# Honduras

 Country code: HN · Currency: HNL · Language: Spanish

**Pros**
- Special economic zones (ZEDEs) with significant administrative and legal autonomy for private governance
- Competitive territorial tax regime with exemptions for foreign-sourced income for residents
- Low cost of living and strategic proximity to major North American trade hubs

**Cons**
- Widespread institutional corruption and weak rule of law for contract enforcement
- High security risks and extortion rates requiring substantial private protection expenditures
- Legal uncertainty and political volatility regarding the protection of private property

Long story short: Honduras has one genuinely unique trick up its sleeve: on Roatán island, the Prospera zone lets you write your own laws and dodge the country's usual bureaucracy almost entirely.

Catch is, the current government is fighting hard to scrap that status, so you'd be building on shaky legal ground. Outside the zone, corruption eats into institutions, paperwork drags, and the banking system stays limited and cash-heavy.

Beyond that: crime doesn't cross into the walled, upscale neighborhoods of Tegucigalpa or San Pedro Sula, the food is generous, and the Caribbean coast and islands are genuinely stunning.

## Will your income be taxed?

Long story short: YES, A LOT.
On paper, **Honduras** shears you at up to **25%**. In practice, the *territorial* regime only bites income sourced locally: foreign salary, foreign dividends, foreign gains walk through untouched. The sticker is there to scare; the machinery doesn't reach that far.

Earn your living abroad and the local taxman mostly waves at you from a distance.

**01.1 Income tax**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Personal income tax | 0 → 25% | progressive · 4 brackets |

| Bracket (USD) | Rate |
| --- | --- |
| 0 – 8,523 | exempt |
| 8,523 – 12,996 | 15% |
| 12,996 – 30,222 | 20% |
| 30,222 + | 25% |

**01.2 Tax residence test**

_A single active rule is enough to make you tax-resident._

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 183-day rule | does not exist here |  |
| Economic interest | does not exist here |  |
| Family centre | does not exist here |  |
| Habitual abode | does not exist here |  |
| Extended-stay test | exists here |  |

## Will your wealth be taxed?

Long story short: YES, BUT LIGHTLY.
Capital gains get off easy in **Honduras** (**10%**); the *annual wealth tax* doesn't (top rate **25%**). It nibbles your pile every year, sold or not, and over a long hold the nibbling out-eats the sale tax entirely.

Watch the stock, not just the flow.

**02.1 Investment income**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Capital gains | 10% | flat |
| Dividend tax | 10% | flat |
| Interest income | 25% | progressive |

| Bracket (USD) | Rate |
| --- | --- |
| 0 – 8,523 | exempt |
| 8,523 – 12,996 | 15% |
| 12,996 – 30,222 | 20% |
| 30,222 + | 25% |

**02.2 Wealth & estate**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Wealth tax | 0 → 25% | progressive · threshold 8,523 |

| Bracket (USD) | Rate |
| --- | --- |
| 0 – 8,523 | exempt |
| 8,523 – 12,996 | 15% |
| 12,996 – 30,222 | 20% |
| 30,222 + | 25% |

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Inheritance system | NONE | no estate tax · no heir-based duties · no succession tax framework. Wealth transfers across heir-classes are not taxed in this jurisdiction. Only standard probate / registration fees may apply. |

**02.3 Crypto**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Crypto · tax regime | UNREGULATED | Fallback rate: 10% · Cryptocurrencies are not legal tender in Honduras. The Central Bank (BCH) and the CNBS (Resolution 069/09-02-2024) prohibit supervised financial institutions from holding or processing crypto-assets. For individuals, gains are generally subject to a 10% flat Capital Gains Tax (Impuesto sobre Ganancias de Capital) under general tax law. Professional or habitual trading is treated as business income and taxed at progressive rates up to 25%. The Prospera ZEDE (Special Economic Zone) on Roatán has separate regulations recognizing Bitcoin as a unit of account, but this does not apply to the rest of the national territory. |
| Crypto-to-crypto | TAXABLE | each swap counts as a disposal — gains realised at every trade |
| FATF travel rule | NOT SIGNED | no information-sharing obligation on VASP transfers |

## Easy to run a company there?

Long story short: NO.
Corporate tax in **Honduras** is **25%**, no IP-box mercy, VAT at **15** on top.

