Online safety in Cyprus: the EU Digital Services Act (2026)

Yes. As an EU member, Cyprus is covered by the EU Digital Services Act (Regulation (EU) 2022/2065), which applies directly.

Notice-and-action mechanisms for illegal content, transparency reporting, clear terms of service, and measures to protect minors.

The national Digital Services Coordinator, with the European Commission supervising very large online platforms and search engines.

Up to 6% of a provider's global annual turnover for serious breaches.

Three legislative instruments were approved by the House of Representatives on 3 July 2025 and entered into force on 11 July 2025: the Cyprus DSA Implementation Law (CYDSA), the Radio and Television Organisations Amendment Law of 2025 (RTO), and accompanying secondary regulations. These impose obligations on intermediary service providers regarding illegal content removal, risk assessments, algorithmic transparency, and user redress mechanisms.

The former Cyprus Radio Television Authority (CRTA) was renamed the Radio Television and Digital Services Authority (RTDSA) and designated as Cyprus's Digital Services Coordinator by Council of Ministers decision (published in Official Gazette 1 March 2024). The RTDSA holds investigative, supervisory, and administrative fining powers over all in-scope intermediary services operating from Cyprus, and represents Cyprus on the European Board for Digital Services.

The European Commission formally decided in April 2025 to refer Cyprus (alongside Czechia, Spain, Poland, and Portugal) to the Court of Justice of the EU for insufficient DSA implementation. Following the July 2025 legislative package, the Commission closed the infringement proceedings against Cyprus in November 2025.

The CYDSA establishes administrative fines aligned with the DSA framework (up to 6% of global annual turnover for systemic violations by platforms). Criminal liability applies for obstruction of investigations or repeated non-compliance with binding orders: up to one year imprisonment and/or a financial penalty of up to €10,000 per individual.

Cyprus announced plans to ban social media access for children under 15 using age verification via the national Digital Citizen app, following Greece's model. A parliamentary bill (proposed by DISY MP Dimitris Dimitriou) would raise the minimum age for independent internet access from 14 to 16. Cyprus is also a front-runner participant in the EU Age Verification Solution pilot, integrating age checks into the EUDI Wallet framework.

Cyprus enacted the Network and Information Systems Security (Amendment) Law of 2025 on 25 April 2025, transposing EU NIS2 Directive (2022/2555). The OCECPR serves as the NIS competent authority for critical information infrastructure, complementing the DSA enforcement architecture for digital services.