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Cyprus RightsThe Republic of Cyprus claims the whole island, and owes every right that claim implies to every Cypriot. Cyprus Rights documents where that duty goes unmet for Turkish Cypriots — with sources.

Property · Guardian scheme

Allocation of leases

Report card / Property / Guardian scheme

Obstructed40/100

The Ministry of Interior stated in July 2025 that active leases number 20,093, of which 86.5% are held by displaced persons. The Audit Office's special report TTP/01/2023, published 24 May 2023, found that 8,880 parcels were allocated as professional premises as of 31 December 2021. Of these, 5,746 — 65% — were leased to refugees, and the remaining 35% to non-refugees and local authorities. The Audit Office called that share excessively high, because the law allows allocation to non-refugees only as an exception. An earlier special report, TTP/01/2022, found that 19 Paphos premises were let below market rent without any assessment of state aid. Audits found violations in 512 of 4,032 commercial lease contracts. The state moved to a points-and-tender system; its first competitive tender ran in early 2026. The ministry figures are the duty-bearer's own statements.12345

Basis and sources

Legal anchor Law 139/1991 (custodial administration); Audit Office of the Republic reporting on allocations

Sources for this criterion

  1. 1. Ministry of Interior press conference on the reform of Turkish Cypriot property management, 11 July 2025A — primary / documentary · Republic of Cyprus, Ministry of Interior · 2025-07-11
  2. 2. Audit Office special report TTP/01/2023 on Turkish Cypriot properties allocated as professional premisesA — primary / documentary · Audit Office of the Republic of Cyprus · 2023-05-24
  3. 3. First Turkish Cypriot 'prime plot' put up for public tenderB — institutional / reported · Politis (English) · 2026-02-27
  4. 4. Turkish Cypriot Rights Issue Register and Legal Framework Register (Cyprus Rights reference corpus)D — open source · Cyprus Rights · 2026-08-24
  5. 5. Audit Office special report TTP/01/2022 on the allocation of 19 Turkish Cypriot commercial premises in PaphosA — primary / documentary · Audit Office of the Republic of Cyprus · 2022-12-21

Status partially addressedWeight 2/5Score 40

Sources

  1. Ministry of Interior press conference on the reform of Turkish Cypriot property management, 11 July 2025A — primary / documentaryRepublic of Cyprus, Ministry of Interior · 2025-07-11An official press-conference statement by the Republic of Cyprus Ministry of Interior presenting its 2025 reform of Turkish Cypriot property management.Official announcement, 11 July 2025 — the duty-bearer's own statement: 20,093 active leases (86.5% with refugees), 2025 expected revenue EUR 6.5m, points-based eligibility system, enforcement figures; a stated position, not an independent findinghttps://www.gov.cy/esoterika-themata/parousiastike-i-metarrythmisi-tou-tropou-diacheirisis-kai-diathesis-tourkokypriakon-periousion/
  2. Audit Office special report TTP/01/2023 on Turkish Cypriot properties allocated as professional premisesA — primary / documentaryAudit Office of the Republic of Cyprus · 2023-05-24Special report TTP/01/2023 of the Audit Office of the Republic of Cyprus on Turkish Cypriot properties allocated as professional premises.Special report TTP/01/2023, 24 May 2023 — of 8,880 parcels allocated as professional premises as of 31.12.2021, 5,746 (65%) were leased to refugees; the remaining 35% to non-refugees and local authoritieshttps://www.gov.cy/audit/documents/eidikes-ektheseis-elegktikis-ypiresias/
  3. First Turkish Cypriot 'prime plot' put up for public tenderB — institutional / reportedPolitis (English) · 2026-02-27A Politis English news report on the first Turkish Cypriot 'prime plot' offered for public tender under the reformed leasing framework.Politis English, 27 February 2026 — first competitive-tender lease under the reformed framework (Limassol plot 1/48537, Council of Ministers decision of 23 December 2025); award to the highest rent offer; refugee-restricted eligibilityhttps://en.politis.com.cy/economy/989052/first-turkish-cypriot-prime-plot-put-up-for-public-tender
  4. Turkish Cypriot Rights Issue Register and Legal Framework Register (Cyprus Rights reference corpus)D — open sourceCyprus Rights · 2026-08-24Cyprus Rights' own internal reference corpus of registers tracking Turkish Cypriot rights issues and the applicable legal framework.Cyprus Rights reference corpus, compiled 24 August 2026: internal/reference/rights-issue-register-turkish-cypriot.md and internal/reference/legal-framework-register.md. Cited for duty-bearer positions as the registers record them and for documentation-gap statements; each register entry carries its own underlying sources
  5. Audit Office special report TTP/01/2022 on the allocation of 19 Turkish Cypriot commercial premises in PaphosA — primary / documentaryAudit Office of the Republic of Cyprus · 2022-12-21Special report TTP/01/2022 of the Audit Office of the Republic of Cyprus on the allocation of 19 Turkish Cypriot commercial premises in Paphos.Special report TTP/01/2022, 21 December 2022 — compliance audit of a 2021 allocation of 19 premises: below-market rents granted without state-aid assessment; valuations based on undocumented 2014-2018 estimateshttps://www.gov.cy/audit/documents/eidikes-ektheseis-elegktikis-ypiresias/