The novel coronavirus has caused many delays, and Cyprus is now on its way to make up for these delays.
One of these developments comes in the form of the island nation fast-tracking the issuing of building and planning permits.
The new plan, which will go into effect from October 2020, will have the waiting time slashed to around 20 days – right from the previous average of 14 to 18 months.
Nicos Nouris , Cyprus’ Interior Minister who announced the news, revealed thanks to the new fast-track process, the time used to process applications for building and planning will be greatly reduced, which will help expedite construction work on the island nation.
The Interior Minister acknowledged how the current system, though otherwise efficient, would be a hindrance in the potentially post-pandemic situation, when workload will be more and several projects will be put on hold.
Currently, most applications are about general homes, and have been submitted by civilians. These make up for over 62% of the total number of permits.
The fast-tracking applies to all of the planning department’s district offices, along with the island nation’s major municipalities – Larnaca, Limassol, and Nicosia.
For now, however, Nouris explained that applications can only be submitted online and only to the District Offices of Urban Planning.
Submission to the major municipality offices is yet to be ready.
