Nicosia, Cyprus. Serious weaknesses in Cyprus’ system for licensing and supervising tourist accommodation are undermining efforts to upgrade the country’s tourism product, according to a special report by the Audit Office. The report found that only 23 per cent of hotels and tourist accommodation hold a full operating licence.
Report findings
The report, prepared under Auditor General Andreas Papaconstantinou, described a worrying picture of the sector, citing shortcomings in licensing procedures, supervision, inspection mechanisms and the management of subsidy schemes operated by the Deputy Ministry of Tourism.
Papaconstantinou said that “the effort to upgrade the Cypriot tourism product is being called into question,” pointing to the low proportion of businesses operating with full licences.
Licensing figures
The report found that 55 per cent of tourist accommodation operates without a full operating licence, while a further 22 per cent operates under temporary licences.
In the Famagusta district, only 24 of the 241 tourist accommodation establishments, or 9.9 per cent, hold a full operating licence.
According to the Audit Office, these figures raise serious questions about the effectiveness of enforcing existing legislation.
Unregistered properties
The report said improving the quality of Cyprus’ tourism product cannot be achieved while a substantial proportion of businesses continue operating outside the prescribed licensing procedures.
It also highlighted strong indications that a large number of self-catering tourist accommodation properties are operating without being registered in the Deputy Ministry of Tourism’s official register.
Cross-checks between online booking platforms and other databases found that hundreds of properties either could not be identified or did not appear in the official register.
The Audit Office said the absence of a comprehensive monitoring mechanism means the true scale of the problem cannot be determined, although there are clear indications that a significant number of establishments are operating outside the legal framework.
