€100,000 on OnlyFans, €51,000 Kept: The Cyprus Ltd Figure Most OF Creators Get Wrong

(real client enquiry)

Dear CYAUSE,

I am an EU citizen, currently tax resident in another EU member state, and I am seriously considering relocating to Cyprus as soon as this is practical, and establishing a company there if it proves to be the right structure.

My main source of income is OnlyFans (OF). My earnings have increased significantly over the past four months, largely because I began working with an OnlyFans management agency in another EU member state which provides account management, chatting and monetisation services for my OF account. This is a recent development, so I would not regard my current level of income as fully established or guaranteed in the long term.

Over the most recent four months my income has been approximately US$15,000, and I expect approximately US$60,000 over the next twelve months, although the figure is volatile and depends on the OnlyFans algorithm and a number of other factors outside my control. OnlyFans pays me directly and already withholds 20%; my estimates are net of that withholding. I pay the management agency separately, at 35% of each month earnings.

I have not yet established a company or opened a dedicated business or tax registration for this activity, so I am in a position to choose the most appropriate structure before formalising the business. I would expect to spend the majority of the year in Cyprus and intend to establish my main residence there.

Before our consultation, I would particularly like to understand the following:

• Given my expected turnover, and the fact that the business is still relatively new, would you recommend a Cyprus limited company or operating as a self-employed individual?
• If a Cyprus limited company is used, what is generally the most tax-efficient way for me to extract the profits personally: salary, dividends, or a combination?
• What is the approximate total annual tax burden and company running cost at my expected level of income?
• How would the Cyprus non-domicile regime affect the taxation of dividends in my particular situation?
• For comparison purposes, if the Cyprus company generated €100,000 of annual gross revenue, approximately how much would I ultimately retain personally after corporate tax, mandatory health and social contributions, personal taxation, dividend taxation and the recurring costs of maintaining the company?

I understand this would be an illustrative example rather than a formal tax calculation. I simply want an approximate net figure that I can compare with the equivalent position in my current country of residence.

Kind regards,

Dear Client,

Thank you for setting your position out so clearly. Taking your questions in turn.

Company or self-employed. At your expected level of income, a Cyprus limited company. From 1 January 2026 the Cyprus corporate income tax rate is 15% on the company taxable profit, and that rate is flat however much the company earns. A self-employed individual is taxed on the same profit under the personal income tax bands, which reach 35% above €72,000, and pays social insurance and General Healthcare System contributions on the whole of that profit. The company also gives you a clean, auditable separation between your OnlyFans revenue and your personal income, which matters a great deal when the platform pays you directly and an agency invoices you for a large share of it.

How OF income is treated. Cyprus treats earnings from OnlyFans and comparable creator platforms as ordinary trading income of the business, taxed in exactly the same way as any other service revenue. There is no special creator regime, and no penalty regime either. What matters is that the income is invoiced, banked and declared properly, that the company can evidence its costs, and that the platform payouts can be traced from the platform statement through to the company bank account.

Extracting the profits. A combination: a modest salary plus dividends. The salary is deductible for the company, creates a Cyprus social insurance and healthcare record, and evidences genuine economic activity here, all of which support your tax residency and your non-domicile position. Salary attracts social insurance and GHS contributions of roughly 25% in combined employee and employer cost, and personal income tax only above the €22,000 tax-free threshold. The dividends are where the efficiency sits, for the reason set out below.

Source: Cyprus Tax Department, rates and bands as amended by the tax reform in force from 1 January 2026. See tax.gov.cy.

The non-domicile regime. An individual who is Cyprus tax resident but not Cyprus domiciled, broadly someone who has not been Cyprus tax resident for 17 of the previous 20 years, is exempt from Special Defence Contribution on dividends and interest. For a domiciled individual the SDC rate on dividends is 5% from 2026, reduced from 17%. For a non-domiciled resident it is nil. What does still apply to dividend income is the General Healthcare System contribution at 2.65%, subject to the annual income cap of €180,000. We assist all of our international clients with the non-domicile application, which is normally submitted alongside the tax residency registration.

Tax residency. Since you intend to spend the majority of the year here, you would become Cyprus tax resident under the 183-day rule. Cyprus also operates a 60-day rule for those who do not spend 183 days in any single country: broadly, at least 60 days in Cyprus, no tax residency elsewhere, no more than 183 days in any other single state, and a business, employment or directorship in Cyprus together with a permanent home owned or rented here.

Running costs. The recurring cost of maintaining a company of this size, covering audit, accounting, tax compliance, registered office and company secretarial services, is in the region of €2,000 plus VAT per annum. Fees depend on transaction volume and on whether VAT and other registrations are required, so the figure above is indicative for the facts you have described and is not an offer.

The €100,000 example. On a first pass, and before taking your agency arrangement into account, you would retain roughly €85,000 of €100,000. That figure assumes only modest company overheads. Your agency fee changes it materially, and the full calculation follows in our second reply below.

Kind regards,

Dear CYAUSE,

Thank you very much for the detailed answers. This is very helpful and makes Cyprus particularly interesting for my situation.

I have one point I would like to clarify before our consultation. Regarding the approximate €85,000 net figure on €100,000 of annual gross revenue, could you please confirm whether that estimate takes into account the 35% management fee I pay to my management agency, and whether that expense would generally be deductible from the company taxable profits?

I do not need a full calculation in advance. I would simply like to be sure I understand what assumptions the €85,000 figure is based on.

Kind regards,

Dear Client,

A fair question, and the honest answer is that it did not. The €85,000 indication assumed routine company overheads only. Your management agency fee is of a different order of magnitude and is the single largest item in your profit and loss account, so it deserves to be dealt with explicitly rather than folded into a round number.

The fee is deductible. Cyprus allows a deduction for expenses incurred wholly and exclusively in the production of income, provided they are properly supported. In practice that means three things: the agency should invoice the Cyprus company rather than you personally, the invoice should reflect the services actually provided, and the arrangement should sit on a written agreement. Were the agency ever a related party, the pricing would additionally need to be at arm length; on the facts you have described it is not.

With the fee properly taken into account, the position on €100,000 of OnlyFans revenue routed through the company is as follows.

So the answer to your question is approximately €51,000 of after-tax profit available to you, rather than €85,000. It is worth being clear about where the difference comes from, because it is not tax. Total Cyprus tax on €100,000 of revenue in this example is €9,000, an effective 9% of revenue and 15% of profit. The gap is the €35,000 you pay your agency, which would reduce your net income under any structure in any country.

Two refinements to the table. First, the €51,000 line is the company after-tax profit distributed as a dividend with no Special Defence Contribution, which is correct for a non-domiciled resident. The 2.65% General Healthcare System contribution still applies to that dividend income, roughly €1,352 on €51,000, so the figure genuinely in hand is closer to €49,650. Second, in practice we would include a small salary. A salary is deductible for the company and so reduces the taxable profit, but it attracts social insurance and GHS contributions and, above the €22,000 threshold, personal income tax. The net figure moves by a modest amount either way depending on the salary chosen, and the salary is generally worth taking for the residency, healthcare and social insurance record it creates.

We would be glad to walk through the salary and dividend split with you on a call, and to model it against your current position so that you have a like-for-like comparison.

Kind regards,

This article reproduces an anonymised client enquiry and our reply. It is general information only and does not constitute investment, tax, legal or audit advice, and it should not be relied upon without advice on your own facts. Fees quoted are indicative for one particular set of facts and are not an offer. Rates and thresholds are those applying as at August 2026 and are subject to change. To discuss your own circumstances, write to enquiries@cyprusaccountants.com.cy or call +357 22 336 309.