Newsroom
Weddings in Cyprus come with dancing, food, and the all-important envelope. But now, it seems those envelopes might need more paperwork than your actual marriage license.
Thanks to a mix of EU money laundering rules and good ol’ bank bureaucracy, Cyprus couples are being advised to warn their banks ahead of the big day, just in case their cash gifts start looking suspicious.
So if you're planning a wedding, make sure your dress fits, the caterer shows up, and your banker is fully briefed.
Yes, seriously!
According to the Cyprus Association of Banks, if you’re planning to deposit your wedding money (you know, the bundles of love and €50s from Aunt Maria and Uncle Andreas), you should let your bank know before the wedding bells even ring. Bring your church certificate too, not for the priest, but for the bank clerk.
Because apparently, walking into a branch with a stack of €20s and saying, “We got married” isn’t enough anymore.
Banks now want proof that your €15,000 in crisp bills wasn’t stashed under a mattress for shady reasons. It’s all part of EU regulations aiming to stop money laundering, which is fair, but it does make you wonder if weddings have just joined the list of high-risk financial activities.
According to bank spokesperson Andreas Kostouris, the goal isn’t to accuse newlyweds of fraud. It's just... well... to check. “Don’t walk in with a suitcase full of cash,” he said. "Let the bank know in advance." Because nothing screams romance like clearing a deposit with your account manager during honeymoon week.
There’s also a time limit. If you wait too long to deposit the money, the bank might start raising eyebrows. Delay it for a month or two, and suddenly your wedding cash looks less like a gift and more like a plot twist in a crime drama.
And if your financial history says “average Joe” but you suddenly deposit a small fortune? That’s another red flag. "Where did you get all this money?" they might ask. “From our 300 cousins,” you’ll say. And they’ll nod… and still ask for proof.
All jokes aside, this has people wondering: do we need to send banks a wedding invitation now? Should we CC them on our gift registry?
Cyprus, known for its generous wedding culture, now finds itself in a weird place where traditional gifts could look illegal if not properly documented. In short, if you don’t tell your banker about your wedding, your money might just look like it came from a drug deal.
So if you're planning a wedding, make sure your dress fits, the caterer shows up, and your banker is fully briefed.
Love may be blind, but the banks definitely aren't.
