The prime minister must command a majority of parliament in order to govern.

The premiership's precursor was a post known as the "president of the Turkish Cypriot Communal Chamber".

The only man to occupy this post was Rauf Denktaş from 29 December 1969 to 5 July 1976.

There were three prime ministers before the Turkish Cypriot community's unilateral declaration of independence in 1983.

The incumbent prime minister, Ünal Üstel, took the oath of office on 12 May 2022.