Explore Cyprus: A Guide to Poker and Gambling Laws
The Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus is one of Europe’s most popular tourist destinations. If you’re travelling there looking to gamble, you are recommended to go North to the Turkish-controlled de facto state of Northern Cyprus. Gambling laws are much more lax there.
As for the South, which comprises the larger part of the country, gambling is legal but strictly regulated. For a long time, there was no clear legal framework overseeing gambling which created a lot of confusion. That ended in 2012 when the Betting Act was implemented – however, that didn’t help the betting men and women of Cyprus as it banned online gambling.
The next step came in 2015, and it was finally in the right direction. The 2015 Casino Act set a licencing scheme for land based and online casinos. As a result, a couple of new gambling houses started construction.
Famous Cypriot Poker Players
Peter Costa, aka “the Poet”, has $1.979 million in lifetime live tournament winnings. He won the A$10,000 Main Event at the 2013 Aussie Millions for $221,862, that is his biggest tourney score to date. He appeared on the famous British poker TV show Late Night Poker multiple times.
However, he doesn’t top Hendon’s Cyprus all time money list. That is not because of his results, but because he’s included on the England list since although he was born in Cyprus, both of his parents are British and he grew up in England.
Thus Yiannis Liperis is the number 1 Cypriot player on the Hendon website with $1.633 million in winnings. His biggest score is $261,750 for coming in 13th in the $25K PokerStars Caribbean Adventure high roller.
As for online poker, a player from Cyprus playing under the screen name “daskalos20” on partypoker and PokerStars has amassed an impressive $4.381 million in online MTT cashes.
Online Poker in Cyprus
Online Poker Legislation in Cyprus
The website UK Practical Law summed up the recent history of online gambling in Cyprus as such:
“When Cyprus joined the EU in 2004, online gaming providers licensed in other EU member states launched activities on the basis of the principle of free movement of services (…) due to the lack of any comprehensive national legislation regulating the market.
The Attorney General of Cyprus gave a legal opinion that was unclear, created controversial issues and was heavily debated. As a result of that state of uncertainty, the Betting Law 2012 was enacted to supplement gaps in the law and present a solid legal framework. The legal gambling age became 18.”
As of now, there are a couple online gambling sites legally available that offer online poker such as Bet365 or partypoker. Although the Cypriot government still has a long blacklist of other domains limiting the choices of their residents, the situation is not as dire as it seemed in 2012 when an all-out online poker ban was in sight.
Best Online Poker Sites in Cyprus
Live Poker in Cyprus
Live Poker Legislation in Cyprus
As we wrote above, the 2015 Casino Act set up the licencing system for land casinos. The National Betting Authority (NBA) is in charge of all things gambling in Cyprus.
Live Poker Venues in Cyprus
At the Merit Crystal Cove Hotel, Casino & Spa in the city of Kyrenia, the Merit Middle East Tour has a stop. This is a poker tournament series featuring events with as high guarantees as $200,000. The buy-ins range from $330 up to a $10,000 high roller.
The cash games in this casino aren’t for the small ballers. The lowest stakes available is $5/$10. You can also find $10/$25, $25/$25 and $25/$50 tables, either NLHE or PLO.
In the Noah’s Ark Hotel and Spa in the village of Bafra, the Golden Poker Million series is held. There, you can play events with buy-ins ranging from €55 to €1,500.
Hosting poker tournaments in high-end hotels is a trend in Cyprus. You can also find a card room in the Elexus Hotel in Catalkoy, or the Rocks Hotel & Casino in Kyrenia.
There’s also some gambling outside hotels in Cyprus. The casino chain Cyprus Casinos has multiple locations in the country. However, they do not offer classic poker games such as Hold’em or PLO, only versions of the game which you play against the house.
Google Map
Venues in Cyprus
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Events at Cyprus
