Moving to Cyprus - reflections
Hello,
The weather in Poland does not spoil. For half a year there is darkness and a climate of "sharp shadow of fog". They motivate to work on improving life and earn money for holidays. Another time for eating chocolate and silting up in front of the monitors...
Moving to Cyprus, I didn't think about taxes. Despite the "Polish Wall", we still have opportunities in Poland. Paying less than 10% is a luxury compared to Western Europe.
In Cyprus, corporate income tax is 12.5%. (VAT is 19%). In Poland, a limited liability company up to EUR 2 million is a small taxpayer and we pay only 9%.
I'm just discovering that Cyprus allows you to avoid capital gains taxes if you have non-domiciled status. But for now, that's not my point at all.
Chasing the sun, sea and wind - this is my motivation.
The country, despite a higher GDP per capita, is characterized by a lower level of development than Poland. The houses are more cardboard and less finished than our beautiful Polish interiors. It resembles the Anglo-Saxon climate (USA, England).
Allegro does not exist. Ecommerce is in its infancy. We arrange everything on the phone or after acquaintances, we go for the second time to collect the order, there are mistakes and misunderstandings. The selection in stores (all kinds) is much poorer and the prices are higher. The choice of cars on a small island with a million inhabitants is smaller than in Poland.
But Cypriots benefit from being open, helpful, cordial and smiling. Less official and... sad than us. The business culture is more concrete: clear communication and putting coffee on the bench is the norm, which I greatly appreciate. With us, the norm is rather to beat around the bush and approach topics like a hedgehog.
The UK has had a huge impact on Cypriot culture: British outlets, driving on the left, a fair degree of English (although there are exceptions).
Even in winter, we enjoy the sun here and... the nature that exists here, unlike the desert Dubai. Although the Emirates will provide us with higher temperatures, they are a somewhat soulless place.
In Cyprus in winter we have to wear jackets and even in April we won't use the swimming pool (I bought a special wetsuit for this purpose). Outdoor swimming pools are almost everywhere, but built-up ones are rare.
Cyprus, on the other hand, is within the reach of European culture and is closer to us, more modest than Dubai, more cordial, friendly, family and ... green, although not like Poland in the summer.
What are the alternatives? From the islands where we can count on a civilization (about a million inhabitants), we have Mallorca, which I must admit that I have not met. Sicily has as many as 5 million inhabitants and I am also just going to discover it. I remember Greek Rhodes as a beautiful place and I will definitely consider a change to Greece.
I am particularly interested in the east of the Athens airport, where it is easy to fly with an animal (in our case a cat), it is of course even closer than Cyprus, and the sea is only 15 minutes from the airport.
By the way, only low-cost airlines fly to Cyprus from Poland and the transport of animals requires a change, which extends the journey from 3.5 hours to 6 hours and, surprisingly, requires again "beating" at a poorly organized Greek airport.
Risk of war? Cyprus, as you know, is a divided island. Personally, I believe that the risk of Turkey attacking again after 50 years is much lower than the risk of Poland joining the war with Russia, unfortunately.
It seems to me that the inhabitants of both parts are used to the current state of affairs and there are no serious tensions between them. The United Nations buffer zone runs through Cyprus, as well as two British military bases.
What's next? I still live in Poland and intend to move between countries. We spent April in Cyprus, when it was still cold, sad and boring here. We have returned - accidentally tanned - to a country that blooms with greenery! And this is beautiful.
I recorded a video where I share more thoughts and observations about Cyprus. I invite you to watch: https://youtu.be/6b6Cl2wO39c
Hello,
The weather in Poland does not spoil. For half a year there is darkness and a climate of "sharp shadow of fog". They motivate to work on improving life and earn money for holidays. Another time for eating chocolate and silting up in front of the monitors...
Moving to Cyprus, I didn't think about taxes. Despite the "Polish Wall", we still have opportunities in Poland. Paying less than 10% is a luxury compared to Western Europe.
