With the entry into force of the «visa-free» regime, became more frequent the cases of detention of Ukrainian citizens (mostly women) at the airport of Larnaca during the crossing of the state border of Cyprus.
The common reasons are the absence of documents to confirm the purpose of trip, the place of residence, your further intention to return to Ukraine, the lack of sufficient financial resources for the whole period of trip (at least €50 per day), the provision of false/contradictory information, or the inability to explain the purpose of the trip.
You could become an "undesirable" tourist if you had worked previously in Turkish entertaining establishments, were noticed in contacts with unreliable persons who, e.g., are related to the illegal employment of foreigners in Cyprus.
Also could be refused in entering Cyprus the persons previously deported from the EU Member States with an entry ban for a certain period, illegally worked in Cyprus, stayed longer than expected, or those who travel to the Republic of Cyprus for the purpose of stay, residence or participation in official events in the occupied territory (north of the island).
It is important to remember that even if a person, formally, has all necessary documents, he or she may be denied entering to Cyprus with the formulation that "submitted documents do not confirm the mentioned purpose of the trip (e.g., tourism)."
According to the common practice, such (female) citizens are placed in the center for detainees at the airport with the further deporting to Ukraine by the nearest flight, in case if there are seats available in the plane. Sometimes, if the police have data on previous illegal employment of a person, violation of the visa regime, etc., the entry ban into Cyprus (from 6 months to 5 years) may be introduced.
The Embassy always provides assistance to Ukrainian citizens, in particular, by contacting the Cypriot police to find the reason for detention. However, we cannot help you to enter Cyprus and to prevent your deportation, interfering in the immigration policy or procedures of another country.
In this regard, we remind you that the biometric passport of a citizen of Ukraine does not allow you and your guests to ignore the established visa and immigration rules of the Republic of Cyprus.
At the same time, if you are ready to justify the purpose and conditions of your stay in Cyprus during your passport control, do not worry! In this case, you will not have problems with the crossing of the border from the part of the migration service.
If in your opinion, you were illegally detained/deported from the country, we kindly ask you to contact the police with a written application, a complaint, by sending a copy of this appeal to the Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of Cyprus ([email protected]).