I said in my earlier post about the need
to take out Private Heath Insurance for individual stays not exceeding 3 months, and not more than 6 months (183 days) in any 12 month period (for Library cat: note NOT financial or calendar year).
You cannot legally use your EHIC card here after that initial stay.
Geoff.

If the UK comes out of the EU, then the EHIC card will no linger be issued to UK citizens. I'm not sure if existing ones will remain valid until their expiry date.

Geoffreys, you have confused me. What is an "initial stay"?

What if you have a home in the UK but wish to spend up to 6 months of the year in your other home in Cyprus - can you still use your UK issued EIC card in Cyprus, and after you have reported your presence to the Cyprus authorities will they issue you with a "yellow slip"?

OK. In any 12 months period you can stay up to 183 days, but no single visit can exceed 3 months without applying (you have to apply, immigration Dept) for residency (yellow slip).
My use of the word initial refers to that first stay. You could then, within the same 183 day period, come back on a second visit for 3 months.
Or you could come out on say 3 visits each of a month, within that 183 day period.
What you cannot do is come out for one visit of 6 months, or any period exceeding 3 months,
without applying for residency.
The same rules apply to the use of your EHIC card here.
You will find exactly how to apply for a yellow slip elsewhere on the forum I am sure - do a search.
Cheers,
Geoff.

For Linda28:-
you are most welcome, and hope you can move here for longer stay/s sooner rather than later.
Obtaining the Yellow Slip is quite straightforward - only problem might be the queue at
immigration. You need plenty of passport style photos, forget how many, 8 from memory.
Contrary to what some will tell you Immigration staff are very helpful, as in fact are
most Govt Depts; problem is they are very busy and often short of staff. Never lose your rag,
be patient and polite, and you'll have few problems.
Cheers,
Geoff.

Not the case nowadays, well certainly not in Pafos.
We have took friends to the immigration office for yellow slips on 2 occasions in the past 12 months and both times they were seen at the allotted appointment time. The first time they were the first in and there was no one else in the waiting room. You no longer need photos as they take your picture at the office.

Not the case nowadays, well certainly not in Pafos.
We have took friends to the immigration office for yellow slips on 2 occasions in the past 12 months and both times they were seen at the allotted appointment time. The first time they were the first in and there was no one else in the waiting room. You no longer need photos as they take your picture at the office.

If the UK comes out of the EU, then the EHIC card will no linger be issued to UK citizens. I'm not sure if existing ones will remain valid until their expiry date.

What a shambles at the airport last night. Our friend was returning to the UK and only had hand luggage so only had to go through security…the line was huge, stretching from security back past all the check in desks and doubling back on itself.

Whilst he stood in line, we waiting to one side and watched the antics of the Cypriots trying to cut in, join their new friends near the head of the line, badger any official who would listen that they had been delayed and just had to get through security immediately. We even saw Cypriots ‘latching on’ to disabled travellers to ‘accompany’ them through the fast track security (the disability service providers were actually encouraging them)

A lot of tempers were being raised and we actually saw a shoving match happen

It’s still early in the season and it took over an hour for our friend to get through security….dread to think of the chaos during the height of the season!!!

Many people don’t have a choice without it costing substantially more involving 2 flights

During the ‘winter’ timetable, the ONLY direct flights from Scotland are by Easyjet from Edinburgh on a Wednesday & Sunday.

During the ‘summer’ timetable, direct flights from Scotland are by Easylet; Jet2 and Thomsons from Edinburgh & Glasgow on a Tuesday; Wednesday; Saturday & Sunday

Just seen that you can get a direct train from Edinburgh to Manchester Airport every day.
Easyjet fly from Manchester every day but Tues and Saturday over the winter. This may be an option
During the Summer they fly every day and are cheaper by £100 per person than flying from Edinburgh.

Trains from Man airport to Man Piccadilly only run from around 6:30am

I have a friend who works as a rep for Saga Holidays.
When she is on airport duty last week a lot of passengers she was meeting said they wouldn't be coming back to Cyprus.

Was that because of the delays, or due to their age?

If you are not concerned about "sensitivities" there is always Ercan (Tymbou) International
Airport in the "north". Plenty of good cheap flights to/from various UK airports, and although
all flights have to "touch down" in Turkey en-route that does not usually cause too much extra journey time.
Geoff.

What airlines fly from the UK to Ercan with just a "touch down" in Turkey, please?

Turkish airlines and Pegasus on some flights. You can google them. Some flites just land for
a short time like 10 minutes.
Point is not the Paphos type rugby scrum! Turkish Airlines have no "extras" either.
Geoff.

Or you could just make the extra 45 minute journey in either direction and fly from Larnaca

I don't see how Ercan can be a "solution" as such, given you have to have downtime in Turkey before being allowed to travel on.
I don't see how it's possible that any flights can only be on the ground for 10 minutes. I would like to see a link to those website flight times.