# Togo

 Country code: TG · Currency: XOF · Language: French

**Pros**
- Strategic maritime access via the deep-water Port of Lomé for regional West African trade expansion.
- Stable monetary environment through the CFA Franc pegged to the Euro, minimizing exchange rate volatility.
- Streamlined business creation processes and attractive investment incentives for foreign entrepreneurs in specific economic zones.

**Cons**
- Persistent systemic corruption and weak judicial independence hindering fair contract enforcement and property rights protection.
- Inadequate infrastructure and unreliable electricity supply outside major urban centers impacting operational efficiency.
- Significant state control over political life and periodic restrictions on freedom of assembly and expression.

Long story short: Setting up a company in Lomé takes two days, one counter, no visible shakedown: Togo figured out that pampering entrepreneurs pays more than fleecing them.

The flip side: tax audits hit at random, cops at checkpoints hold their hand out, and getting a bank loan is an obstacle course.

Beyond that: the wealthy districts of Lomé stay quiet, the food is excellent, beaches and lakes are worth the trip, and the CFA franc spares you exchange-rate headaches.

## Will your income be taxed?

Long story short: NO.
**Togo** 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.
**Togo** 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: 35% · Togo has no specific cryptocurrency legislation. The Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO) has issued multiple warnings stating that crypto-assets are not legal tender and are not authorized for use within the WAEMU zone. In the absence of specific rules, the Office Togolais des Recettes (OTR) applies the General Tax Code (Code Général des Impôts), where crypto gains are treated as miscellaneous income or capital gains. These are subject to the progressive Personal Income Tax (IRPP) which features brackets ranging from 0% to 35%. |
| Crypto-to-crypto | NEUTRAL | a swap is not a taxable realisation event |
| FATF travel rule | NOT SIGNED | no information-sharing obligation on VASP transfers |

## Easy to run a company there?

Long story short: YES, BUT EXPOSED.
**Togo** has *no corporate income tax* but stacks the two nastiest non-fiscal frictions: *criminal liability* for misuse of corporate assets (jail on the table for sloppy intra-company spending) and *public registries* (your name served up to anyone with a browser).

The sticker says zero; the exposure says otherwise, on every other axis.

**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 | CRIMINAL | criminal liability · Article 891, 3° of the OHADA Uniform Act on Commercial Companies and Economic Interest Groups (AUDSCGIE) · Togo is a member of OHADA and adheres to the principle of the 'Autonomy of the Legal Entity.' Under Article 891 of the AUDSCGIE, the misuse of corporate assets (Abus de Biens Sociaux) is a criminal offense even for a sole director who is also the sole shareholder. The company's assets are legally distinct from the individual's personal patrimony, and any use of company funds for personal purposes contrary to the corporate interest is punishable by criminal penalties (imprisonment and fines) under the Togolese Penal Code (Loi n° 2015-10), regardless of the company's solvency or the shareholder's consent. |
| Shareholders privacy | PUBLIC PAYWALL | Registre du Commerce et du Crédit Mobilier (RCCM) / Centre de Formalités des Entreprises (CFE) |
| Directors privacy | PUBLIC PAYWALL | Registre du Commerce et du Crédit Mobilier (RCCM) / Centre de Formalités des Entreprises (CFE) |

**03.3 Incorporation cost**

_In this country, the most standard company form is called Société à Responsabilité Limitée (SARL) (Limited Liability Company). The costs below are for incorporating a company in its simplest form, for reference only._

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Government Registration Fee (CFE Single Window for Foreigners) | USD 60 |  |
| Professional Incorporation Services (Legal drafting and filing) | USD 1,148 |  |
| Total | USD 1,208 |  |

## A good fit for a holding?

Long story short: NO.
**Togo** 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 | 95% | 10% holding · 24 months min |
| 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.
**Togo** 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 | 5 years | available path to naturalisation |
| Marriage | — | not available |
| Birth | jus soli | available path to naturalisation |
| Descent | — | not available |
| Investment | — | not available |

## Is your money watched?

Long story short: NO.
Foreign tax offices see next to nothing of what you do in **Togo**: it has signed *few exchange frameworks*.

But the *corporate registries are public*: your shareholdings and directorships are one search away for anyone curious. Invisible from abroad, on display at home.

**Multilateral reporting frameworks — 0/9 active · 3 pending**

| Item | Status | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| CRS | None | — |
| CARF | None | — |
| FATCA | None | — |
| MLI | None | — |
| BEPS | Signed | — |
| MAAC | Signed | 2020 |
| GLOBAL FORUM | Signed | — |
| EOIR | None | — |
| CRYPTO TRAVEL RULE | None | — |

## Is it blacklisted?

Long story short: NO.
**Togo** sits on no major blacklist, though it's *outside* the FATF club.

Some counterparties will run a bit of extra due diligence out of habit, but there's no formal stigma: you won't get hassled for dealing with it.

**Blacklist exposure — Clear everywhere**

| 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 | Clear | favourable regimes |
| BRAZIL | Clear | low-tax list |

## Do you feel free there?

Long story short: NO.
Press freedom in **Togo** is *locked down* (RSF rank **\#121**). 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 | 121/180 | score 48 · ↓ 8 ranks year-on-year |

Central bank digital currency

NONE

no announced CBDC program · no pilot · no retail or wholesale prototype on record

## Connected to the world?

Long story short: POORLY CONNECTED.
The two rails that matter are both dead in **Togo**. *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 Togo. No editorial ranking — neighbours in the same scoring space.

  PROFILE-ADJACENT Same shape, comparable overall friction.

 [   Benin BJ  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/bj) [   Guinea GN  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/gn) [   Comoros KM  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/km)

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

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

 [   St. Martin MF  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/mf) [   St. Pierre & Miquelon PM  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/pm) [   Gambia GM  → ](https://stateless.sx/en/country/gm)