Trevors Tips for December 2022

By Trevor Hughes…

Office for Paying Mobile Phones Import Tax

The latest office for paying import tax on mobile phones purchased outside of the TRNC is:

Bilgi Teknolojileri ve Haberleşme Kurumu

Address: Rauf Raif Denktaş Caddesi, Metehan

Hours:

Monday 8.00 am – 2.30 pm
Tuesday 8.00 am – 2.30 pm
Wednesday 8.00 am – 2.30 pm
Thursday 8,00 am – 12.30 pm – 1.00 pm to 5.30 pm
Friday 8.00 am – 2.30 pm
Saturday – Closed
Sunday – Closed

Phone: +90 392 600 90 00

Fantastic Customer Service

I needed to purchase a new TV because my “not so old” one decided to go faulty. I took a trip to Teknogold in Alsancak to see what was on offer. I decided to replace the old TV with a 50inch replacement at a reasonable price of just over 7000 TL (a lot cheaper than the same type in the UK).

Three days later the broken TV decided to correct itself, and because the 32inch TV in my bedroom decided to feel sorry for the one downstairs, it too went into a broken mode, so I revisited Teknogold again to see what was on offer. I chose a suitable replacement and the store informed me I was entitled to a price difference refund. Because the bedroom TV was wall-mounted, Teknogold arranged for one of their fitters to come to my house and fit the TV and wall bracket. No fuss, no bother, just good honest service, a rarity in these modern times!!!

I know that some of you have not received such excellent service, but this was my experience!

Beware a Dangerous Road

On Saturday, 29 October 2022, there was a traffic accident that caused the death of a 21-year-old man who lost control due to driving at excessive speed and also seriously injuring his passenger on the North Nicosia Ring Road. This fatal accident has drawn attention to the lack of road safety measures. There are no road signs, no lighting, no information signs, no information, and no fluorescent road markings. I reported this dangerous situation on my News Round some time ago, but “hey ho” no action!

We had a customer who was driving along this road at night some time ago and because of no lighting or markings he did not see a traffic island and ended up in the middle of it, causing considerable damage to the underside of his car. So, if you are going to use this road (which will take you to the Metehan border crossing) at night, be extremely cautious until sufficient safety measures are in place.

The Sacred Olive Tree

If you have an olive tree in your garden and you find a local person helping himself to your olives, what do you do?

Don’t take matters into your own hands, phone the police and ask them to come to your property.

They will speak to the person picking the olives and establish if they have a Kocan for that tree? Because if they do, they are entitled to harvest the olives quite legally, this is because the tree is the property of that person.

Strange but True!

Recognition and an article in the Daily Express 7.11.22.

President Ersin Tatar of the TRNC said that Rishi Sunak, Prime Minister of the UK, should end the Cyprus merry-go-round and support a 2-state solution.

I am talking about a settlement that is based on a cooperative relationship between two States, based on mutual respect and acknowledgment of the inherent rights of the Turkish Cypriot People..

Within the island of Cyprus, it also means working towards areas of concrete cooperation, such as the sharing of hydrocarbon resources, establishing an electricity interconnector for the island with Europe via Turkey, tackling illegal migration via the auspices of the UN, and clearing mines.

For the UK specifically, we would encourage a fresh new approach towards the Turkish Cypriot people – to treat us on an equal footing. Using the greater flexibility of Brexit, it is time to start to normalize relations on areas such as trade and police cooperation. He continued I am confident that anything which helps to reduce the disparities with the Greek Cypriot side will ultimately help with the search for a solution.

In short, the merry-go-round must end. Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots should get off: it’s a farce. We need a fresh agenda and fresh opportunities for both peoples of the island of Cyprus – for peace, security, and prosperity.

Well Done, Tulips

You may have seen in the press, the fantastic achievement of the latest fund-raising effort by Tulips and their staff for the enormous amount of money raised from selling raffle tickets for the late Betty Rundle mini motor car. It was a magnificent achievement and included lots and lots of effort from all those involved.

The amount raised was £24,943 Stg and the prize was won by a Turkish man from Lefkoşa.

The raffle draw was undertaken under strict control to ensure absolute honesty and integrity.

The biggest beneficiaries are the people who will benefit from cancer treatment as a result of the amount of money raised.

First Time Driving License

There are changes that have been released concerning the application for a TRNC driving license, for the first time. They are for people applying for their first license, this is not for people who wish to renew their current TRNC license!! All nationalities must apply, the only exceptions are citizens of the TRNC and Turkish people arriving from Turkey.

Capital Insurance have been working hard behind the scenes to make the new regulations as straight forward as possible, and have subsequently teamed up with a reputable driving school with an excellent reputation to ensure this New Law can be followed with ease.

If you wish to get all the current changes concerning the new regulations for making your first application, contact either Trevor or Fatos on 0533 844 3403 and learn the easiest way to comply.

There is little sense in publishing changes on our News Round, as changes are fast happening and may be out of date before each publication.

Please do not listen to the so-called “grape vine”, information is all too often wrong, or outdated.

As yet, you must have an up to date and completed residence application, nothing can be done without first applying, and holding a completed residence permit, this is another service Capital Insurance provide!!

Capital Insurance will issue you with a full comprehensive insurance policy which will cover you if you suffer a road traffic accident, as long as you have submitted written proof that you have completed the driving course, undertaken by a fully qualified and registered driving school. But, if you are stopped by the police, we have no say in the matter and you may be issued a fine for not holding a valid license, which will be the responsibility of the driver, not the insurance company.

We strongly advise you not to drive until you pass this simple driving test.

Holidays

Although the Christmas festivities are celebrated throughout the world, for the TRNC the 26^th of December (Boxing Day) will be open for business as usual. Which includes Capital Insurance and all the Government Offices.

There is a lot more information at hand but, you can either call us, or pop into the office in Alsancak or visit us from 5th December 2022 as shown below and my phone number is 0533 825 6753.