Operationally, running a company here is fine; fiscally, the state helps itself to a fat slice of every unit of profit. You do the work, they skim the cream.

**03.1 Rates**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Corporate tax | 25% | flat · +5% taxable income exceeding HNL 1 million |
| VAT standard rate | 15% | 2 distinct tiers in force |

| VAT family | Category | Rate |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Food & drink | alcohol | 18% |
| Transport | air | 18% |
| Energy | electricity | 15% |
| Digital & telecom | digital | 15% |
| Digital & telecom | telecom | 15% |
| Digital & telecom | broadcast | 15% |

**03.2 Regime & registry**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| IP Box · Patent Box | NONE | no IP regime · IP income taxed under standard corporate rules |
| Misuse of corporate assets | NO CRIMINAL | no criminal liability · Under the Honduran Penal Code (2017), the offense of 'Administración Desleal' (Article 394) requires the administrator to cause economic harm (perjuicio) to a 'third-party patrimony' (patrimony ajeno). In a one-person company where the director is the sole shareholder, the legal doctrine (influenced by the Spanish model) generally holds that the criminal element of harm is not met because the sole owner of the economic interest has consented to the use of funds. While the company remains solvent and no creditors are defrauded, the confusion of patrimony is treated as a civil matter (potentially leading to the 'piercing of the corporate veil') or a tax irregularity, rather than a criminal 'misuse of assets.' Criminal liability would typically only trigger upon insolvency under 'Insolvencia Punible' (Article 397). |
| Shareholders privacy | PUBLIC PAYWALL | Registro Mercantil (Cámara de Comercio e Industria) |
| Directors privacy | PUBLIC PAYWALL | Registro Mercantil (Cámara de Comercio e Industria) |

**03.3 Incorporation cost**

_In this country, the most standard company form is called Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada (S. de R.L.) (Limited Liability Company). The costs below are for incorporating a company in its simplest form, for reference only._

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mercantile Registry Registration Fee | USD 112 |  |
| Notary Public Fees (Public Deed of Incorporation) | USD 299 |  |
| Official Gazette (La Gaceta) Publication Fee | USD 45 |  |
| Professional Legal Incorporation Service | USD 933 |  |
| Total | USD 1,389 |  |

## A good fit for a holding?

Long story short: NO.
**Honduras** has no treaty network at all, which buries the holding question, full stop.

Every dividend in or out eats the statutory withholding at full rate, and no domestic regime can patch a hole that sits on the source side. Don't park a holding here.

**04.1 Substance & exemptions**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Territorial · individuals | TERRITORIAL | territorial — foreign-source income generally untaxed |
| Territorial · corporates | TERRITORIAL | territorial principle — foreign-source profits generally exempt |
| Participation exemption | 100% | no minimum threshold · no holding period |
| CFC rules | NONE | no controlled foreign corporation regime · foreign-source corporate income out of scope |

**04.2 Withholding tax · non-resident**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| WHT · dividends | 10% | non-resident outbound |
| WHT · interest | 10% | non-resident outbound |
| WHT · royalties | 25% | non-resident outbound |
| Tax-haven WHT | 10% | penalty rate · blacklisted destinations |

**04.3 Treaty network**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Treaties signed | 0 | active |
| Treaties pending | — | in negotiation |

## Easy to come and go?

Long story short: LITTLE.
Coming and going from **Honduras** costs you nothing worth mentioning. *Territorial* regime (foreign income stays foreign), *no exit tax* at the door.

You show up with your stuff, you leave with your stuff, plus whatever you earned abroad in between. Borders the way they should all work.

