Anyone contemplating a property purchase in Cyprus should act now, following the government’s decision to cut transfer tax on all purchases made in the next six months, starting from December 2, 2011.

The change in law means that all property transactions that previously were subject to VAT, ie new-builds, are now completely exempt from transfer tax, while for all others the transfer tax rate levied has been halved. Transfer tax is levied at 3, 5 or 8 per cent depending on the value of the purchase, so during the six-month window, a property usually subject to 3 per cent tax is now subject to 1.5 per cent, a property subject to 5 per cent is now subject to 2.5 per cent and one subject to 8 per cent is currently subject to 4 per cent.

Richard Way Editor of www.OverseasGuidesCompany.com said: “Now that a favourable decision over transfer tax has been announced, buyers who had been waiting in the wings for confirmation will now be happy to commit to a purchase, thereby injecting some life into the depressed Cyprus property market.

Buyers who committed to a purchase before the tax break was introduced should note there are provisions in the law to stop buyers withdrawing contracts of sale at the Land Registry and altering the date of the transaction.

The property market in Cyprus as a whole is depressed, meaning many homes are being offered with discounts. To make sure you save even more money when buying there, consider using a currency specialist, such as Smart Currency Exchange, to transfer your pounds into euros for your purchase.

For details of properties in Cyprus visit the listings on Rightmove Overseas.

To understand the full step-by-step process to buying a property Cyprus, collect The Overseas Guides Company’s ‘Cyprus Property Buying Guide’