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The former Civil Registry and Migration Department was slow in processing applications for Cypriot citizenship and for permanent residence, as a result of which some 12,000 applications were pending at the end of 2023, MPs heard on Thursday.

Lawmakers were reviewing the findings of a report compiled by the Audit Office on the Civil Registry and Migration Department for the year 2022.

That department has since been split up into the Directorate of Civil Registry under the interior ministry, and the Migration Department under the deputy ministry of migration and international protection.

The auditor-general鈥檚 report noted significant migrant inflows during the 2020-2023 and a consequent increase in the workload of the Civil Registry and Migration Department.

Regarding applications for citizenship, auditor-general Andreas Papaconstantinou spoke of 鈥渟ignificant delays鈥� in processing. By November 2023, around 12,000 applications were pending.

For citizenship applications on the grounds of prolonged stay in Cyprus, the average waiting time came to three years; for applications on the grounds of marriage to a Cypriot national the waiting time was about two years.

The department did display some 鈥渇lexibility鈥� when it came to the requirement that foreign nationals applying for citizenship reside in Cyprus for 12 months prior to applying. Here, the department accepted a total absence of 90 days during this 12-month period.

On the granting of permanent residence to foreign nationals who do not work in Cyprus and who earn an income from overseas, the auditor-general said such applications have been put on hold due to the upcoming change in legislation. As a result, some 3,000 applications have accumulated.

Various issues were flagged in relation to temporary residence permits for foreign students. In some cases documentation was missing in the applications, in other cases delays were noted in processing. In addition, sample checks revealed that 12 per cent of foreign students still remained in Cyprus well after their temporary residence permit had expired, while 16 per cent lived here beyond the expiry date.

Papaconstantinou mentioned the case of a Turkish Cypriot individual who was issued a Republic of Cyprus identity card or passport on five occasions, with each document featuring a photo of a different person.

Natasa Economou, an official with the Directorate of Civil Registry, spoke of understaffing issues. The directorate has received approval for hiring an extra five employees on fixed-term contracts. The five will be hired to process applications.

The official said the number of citizenship applications has declined after the recent enactment of a related law that imposed additional criteria.

A representative of the police鈥檚 Aliens and Immigration Service said checks at colleges are carried out after tip-offs. In several cases colleges had complained that the police checks interfered with classes.

Speaking to media after the session of the House audit committee, Akel MP Irini Charalambidou referred to persisting 鈥渓egal gaps鈥� due to the non-solution of the Cyprus problem.

She cited the example of a child born in Cyprus with one Turkish Cypriot parent and one Turkish parent. These persons are not eligible for a Republic of Cyprus passport or identity card.

However, were the Turkish Cypriot parent to travel to Turkey two months prior to the birth of the child, and the child were born in Turkey, then the child would be eligible for a Republic of Cyprus passport and identity card.

For his part, Dipa MP Alekos Tryfonides said that foreign students who remain in Cyprus by applying for asylum, their applications are now examined within a month.