I am an Indian Passport holder, living in UK and have a valid Schengen Visa which allows multientry- Catergory C. I have a plan to visit Cyprus in April. Can Cyprus be my first port of entry on a Schengen Visa? I was supposed to travel to France in March but was unable to due to the on-going strikes. I am not sure if Cyprus can be by first port of entry on a Schengen Visa which is not used?
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1Cyprus is not in the Schengen area. It therefore cannot be a port of entry into the Schengen area. That doesn't mean that you can't go to Cyprus, however.– phoogMar 29, 2019 at 14:42
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Yes, you can enter Cyprus on your visa.– CrazydreMar 29, 2019 at 15:15
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1 Answer
According to the Cypriot Embassy in Finland, you can use a multi-entry Schengen visa to enter Cyprus if you have already used that visa to enter a Schengen country:
Third country nationals, holders of a valid Schengen visa (type: double or multiple entry), who have already entered the Schengen area in accordance with the terms upon which their Schengen visa was issued, may travel to Cyprus without a Cypriot national visa
This suggests that Cyprus cannot be the first destination you visit with the visa. You could in theory stop off in a Schengen country on the way, although it's probably best if that's the country that issued the visa.
EDIT: Timatic (the database of visa requirements used by airlines) doesn't mention needing to have used the visa already:
Passengers with a double or multiple entry C visa issued by Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania or a Schengen Member State valid for the period of intended stay. They are visa exempt for a maximum stay of 90 days.
