There are many inquiries raised following the decision of the Council of Ministers to revoke the Cypriot passports of 9 investors and 17 of their family members. The law of the Republic and more specifically, the Civil Registry Law, states: The Council of Minister can deprive any citizen of the Republic, who is naturalized, of his citizenship if the following are satisfied: a) by way of acts or in words, he has shown dishonesty or malice in the Republic; b) in any war carried out by the Republic, he is illegally engaged in a transaction or has communicated with the enemy or engaged in or engaged in any operation which was carried out in his knowledge to assist the enemy in that war; or c) within five years of his naturalization, he has been sentenced in any country to imprisonment for a period of not less than twelve months. The decision of the Council of Ministers should, at the first stage, be communicated to the affected persons with a letter to the last stated address in Cyprus. The law provides the person whose citizenship is being deprived of with the right to request an investigation. In this case, "the Council of Ministers may refer this case to the Investigation Committee, appointed specifically for this purpose by the Council of Ministers. The Investigation Committee shall consist of the President, who will have judicial experience, and such members as the Council of Ministers deems necessary.” People who have obtained citizenship via investment and do not fall in the above criteria will not be notified, only the ones whose citizenship could be revoked will be notified.
