Important information international students working in North Cyprus need to know

Tuesday May, 1 was observed as Labour Day all over the world and also in North Cyprus. It was declared a public holiday by the TRNC government while several events and activities were organized to mark the day. However, there are some crucial points that should be passed across to international students who are workers in the country.

VOIS Cyprus in a Labour Day message to all workers in the country, outlines some of these points to all international students working in the country.

These points are as follows:
- Working hours permissible by law is 6HRS PER DAY for international students.

- The ministry of Labour and Social Security is making strides towards making it possible for students to obtain work permits with 6months or one year validity. 

- VOIS Cyprus was informed that the minimum wage for student workers would be 60% of the minimum pay for other workers.

Thus, the minimum pay for an hour of work for normal workers is 13.69 TL, for a day is 109.15 TL, for a week is 545.77 TL, and for a month is 2, 365 TL, and for students, this translates to 60% of these respective figures, as minimum wage. 

More importantly, the Ministry of Labour and Social Security confirmed that efforts are being made to ensure that students are able to obtain work permits by themselves for a duration of 6 months or 1 year. For 6 months, the tentative work permit cost is 117 TL, and the cost of student work permits between 6-12months validity is 234 TL. 

N/B: THESE ARE FIGURES THAT MIGHT BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE IN THE NEAR FUTURE. NEWER FIGURES WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE AS SOON AS WE HAVE THEM.