CRYPTO LICENSING IN CYPRUS.
Cyprus came into MiCA with a genuine head start. CySEC built a national crypto-asset register on Cypriot AML law amended in 2021, years before MiCA, so it supervised crypto with the same muscle it uses for its large base of investment firms (CIFs) and forex brokers. The local register stopped accepting new applications on 17 October 2024, and the deadline to apply for full MiCA CASP authorisation was 27 February 2026 — after 1 July 2026, national permissions fall away. The draw here is not novelty but a regulator that already knows how to supervise financial firms.
- CySEC ran a national CASP register on Cypriot AML law amended in 2021 — well before MiCA.
- The local CASP register stopped accepting new applications on 17 October 2024.
- The deadline to apply for MiCA CASP authorisation was 27 February 2026; national permissions end 1 July 2026.
- MiCA capital floors apply (€50k / €125k / €150k); a Cyprus CASP passports across the EU.
WHO TO USE HERE.
Ranked on the CLBR rubric, filtered to firms with documented Cyprus coverage.
WHAT YOU ACTUALLY PAY FOR.
MiCA's own-funds floors apply — €50,000 / €125,000 / €150,000 by service class, or a quarter of fixed overheads if higher. Cyprus does not undercut those figures; what it offers is a securities-grade regulator and a deep local pool of compliance and legal talent from its CIF and forex sector, which tends to make the substance side easier to staff than in smaller markets.
Capital sets the floor, but the file is priced by the same things CySEC tests for any regulated firm — AML, governance, ICT/DORA and fit-and-proper management. The Cyprus advantage is talent supply: its long-standing CIF and forex industry means experienced compliance staff and counsel are easier to find, which can lower the real build cost. Scope a quote to your exact CASP services.
Compare firmsThe local shortcut is gone — the national register closed to new entrants in October 2024, and the MiCA application deadline (27 February 2026) has passed, so this is now a standard MiCA CASP process, not a lighter national one. Treat CySEC as the experienced securities regulator it is: it will test governance and AML properly. Confirm your current options directly, since anyone still marketing a quick 'Cyprus CASP registration' may be describing a route that has closed.
Can I still use the old Cyprus CASP register?
No. CySEC stopped accepting new applications to the national register on 17 October 2024, and national permissions end on 1 July 2026. New entrants go through full MiCA CASP authorisation.
Why choose Cyprus for a crypto licence?
Not for a lower capital figure — the MiCA floors apply — but for a securities-grade regulator and a deep local pool of compliance and legal talent from its long-standing investment-firm and forex sector.
Does a Cyprus CASP licence passport across the EU?
Yes. A CySEC MiCA CASP authorisation passports across EU member states on notification, so one Cyprus licence can support operations throughout the bloc.
Sources: CySEC — Crypto-Asset Service Providers (national regime) · ESMA — MiCA minimum capital requirements (Annex IV). Regimes change — confirm current rules with the regulator.