How do I sell, close or exit a business in Cyprus?

You can exit by transferring ownership or by dissolving the business. Ownership changes use forms filed with the Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property, including HE57 for transfer of shares, HE12 for allotment of shares, HE14 for increase of share capital, HE15 for increase of shareholders and HE16 for change of share capital. Dissolution options include voluntary or involuntary strike off, liquidation, cross-border merger or redomiciliation outside the Republic, with bankruptcy and liquidation handled by the Department of Insolvency, where compulsory bankruptcy requires debt exceeding €854 and voluntary bankruptcy an amount exceeding €8,600. The Official Receiver establishes a creditors' meeting within 14 days, and a debtor must provide the trustee with debt details within seven days, or three days if the debtor filed the petition; companies with yearly turnover exceeding €500,000 or a buyout value exceeding €2 million are advised to hire professional advisors, and an auditing firm's service is the only mandatory professional service. For current procedures, the official businessincyprus.gov.cy page is authoritative.