In Cyprus, corporate income tax is 12.5%. (VAT is 19%). In Poland, a limited liability company up to EUR 2 million is a small taxpayer and we pay only 9%.
I'm just discovering that Cyprus allows you to avoid capital gains taxes if you have non-domiciled status. But for now, that's not my point at all.
Chasing the sun, sea and wind - this is my motivation.
The country, despite a higher GDP per capita, is characterized by a lower level of development than Poland. The houses are more cardboard and less finished than our beautiful Polish interiors. It resembles the Anglo-Saxon climate (USA, England).
Allegro does not exist. Ecommerce is in its infancy. We arrange everything on the phone or after acquaintances, we go for the second time to collect the order, there are mistakes and misunderstandings. The selection in stores (all kinds) is much poorer and the prices are higher. The choice of cars on a small island with a million inhabitants is smaller than in Poland.
But Cypriots benefit from being open, helpful, cordial and smiling. Less official and... sad than us. The business culture is more concrete: clear communication and putting coffee on the bench is the norm, which I greatly appreciate. With us, the norm is rather to beat around the bush and approach topics like a hedgehog.
The UK has had a huge impact on Cypriot culture: British outlets, driving on the left, a fair degree of English (although there are exceptions).
Even in winter, we enjoy the sun here and... the nature that exists here, unlike the desert Dubai. Although the Emirates will provide us with higher temperatures, they are a somewhat soulless place.
In Cyprus in winter we have to wear jackets and even in April we won't use the swimming pool (I bought a special wetsuit for this purpose). Outdoor swimming pools are almost everywhere, but built-up ones are rare.
Cyprus, on the other hand, is within the reach of European culture and is closer to us, more modest than Dubai, more cordial, friendly, family and ... green, although not like Poland in the summer.
What are the alternatives? From the islands where we can count on a civilization (about a million inhabitants), we have Mallorca, which I must admit that I have not met. Sicily has as many as 5 million inhabitants and I am also just going to discover it. I remember Greek Rhodes as a beautiful place and I will definitely consider a change to Greece.
I am particularly interested in the east of the Athens airport, where it is easy to fly with an animal (in our case a cat), it is of course even closer than Cyprus, and the sea is only 15 minutes from the airport.
By the way, only low-cost airlines fly to Cyprus from Poland and the transport of animals requires a change, which extends the journey from 3.5 hours to 6 hours and, surprisingly, requires again "beating" at a poorly organized Greek airport.
Risk of war? Cyprus, as you know, is a divided island. Personally, I believe that the risk of Turkey attacking again after 50 years is much lower than the risk of Poland joining the war with Russia, unfortunately.
It seems to me that the inhabitants of both parts are used to the current state of affairs and there are no serious tensions between them. The United Nations buffer zone runs through Cyprus, as well as two British military bases.
What's next? I still live in Poland and intend to move between countries. We spent April in Cyprus, when it was still cold, sad and boring here. We have returned - accidentally tanned - to a country that blooms with greenery! And this is beautiful.
I recorded a video where I share more thoughts and observations about Cyprus. I invite you to watch: https://youtu.be/6b6Cl2wO39c
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It will be interesting to hear your impressions of a long stay in Cyprus in two or three years. Maybe the time will come to appreciate some so obvious (and thus unnoticed by many Poles) positive elements of everyday life in Poland, which are not there.
Personally, I don't think I could last more than a month a year in such a rocky rural wasteland.
I have a personal fondness for the archipelago of Greek islands: Skiathos, Skopelos and Alonissos (less than a two-hour flight from Katowice), but this is not a recommendation :)
It will be interesting to hear your impressions of a long stay in Cyprus in two or three years. Maybe the time will come to appreciate some so obvious (and thus unnoticed by many Poles) positive elements of everyday life in Poland, which are not there.
Personally, I don't think I could last more than a month a year in such a rocky rural wasteland.
I have a personal fondness for the archipelago of Greek islands: Skiathos, Skopelos and Alonissos (less than a two-hour flight from Katowice), but this is not a recommendation :)
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