Nominee director and shareholder in Cyprus: your price by the end of the next working day
We provide a director, a shareholder and a company secretary in Cyprus for your company. You stay the owner, in writing and in the register of beneficial owners.
Who holds what in your Cyprus company
- You The beneficial owner of 100%. The profits and the votes are yours.
- Nominee shareholder Holds the shares on trust for you
- Nominee director Sits on the board in Cyprus and signs what it approves
- Company secretary Keeps the registers and files the annual return
What a nominee director and a nominee shareholder are in Cyprus law
A nominee in the Companies Law
A nominee is a director, a secretary or a member by appointment and by contract: a person who takes the office or holds the shares for someone else. The law treats a nominee director as any other director, with the same duties to the company and the same signature on its filings.
A director and a secretary by law
The Companies Law, Cap. 113, provides for directors, a secretary and members. A private company has a director and a secretary by law, and the law sets no rule on where the director lives. A sole director cannot also be the secretary, unless the company has a single member.
The beneficial owner stays named
Behind a nominee shareholder stands the beneficial owner (UBO): a person with more than 25% of the shares or with control by other means. That person is named in the register of beneficial owners and to the bank, with a nominee or without one. What anyone can look up about the company is in the Cyprus company register.
What nominee services in Cyprus include
Nominee director
A Cyprus resident joins the board, holds its meetings on the island and signs the filings, contracts and bank forms the board approves.
Nominee shareholder
The nominee is entered in the public register as the holder of the shares and holds them on trust for you. The profits and the votes remain yours.
Company secretary
Every Cyprus company has one by law. Ours keeps the statutory registers, prepares minutes and share certificates, and files the annual return. The first year comes with company formation in Cyprus.
What clients write about Legarithm
4.8 on Google from 26 reviews.
…they handled my Cyprus company setup while I was still in London. Smooth remote process and great communication.
We set up a company in Cyprus. Nobody pushed extra services, everything was to the point. They explain things clearly, give a real timeline and help with the tax details.
Everything is well coordinated and clear. Half an hour of the first meeting was more useful than two weeks of trying to work it out myself.
What nominee services in Cyprus cost
Prices are before VAT.
Nominee director
Fixed in your quoteYou get the figure in writing by the end of the next working day.
Get a quote- Nominee shareholder
- in your quote
- Company secretary, first year
- included in formation, from €1,699
- Registrar certificate, each
- €200
When founders use a nominee director in Cyprus
The company is managed in Cyprus
A resident director holds the board meetings in Cyprus and signs the resolutions there. Banks look at where a company is managed when they open an account: bank account in Cyprus.
You need a signatory on the island
The director signs filings and bank forms in Cyprus, so no document travels to you for a signature.
Who signs what: how you keep control of the company
The nominee shareholder signs that the shares are held for you alone.
The nominee signs it in advance, so you can move the shares into your own name at any time.
You and each nominee sign it. It binds the nominee shareholder to your written instructions and lists the board decisions that need your written consent first.
The board gives you a power of attorney for the matters it names, and you sign those yourself.
The two registers: what each one shows
A late entry in the register of beneficial owners costs €100, then €50 a day, up to €5,000. We file it for you.
| Question | Register of companies | Register of beneficial owners |
|---|---|---|
| Who reads it | Anyone | Authorities and banks. Public access is suspended. |
| What it shows | The directors, the secretary and the registered shareholders: the nominees, where you appoint them | You, as the beneficial owner |
| When we file | Within 14 days of an appointment or a change | Within 90 days of incorporation, then a confirmation each year between 1 October and 31 December |
How we appoint a nominee director in Cyprus
- day 11
You choose the roles
A director, a shareholder, a secretary, or all 3. We tell you what each changes for the bank and the registers.
- then2
You send your documents
You upload each beneficial owner's documents in your account, and our compliance officer checks them.
- before filing3
The control documents are signed
The nominee signs the declaration of trust and the instrument of transfer. You both sign the nominee agreement.
- within 14 days4
We file the appointment
We notify the Registrar of Companies on form HE4 and declare you in the register of beneficial owners.
How long a nominee appointment lasts and how you end it
You replace a nominee director, a secretary or a shareholder at any time.
14 daysTo notify the Registrar of a change of director
The service is charged by the year and continues until you end it. For a director or a secretary the company passes a resolution, and we notify the Registrar on form HE4 within 14 days. After a change we order the Registrar's new certificate of directors and secretary for the bank.
HE57The form for a transfer signed in advance
For shares you date the instrument of transfer that the nominee signed in advance. We file it on form HE57 and update the register of beneficial owners. A ready-made company passes to its buyer on form HE57 too.
60 daysThe residency rule a directorship counts for
A founder who moves to Cyprus can take the director's seat: a directorship in a Cyprus company is the work tie that the 60-day rule of Cyprus tax residency asks for. With that residency the founder can claim non-dom status in Cyprus.
Documents for a nominee appointment in Cyprus
Documents
Each beneficial owner
- Passport
- Utility bill from the last 3 months
- CV
- Bank reference letter
You send them in your account. We check each document the day it arrives and tell you what is missing.
See the platformQuestions about nominee directors and shareholders in Cyprus
What is a nominee director?
A person who holds the office of director for the owner of a company, under a contract. The nominee sits on the board, votes on its resolutions and signs what the board has approved.
What is the difference between a nominee director and a normal director?
In law there is none: both carry the same duties to the company and act by board resolution. The difference is the nominee agreement that the director signs with the owner.
Are nominee directors and shareholders legal in Cyprus?
Yes. A licensed provider can act as director or hold shares for you, and you are declared in the register of beneficial owners.
Does a Cyprus company need a local director?
No. The law asks for a director and a secretary and sets no residence rule for the director. Founders appoint a Cyprus resident when the company is run from the island, at registration or later: how to register a company in Cyprus.
What protects the owner when a nominee holds the shares?
The declaration of trust, the undated instrument of transfer and the nominee agreement: with them you take the shares into your own name on any day you choose.
Can a nominee act without my instructions?
A nominee shareholder cannot. A director acts by board resolution, and the agreement lists what needs your written consent first.
Will my name appear in the public register?
With a nominee director and a nominee shareholder the register of companies shows their names. Yours is in the register of beneficial owners.
Is a company with a nominee director tax resident in Cyprus?
Yes. From 2026 a company incorporated in Cyprus is tax resident there by default, unless a tax treaty places it elsewhere. The rates are on tax in Cyprus.
Get a quote for your Cyprus company
Book a 30-minute call about your company
Your consultant Vladyslav Babaiev Opens in a new tab Business Setup Specialist
- We email you the Google Meet link.
- 30 minutes, free, no obligation to order.
- After the call we email you the checklist of documents for your country.
We reply by the end of the next working day with the cost and the dates for your case. The first call is free and confidential.
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OpenTax in Cyprus
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OpenGuides to a company in Cyprus
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Updated 21 October 2026. Reviewed by Vladyslav Drapii, Founder.
