Digital transformation is reshaping property management across Europe, from banking to government services, and online systems are becoming the norm. But when it comes to Annual General Meetings for jointly-owned buildings in Cyprus, one question keeps coming up: is digital voting legally valid? The short answer is not clearly yet, but Cyprus is moving in that direction.
The Current Legal Framework in Cyprus
Apartment buildings in Cyprus are governed mainly by Cap. 224, the Immovable Property Law, and the joint-ownership regulations administered by the Department of Lands and Surveys. These laws define how management committees are formed, how AGMs are called, how votes are cast, and how expenses are shared, but they were written decades ago for a fully physical, paper-based system. There is no explicit legal provision for electronic voting in AGMs: it isn't prohibited, but it isn't clearly regulated either, which leaves it in a genuine legal grey area.
Is Online Voting Currently Legally Valid?
Legally speaking, proxy voting is clearly valid and physical AGMs are required by default, while electronic voting isn't formally recognised. In practice, though, many buildings already run AGMs over Zoom or Teams, collect email votes on resolutions, coordinate over WhatsApp, or hold hybrid physical-and-online meetings. These practices rely on informal acceptance rather than explicit legal authorisation, so if a dispute arises, a court may question whether the electronic votes were binding, whether quorum was properly achieved, or whether the procedure matched statutory requirements.
Hybrid AGMs: The Current Real-World Solution
The workaround most modern Cypriot buildings have converged on is a hybrid AGM: a physical meeting is held as the legal anchor, remote participation is allowed by video call, and every vote is still recorded in the official minutes. That reduces legal exposure while improving participation, but it remains a practical workaround, not a codified legal right.
The Jointly-Owned Buildings Law 2023 Reform
Cyprus has been working on a broader reform, the Management of Jointly-Owned Buildings and Related Matters Law of 2023, aimed at modernising outdated governance structures and addressing long-standing problems like unpaid communal fees, weak enforcement, inefficient committee powers, and administrative delays. As of 2026 it has not yet been passed into force and remains under parliamentary review. The direction of the reform points toward modernisation, electronic communication with owners, digital building registers, and likely recognition of hybrid or electronic participation, aligning Cyprus with broader EU digital-governance trends, but until it's actually enacted, digital voting remains legally uncertain.
The Legal Risks of Going Digital Too Soon
Running fully electronic voting ahead of that legal clarity carries real risk: disputed AGM decisions that owners challenge in court, remote votes that may not count toward legal quorum, no standardised way to verify a digital voter's identity, and procedural invalidation if notice or voting methods don't match what the law expects. Until the law changes, the safer approach for a committee is to hold physical AGMs as the legal foundation, allow remote participation as a supplement, record every vote in official signed minutes, use proxy voting where it's needed, get written consent for electronic participation, and keep a full audit trail of every decision.
Why Digital Participation Still Matters
Despite the legal uncertainty, the demand is clear. Cyprus has a large population of overseas property owners, expatriates, foreign investors, and seasonal residents, which makes physical attendance difficult and often impractical. A digital layer on top of the legally required physical AGM raises participation, speeds up decisions, reduces the administrative burden on the committee, and gives everyone a clearer record of what was decided and by whom.
Modernising Ahead of the Law
Buildings don't have to wait for the law to catch up to start modernising how they operate. A platform like BMExpert lets committees manage owners digitally, organise meetings efficiently, distribute documents instantly, and keep transparent, audit-ready records today, so the building is already well positioned whenever the legal framework for electronic participation is finalised.
Conclusion
Digital voting in Cyprus AGMs currently sits in a genuine grey zone: not explicitly legal, not explicitly illegal. The 2023 reform is expected to modernise the system, but until it becomes law, management committees have to balance innovation with legal caution. The direction is clearly digital, Cyprus just isn't there yet.