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Cypriot
Pound to Euro Change - 1st January 2008
Time schedule for
the introduction of the Euro:
Based on the decision
of the Council of Ministers, the target date for adopting
the euro is 1st of January, 2008, provided that Cyprus, which
will be evaluated by the institutional bodies of the European
Union (EU) on the basis of the Convergence Report, will fulfil
the convergence criteria (known as Maastricht criteria).
This date is called
E-day in the following text.
The fixed exchange
rate from the E-day will be 1€=£0.585274.
E-day
(1st January, 2008)
Withdrawals
from bank accounts will be only in euro.
Automatic Teller
Machines (ATMs) will issue only euro.
All payments
(e.g. salaries, pensions and social grants) will be made
in euro.
Prices in shops
and commercial enterprises will be expressed in euro. The
Cyprus pound equivalent will be also shown for a certain
time period. Shops will accept Cyprus pound banknotes and
coins for payment until 31.1.2008, but they will give change
in euro.
Banking institutions
will exchange Cyprus banknotes and coins for euro, free
of charge, at least for the amount of £1.000 for banknotes
and £50 for coins, for a period of 6 months from the
date of the introduction of the euro, i.e. until 30.6.2008.
Central Government
and Semi-Government Organisations, Government
Departments, Local Authorities, Medical Funds and Post Offices
will make and accept payments in euro. Cyprus banknotes
and coins will also be accepted for payments until 31.1.2008
but any change will be given in euro.
Parallel
Circulation period
From the day of the introduction of the euro, and for a period
of one month, that is from 1.1.2008 until 31.1.2008, the Cyprus
pound will circulate in parallel with euro and will be accepted
for cash transactions. This period is referred to as the parallel
circulation period. After 31.1.2008, Cyprus banknotes and
coins will cease to be legal tender and their acceptance for
payments will not be obligatory. However, they will continue
to be exchanged for euro at commercial banks for a certain
time period which will be decided, as well as at the Central
Bank of Cyprus.
Exchange
period for the Cyprus pound
The Central Bank of Cyprus will continue to exchange free
of charge Cyprus pound coins for euro for a period of 2 years
from the day of the introduction of the euro, that is until
31.12.2009, and banknotes for a period of 10 years, that is
until 31.12.2017.
Frontloading
of banks and business enterprises
In order to facilitate the public during the changeover period
the Central Bank will frontload the banks with the necessary
quantities in euro before the 1st of January, 2008. Commercial
enterprises, post offices and companies operating vending
machines, will be sub-frontloaded with euro through the banking
system, before the date of its introduction, in order to be
in a position to meet the needs of their customers.
What
are the issues with transferring money near or during the change?
When discussing
the change over with Cyprus property buyers, their largest
concern is whether they need to send Cypriot Pounds or Euros
for their staged payments.
This issue
need not concern anyone as there is no way a buyer can make
a mistake.
If you
transfer money before the New Year, your currency exchange
provider or bank will instruct you to send Cypriot Pounds.
If you need to transfer money after the New Year and are buying
it today (or in the near future), your currency specialist
or bank will instruct you to buy Euros..
However…even
if CY£ are sent after January 1, 2008 there is still
NO ISSUE. Once the money gets to Cyprus it will be changed
from CY£ to Euro at the bank at NO COST to you.
For your FREE Better-Than-Bank-Rate Smart
Currency Quotation, just enter your details below:
In the mean time, if you have any questions, please give
us a ring on our free phone number:
0808 163 01024 or Email us at info@SmartCurrencyCyprus.com
