Legal Rights

Review your legal rights, reporting options, and the protection measures you may be able to request.

Your rights

  • Clear and understandable information from first contact with emergency response services
  • Protection from contact with the perpetrator (protection orders)
  • Access to specialised support services
  • Free legal aid with a lawyer of your choice (Legal Aid)
Which laws protect you?

Main laws:

  • Law 119(I)/2000: Domestic violence and protection of victims. Covers any act that causes injury or restricts the freedom of any family member.
  • Law 115(I)/2021: Combating violence against women and domestic violence.

Supplementary laws:

  • Law 60(I)/2014: Combating human trafficking and protecting victims.
  • Law 209(I)/2020: Combating sexism and online sexism.
  • Law 114(I)/2021: Protection from harassment and stalking.
  • Law 91(I)/2014: Protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation.
  • Law 51(I)/2016: Minimum standards for the rights and protection of victims of crime.
  • Law 165(I)/2002 and Amendment 128(I)/2024: Free legal aid for women victims of violence without socio-economic criteria.
  • Criminal Code provisions: e.g. Article 233A on female genital mutilation, Article 150 on forced marriage, Article 144 on rape.
  • Family Law: Rights and protection within the family.

International treaties ratified by Cyprus:

  • CEDAW: Elimination of all forms of discrimination against women. Provides a mechanism for complaints and investigation of serious breaches.
  • Istanbul Convention: Protection from violence against women and domestic violence. Requires prevention, victim protection, prosecution of perpetrators, and coordinated policies.

National strategies and plans:

What are the main legal procedures?
Family and criminal proceedings

Legal proceedings fall into two main categories:

Family proceedings

These concern divorce, property disputes between spouses, and child custody and maintenance where there are children.

There is no fixed duration for proceedings; where relations between the couple are tense, they usually take longer.

In the family court your presence may be required if the court gives a relevant direction. There you will come into contact with your spouse/the other parent. If you are afraid to be in their presence, you can inform your lawyer, who will in turn inform the court.

The process for family matters (divorce, property, maintenance, and child custody) begins with your own application to the Registry of the Family Court for legal aidYou can receive legal advice, be represented in court, and get help with legal documents from a lawyer in your district, free of charge. The term used by lawyers, police, and Social Welfare Services staff for this support system is “free legal aid”..

  • You only need your ID to make the initial application.
  • You will be given a date to appear in court.

For the family court you will need to appoint a lawyer to represent you and, with their help, you will follow the court process.

As a victim of violence, you have the right to free legal aid.

Cyprus Bar Association – Legal Assistance Catalogue

Criminal proceedings

These concern your report and statement to the Police, applying for protective orders for you and your children, investigation of the case, and prosecution of the perpetrator.

In the criminal court your presence is not always required. It will only be needed in specific cases, for which the public prosecutorThe public prosecutor is a lawyer who works for the state in criminal cases and represents the Republic of Cyprus. Their aim is to serve the public interest — including securing convictions of perpetrators and protecting victims. will notify you to appear.

Please note: The two proceedings — family and criminal — are not automatically linked. In other words, the two courts do not exchange case information with each other, even when the same people are involved (e.g. you and your partner). The family court needs to be kept informed that criminal proceedings are pending.

It is important that your lawyer informs the family court that criminal proceedings are pending.

Custody, contact, and child maintenance

Child custody matters are heard in the Family Court.

Before issuing a decision on parental responsibility/custody, the Court is expected to ask Social Welfare Services to prepare a relevant Report — that is, to investigate the family and record where and how the child/children live, and what is in their best interests. On the basis of that Report, the Court decides:

  • Which of the two parents the child will live with
  • How and when the child will see the other parent (times, days, holidays).

The Court is also expected to request an Assessment Report on your children from Mental Health Services, so that their own views, feelings, and needs can be heard. If the Court does not do so, you can request it yourself through your lawyer.

The most important considerations are the best interests of the children and the protection of the custodial parent who is a victim.

What will happen to my children’s custody in court if a criminal case is pending against the perpetrator parent?

The family court examining parental responsibility/custody is expected to take the criminal trial into account in accordance with the Parents and Children Relations Law of 1990 (216/1990) and Article 31 of the Istanbul Convention. Where there is a risk, it may restrict or remove custody of the child/children until the final court decision.

Cooperation between the competent authorities is essential, and any decision regulating parental responsibility and contact must take the best interests of the children into account.

What you need for the single-parent benefit

The Single Parent Family Benefit is paid in addition to Child Benefit (more information here) and is intended to give financial support to the parent raising the children alone.

You are eligible if:

  • You are raising your dependent children on your own
  • You already receive Child Benefit
  • Your annual gross family income does not exceed €49,000
  • There is an official divorce from a family court or an ecclesiastical divorce/certificate of spiritual dissolution of marriage.

In addition, the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare may accept a joint affidavit as confirmation that the parents are no longer together, where court orders (for maintenance/parental responsibility) are missing but there is other sufficient evidence (e.g. an order for exclusive use of the family home).

Please note that if you are separated you cannot be considered a single parent for the benefit unless there is a court decision on custody/guardianship of the children.

The amount of the benefit depends on the number of your children and your income. If you receive maintenance, you must declare it on the application together with the Maintenance Order or a Joint Affidavit of the parents, because it is counted as income.

So, to apply for the single-parent family benefit, you will need a family court decision on:

  1. Divorce
  2. Maintenance
  3. Parental responsibility
What measures exist for your protection and safety?
Criminal and non-criminal measures

For your protection and safety you can use criminal and non-criminal measures.

Criminal-law measures

Criminal-law measures require a report to the Police and include the following protective orders:

  • Temporary order or victim removal order: Issued to remove the victim from a dangerous situation. It may be sought by the Police, the Legal Service, or Social Welfare Services.
  • Temporary order or order excluding the accused: Prohibits the accused from approaching the victim, their home, workplace, or other places specified by the court. The application may be made by the victim (through a lawyer), the Police, the Legal Service, or the SWS.

For these orders to be issued, the Police must carry out a Risk Assessment for your case. The result helps the court decide on the orders. If the Police do not carry out the assessment, you can request it yourself — it is your right.

Please note: If you have children, it is extremely important to ask that the temporary order or order excluding the accused also covers your children. For this to happen, you must state in your report to the Police that your children are also experiencing violence with you (as witnesses or direct victims of violence).

Non-criminal measures

Non-criminal measures are not tied to a Police report:

  • Admission to a shelter / place of accommodation: You can call the helpline 1440 directly and ask to go with your children to a shelter because you are in danger.
  • ELPIS app: You can install the ELPIS app on your phone with help from the Police. The app is provided free of charge by the Cyprus Police and is simple to use: if violence or danger escalates, you send an urgent alert via the “SOS” button and notify the Police so you can get the help you need.

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