While Nicosia talks up a 2027 accession date, Brussels has been busy with the final technical paperwork. On 13 November the Council’s Working Party for Schengen Matters held a dedicated session on the “2025-2026 Schengen evaluation of Cyprus”. According to the provisional agenda circulated by the Council Secretariat, the European Commission presented – and member-state experts discussed – a draft Implementing Decision that would formally close Cyprus’ multi-year action plan in areas ranging from data protection to external-border management. Closing the action plan is the last procedural prerequisite before ministers can vote to lift internal border checks. Delegates also exchanged views on “updates in connection with the full application of the Schengen acquis in Cyprus”, signalling that capitals are now scrutinising practical readiness at Larnaca and Paphos airports, as well as contingency plans for the Green Line. The agenda item follows a positive opinion of the Schengen Committee on 26 June and the Commission’s favourable country report adopted in July. Although working-party meetings rarely make headlines, they are where dissent is ironed out. Diplomats say several member states had raised residual concerns about migrant smuggling via the Green Line and about Cyprus’ capacity to refuse entry to persons flagged by other countries – limitations that still apply under Article 1(4) of Decision 2023/870. Friday’s discussion focused on whether those issues can be addressed through operational measures rather than by delaying full membership. For global mobility managers, the meeting is an encouraging signal that the political process is advancing on schedule. Multinationals with staff in Cyprus should nevertheless keep monitoring Council working documents; any request for more information or a revised draft decision could push a ministerial vote beyond the next JHA Council in December. Service providers also note that once the action plan is closed, immigration rules for third-country nationals holding Cypriot residence permits could change quickly as Cyprus aligns its national visa code with the Schengen Visa Code.
