The Cyprus government has so far stripped 222 investors and their family members of the now-closed citizenship by investment scheme.
Widely reported by local media, deputy government spokeswoman Niovi Parisinou said on 18 January that the figure includes 63 investors and 159 of their relatives, including spouses, children and parents.
The specific update from the island's council of ministers on 18 January was the upholding of its decision to rescind the citizenship of three further investors and six of their dependents, to give a total to date of 222 since the process of revocation started in October 2021.
The ‘Cyprus Citizenship by Investment' scheme generated more than €9bn over 13 years giving passports to more than 7,000 people under repeatedly broker rules.
The scheme was abolished in 2020 after an undercover investigation by Al Jazeera revealed rampant corruption and that the government approved issuing passports to international criminals and fugitives, drawing criticism from the European Union and sparking protests in the country.
Foreign nationals, particularly popular with Russians and Asians, were able to acquire a Cypriot passport by investing more than €2m in the country.
