No January–September period in CyStat's records has produced as many used passenger vehicle registrations as 2026. Figures published by the Statistical Service (CyStat) on 9 October show 23,635 used passenger vehicles registered between January and September, 21.1% more than in the same months of 2025. The previous high for that period, 21,488, was set in 2008. CyStat's monthly series goes back to 2002; the full-year totals it publishes for 2000 and 2001 were lower still.
New registrations moved the other way. They fell 10.9% to 10,521, the lowest January–September figure since 2022. Used vehicles now make up 69.2% of all passenger vehicles registered this year, up from 62.3% a year earlier. Passenger vehicle registrations as a whole reached 34,156, up 9.0%.
September: a strong month on a strong base
September added 3,059 used registrations. Only one month in CyStat's records is higher: June 2026, with 3,205. Against September 2025 the gain was a modest 4.4%, because last September was itself unusually busy. New registrations dropped 16.6% to 1,195, which left the monthly total of 4,254 down 2.5% on a year earlier. The dip came from rental fleets, which registered 312 vehicles against 515 in September 2025; private registrations rose.
Private buyers, as distinct from rental fleets, registered 3,911 passenger vehicles in September, new and used combined. That is the highest monthly figure in CyStat's private-vehicle series, which starts in 2009. Across the nine months private registrations came to 30,207, up 13.7%. Of these, 20,990 were used.
Hybrids already surpassed last year's total
Hybrids accounted for 18,112 of the 34,156 passenger vehicles registered from January to September, a 53.0% share against 44.0% a year earlier. That is more than the 18,078 hybrids registered in the whole of 2025, with a quarter of the year still to come. Petrol fell to 34.8% from 42.8% and diesel to 8.0% from 8.5%. Fully electric vehicles reached 1,439, or 4.2%, a little below the 4.7% of the same months in 2025.
The premium end of the used market
CyStat's breakdown of used registrations by make shows where premium buyers are going. By our count the premium and luxury makes together account for 5,120 of this year's 23,635 used passenger vehicles, or 21.7%. After seven months the share was 21.9%: the premium segment is growing in step with the market rather than ahead of it.
BMW leads with 1,519 used registrations. Mercedes-Benz follows with 1,340. Lexus (464) and Audi (422) come next, then Volvo (359), Land Rover (353, plus 22 that CyStat records separately as Range Rover) and Porsche (241). Bentley, Ferrari, Aston Martin, Lamborghini, Maserati, Rolls-Royce, Lotus and McLaren add up to 103 vehicles in nine months. August and September alone brought 319 used BMWs and 281 used Mercedes-Benz vehicles.
What this means for a buyer
The statistics show what buyers did, not why. Our reading is that more of them are choosing a recent used vehicle over a new one from a local dealer. The premium brands are part of that shift rather than an exception to it.
For a specific vehicle the source market matters as much as the badge. A vehicle bought in the UK or Japan avoids the 10% import duty only when it was built in the country it is shipped from: a Japanese-built Lexus from Japan, a British-built Range Rover from the UK. Anything else pays duty on the way in. That alone can decide which market lands it cheaper in Cyprus. For a vehicle listed in the UK, our UK import calculator shows the full landed cost, with duty, VAT and registration already in the figure.
CyStat publishes registrations monthly, usually within the first ten days of the following month, so October figures should follow in early November.
Source: CyStat.
