# Maldives

 Country code: MV · Currency: MVR · Language: Maldivian

**Pros**
- Absence of personal income tax and capital gains tax for most individual investment activities
- Establishing private resort operations on uninhabited islands with significant autonomy from local administrative oversight
- Maintaining a secure and secluded environment for high-value assets within a globally recognized luxury ecosystem

**Cons**
- Navigating systemic corruption and lack of transparency in government procurement and land lease processes
- Strict adherence to Sharia law limiting personal liberties and social freedoms outside designated tourist zones
- High operational costs due to extreme geographic fragmentation and total dependence on expensive imported resources

Long story short: Here, you'll get your company off the ground in a matter of weeks, but you'll never actually own anything: land and buildings stay state property forever, you'll remain a tenant for life, even for your own office.

Taxes stay light compared to Europe and the administration turns a blind eye as long as you're paying the right person, but corruption creeps into every permit and contract.

Other things worth knowing: one bank calls the shots, roads are fine in Malé but chaos everywhere else, food is imported and pricey but the fresh fish is excellent, and the lagoons are breathtaking.

## Will your income be taxed?

Long story short: NO.
**Maldives** doesn't tax personal income, and nobody comes sniffing around when you settle in. No withholding, no tax return, no centre-of-vital-interests trap waiting to snap shut.

Earn what you want: the taxman here simply doesn't know your name.

**01.1 Income tax**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Personal income tax | NONE | no personal income tax framework |

**01.2 Tax residence test**

| 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 | does not exist here |  |

## Will your wealth be taxed?

Long story short: NO.
**Maldives** keeps its hands off what you hold. *No capital gains tax*, no annual wealth grab, no inheritance regime.

Your portfolio compounds in peace and leaves the way it came in; nobody's standing at the door with their palm out.

**02.1 Investment income**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Capital gains | NONE | no capital gains regime |
| Dividend tax | NONE | no dividend tax |
| Interest income | NONE | no interest income tax |

**02.2 Wealth & estate**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Wealth tax | NONE | no annual wealth tax · no real-estate wealth tax · no net-worth assessment |
| 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: 15% · The Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) has issued public warnings stating that no licenses have been granted for crypto-related activities and that cryptocurrencies are not legal tender. However, the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA) applies the Income Tax Act (25/2019), which taxes 'Total Income' from all sources. Under Section 12, gains from the disposal of assets or any other income are subject to progressive tax rates. For individuals, income exceeding MVR 1,800,000 is taxed at the top marginal rate of 15%. While no specific crypto-to-crypto guidance exists, general tax principles in the Maldives treat the disposal of one asset for another as a realization event. |
| 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: YES.
**Maldives** runs *no corporate income tax* and *no criminal liability* for misuse of corporate assets: fiscally and legally featherweight.

The catch: registries are *public*, so your name as shareholder is one search away for any curious stranger. They won't tax you, they won't prosecute you. They'll just put you in the shop window.

**03.1 Rates**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Corporate tax | NONE | no corporate income tax framework |
| VAT standard rate | NONE | no general VAT · no consumption tax framework |

**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 · The Maldives follows common law principles where a company is a separate legal entity, but the 'dishonesty' required for criminal offenses like Criminal Breach of Trust (Penal Code Section 214) is generally negated if the sole shareholder and director consents to the use of funds while the company is solvent. Such acts are treated as a breach of the director's statutory duty to act in the best interests of the company or as an unlawful distribution of assets, triggering civil restitution or regulatory fines rather than criminal prosecution, provided creditors are not defrauded. |
| Shareholders privacy | PUBLIC PAYWALL | Ministry of Economic Development and Trade - Business Portal |
| Directors privacy | PUBLIC PAYWALL | Ministry of Economic Development and Trade - Business Portal |

**03.3 Incorporation cost**

_In this country, the most standard company form is called އަމިއްލަ ކުންފުނި (Private Limited Company). The costs below are for incorporating a company in its simplest form, for reference only._

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Foreign Investment Application Processing Fee (USD 5,000) | USD 4,993 |  |
| Professional Legal and Incorporation Services (Market Average) | USD 1,943 |  |
| One-time Administrative Fee (Companies Act 2023) | USD 162 |  |
| Company Registration Fee | USD 130 |  |
| Company Name Reservation and Stamp Duty | USD 39 |  |
| Total | USD 7,266 |  |

## A good fit for a holding?

Long story short: NO.
**Maldives** 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 | WORLDWIDE | worldwide income taxation regardless of source |
| Territorial · corporates | WORLDWIDE | worldwide corporate taxation |
| Participation exemption | NONE | no dividend participation exemption regime |
| 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 | NONE | no withholding on outbound dividends |
| WHT · interest | NONE | no withholding on outbound interest |
| WHT · royalties | NONE | no withholding on outbound royalties |
| Tax-haven WHT | NONE | no punitive rate on record |

**04.3 Treaty network**

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

## Easy to come and go?

Long story short: SOME.
**Maldives** taxes your worldwide income while you're resident, but at least the exit is free: *no exit tax* on the way out.

Leaving costs you paperwork, not money; your unrealised gains walk out the door with you, untouched.

**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 | 12 years | available path to naturalisation |
| Marriage | — | not available |
| Birth | — | not available |
| Descent | — | not available |
| Investment | — | not available |

## Is your money watched?

Long story short: PARTLY.
**Maldives** 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 — 2/9 active · 2 pending**

| Item | Status | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| CRS | In force | 2023 |
| CARF | None | — |
| FATCA | None | — |
| MLI | None | — |
| BEPS | Signed | — |
| MAAC | In force | 2021 |
| GLOBAL FORUM | Signed | — |
| EOIR | None | — |
| CRYPTO TRAVEL RULE | None | — |

## Is it blacklisted?

Long story short: SOMEWHAT.
**Maldives** 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 2 authorities**

| 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 | Listed | low-tax list |

## Do you feel free there?

Long story short: NO.
Press freedom in **Maldives** is *locked down* (RSF rank **\#104**). 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 | 104/180 | score 52 · ↑ 2 ranks year-on-year |

Central bank digital currency

    Program Status Cross-border Sources     Maldives CBDC

Maldives Monetary Authority

   RESEARCH   —   [announce →](https://www.unescap.org/kp/2023/global-toolkit-regulatory-sandbox-central-bank-digital-currency-and-fintech "Announcement")

 programs 1

## Connected to the world?

Long story short: POORLY CONNECTED.
The two rails that matter are both dead in **Maldives**. *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 (**3/11**), but for an online business this is swimming against the current.

**Accept payments — 1/6 available**

| Item | Status | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Stripe | Not available | card payments |
| PayPal | Not 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 Maldives. No editorial ranking — neighbours in the same scoring space.

  PROFILE-ADJACENT Same shape, comparable overall friction.

 [   Samoa WS  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/ws) [   Cook Islands CK  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/ck) [   Fiji FJ  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/fj)

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

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