**05.1 Exit & dual nationality**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Exit tax | NONE | no triggers active · residence change tax-free · no deemed-disposal mechanism |
| Dual citizenship | FORBIDDEN | naturalisation requires renouncing existing citizenship |

**05.2 Citizenship paths**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Residence | 3 years | available path to naturalisation |
| Marriage | — | available path to naturalisation |
| Birth | jus soli | available path to naturalisation |
| Descent | — | not available |
| Investment | — | not available |

## Is your money watched?

Long story short: PARTLY.
**Honduras** has signed *most* of the standard exchange frameworks *and* runs a public corporate registry. Your accounts get reported to your home tax office, and your shareholdings sit in the shop window.

Watched on both axes: not wall-to-wall, but don't come here for discretion.

**Multilateral reporting frameworks — 1/9 active · 3 pending**

| Item | Status | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| CRS | None | — |
| CARF | None | — |
| FATCA | In force | 2014 |
| MLI | None | — |
| BEPS | Signed | — |
| MAAC | Signed | 2022 |
| GLOBAL FORUM | Signed | — |
| EOIR | None | — |
| CRYPTO TRAVEL RULE | None | — |

## Is it blacklisted?

Long story short: SOMEWHAT.
**Honduras** is *flagged* by a few national tax administrations (drawn from FR/ES/PT/BR) and sits outside the FATF club.

The friction is selective: anti-abuse rules fire on specific corridors, and counterparties ask more questions than usual. Neither the FATF nor the EU has it on their lists, which keeps the damage contained: a nuisance, not a scarlet letter.

**Blacklist exposure — Listed by 1 authority**

| Item | Status | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| EMBARGO | Clear | un / us / eu sanctions |
| FATF | Clear | grey / black list |
| EU | Clear | non-cooperative list |
| FRANCE | Clear | ETNC list |
| SPAIN | Clear | tax-haven list |
| PORTUGAL | Listed | favourable regimes |
| BRAZIL | Clear | low-tax list |

## Do you feel free there?

Long story short: NO.
Press freedom in **Honduras** is *locked down* (RSF rank **\#142**). Independent media and civic space operate under pressure (when they operate at all), and that kind of grip usually spills over into economic life too.

Small mercy: crypto isn't formally banned.

**08.1 Press freedom**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Press freedom · RSF index | 142/180 | score 38 · ↑ 4 ranks year-on-year |

Central bank digital currency

    Program Status Cross-border Sources     Honduras CBDC

Central Bank of Honduras

   RESEARCH   —   [announce →](https://www.bch.hn/modernizacion/el-futuro-del-dinero/resumen "Announcement")

 programs 1

## Connected to the world?

Long story short: POORLY CONNECTED.
The two rails that matter are both dead in **Honduras**. *Stripe* won't onboard you, so card payments mean a foreign structure or a local processor with its own rules. *Amazon* doesn't deliver either.

Some secondary services run (**4/11**), but for an online business this is swimming against the current.

**Accept payments — 2/6 available**

| Item | Status | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Stripe | Not available | card payments |
| PayPal | Available | wallet payments |
| Adyen | Not available | enterprise psp |
| Mollie | Not available | eu payments |
| GoCardless | Not available | direct debit |
| Paddle | Available | merchant of record |

**Bank and move money — 1/3 available**

| Item | Status | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Wise | Available | multi-currency |
| Revolut | Not available | personal banking |
| Revolut Business | Not available | business banking |

**Buy and sell on Amazon — 1/2 available**

| Item | Status | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Amazon | Not available | consumer delivery |
| Amazon Seller | Available | marketplace selling |

  SEE ALSO## Other jurisdictions worth comparing

Picked by similarity of strategic profile to Honduras. No editorial ranking — neighbours in the same scoring space.

  PROFILE-ADJACENT Same shape, comparable overall friction.

 [   Panama PA  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/pa) [   Libya LY  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/ly) [   St. Helena SH  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/sh)

  NOTABLY MORE FAVORABLE Same family of strategies, higher total score.

 [   Nigeria NG  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/ng) [   Costa Rica CR  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/cr) [   Oman OM  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/om)

  NOTABLY LESS FAVORABLE Same family of strategies, lower total score.

 [   Somalia SO  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/so) [   Congo - Kinshasa CD  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/cd) [   Vietnam VN  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/vn)