Honduras

Last update: 2026-06-10
HN HNLL 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
Personal income
0 → 25%
progressive
Corporate
25%
flat
Capital gains
10%
flat
VAT (standard)
15%
standard rate
i 5.2 VERY LOW TAX
i 4.7 DIVIDEND PIPELINE
i 3.7 HOLDING
i 2 CRYPTO HAVEN
i 2 PRIVACY GRADE
i 2 EASY CITIZENSHIP
VERYLOW TAX 5.2/10 HOLDING 3.7/10 DIVIDENDPIPELINE 4.7/10 CRYPTOHAVEN 2/10 PRIVACYGRADE 2/10 EASYCITIZENSHIP 2/10
01/08

Will Honduras tax what you earn?

income tax tax residency territorial system

YES, A LOT. On paper, Honduras taxes personal income at 25%. In practice, the territorial regime puts only locally-sourced income in scope: foreign salary, foreign dividends, foreign capital gains are left alone. The headline scares; the design doesn't. For anyone whose income arises abroad, the effective rate collapses.

Personal income taxi
0 → 25%
progressive · 4 brackets
Income simulatori
Income
Tax due
Effective rate
all-in
Marginal rate
Tax residence testi
90/183 days
183-day rule
Economic interest
Family centre
Habitual abode
Extended-stay test
Just one rule above is enough to make you tax-resident here.
02/08

Will Honduras tax what you own?

capital gains wealth tax inheritance dividends interest

YES, BUT LIGHTLY. Capital gains are taxed at a low 10% in Honduras, but the country also applies an annual wealth tax (top rate 25%). Over a long holding period, the recurring charge can outweigh the realisation tax entirely.

Capital gainsi
10%
flat
Dividend taxi
10%
flat
Interest incomei
25%
progressive
Wealth taxi
0 → 25%
progressive · threshold 8,532
Crypto · tax regimei
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-cryptoi
TAXABLE
each swap counts as a disposal — gains realised at every trade
FATF travel rulei
NOT SIGNED
no information-sharing obligation on VASP transfers
Inheritance systemi
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.
03/08

Is it easy to run a company in Honduras?

corporate tax criminal liability public registry VAT IP box

NO. Corporate tax in Honduras is 25% with no IP-box relief, on top of VAT at 15. Running a company here is operationally fine but fiscally expensive: the state takes a large bite of every unit of profit.

Corporate taxi
25%
flat · +5% taxable income exceeding L 1,000,000
IP Box · Patent Boxi
NONE
no IP regime · IP income taxed under standard corporate rules
Misuse of corporate assetsi
NO CRIMINAL LIABILITY
Article 394 of the Penal Code (Decree 130-2017)
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 privacyi
PUBLIC PAYWALL
Registro Mercantil (Cámara de Comercio e Industria)
Directors privacyi
PUBLIC PAYWALL
Registro Mercantil (Cámara de Comercio e Industria)
Incorporation costi
Limited Liability Company
Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada (S. de R.L.)
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 934
Total USD 1,390
VAT standard ratei
15%
3 distinct tiers in force
0% 15% 18%
Food & drink
0%
food
15%
non-alcoholic
18%
alcohol
Print media
0%
books
15%
ebooks
Transport
18%
air
Health
0%
pharma
Energy
15%
electricity
0%
natural gas
0%
domestic fuel
Digital & telecom
15%
digital
15%
telecom
15%
broadcast
Agriculture
0%
farm inputs
04/08

Is Honduras good for your holding company?

treaty network participation exemption withholding

NO. Honduras doesn't carry a treaty network, which makes it unsuitable as a holding jurisdiction. Any dividend flowing in or out faces full statutory withholding, and no domestic participation exemption can compensate for missing relief on the source side.

Territorial systemi
Individuals
TERRITORIAL
Corporates
TERRITORIAL
Individuals: territorial — foreign-source income generally untaxed. Corporates: territorial principle — foreign-source profits generally exempt.
Participation exemptioni
100%
no minimum threshold · no holding period
CFC rulesi
NONE
no controlled foreign corporation regime · foreign-source corporate income out of scope
WHT · dividendsi
10%
non-resident outbound
WHT · interest
10%
non-resident outbound
WHT · royalties
25%
non-resident outbound
Tax-haven WHT
no punitive rate on record
Treaties signedi
0
active
Treaties pending
in negotiation
Tax treaty networki
origin · HN 0% > 0% no treaty
Inspect a country
Hover any country on the map to read its withholding-tax treaty with HN.
Country Status Dividends Interest Royalties
// no treaties match
05/08

What does it cost to come and go from Honduras?

exit tax territorial system dual citizenship

LITTLE. Coming and going from Honduras is cheap. The country runs a territorial system (foreign income stays foreign), and there's no exit tax on departure. You leave with what you came in with, plus whatever you earned abroad while you were here.

Exit taxi
NONE
no triggers active · residence change tax-free · no deemed-disposal mechanism
Dual citizenship
FORBIDDEN
naturalisation requires renouncing existing citizenship
Citizenship paths
Residence
Marriage
Birth
Descent
Investment
06/08

Will Honduras protect your privacy?

info exchange corporate registries

PARTLY. Honduras has signed most of the standard exchange frameworks and operates a public corporate registry. Financial accounts are reported to your home tax authority, and your shareholdings are visible to anyone. Privacy is shallow on both axes.

Multilateral reporting frameworks 1/10 active · 3 pending
CRS
CARF
FATCA
2014
MLI
BEPS
MAAC
2022
GLOBAL FORUM
EOIR
CRYPTO-CARF
CRYPTO TRAVEL RULE
07/08

Is Honduras itself a liability?

blacklists FATF standing

SOMEWHAT. Honduras is flagged by one or two national tax authorities and sits outside FATF membership. Selective friction: anti-abuse rules trigger on transactions in specific corridors, and counterparties tend to ask more questions.

Blacklist exposure Listed by 1 authority
FATF
grey / black list
EU
non-cooperative list
FRANCE
ETNC list
SPAIN
tax-haven list
PORTUGAL
favourable regimes
BRAZIL
low-tax list
08/08

Will you feel free in Honduras?

press freedom crypto CBDC EU

NO. Press freedom in Honduras is restricted (RSF rank #142). Civic space and independent media operate under pressure or not at all, a constraint that typically extends to financial expression as well, even where crypto isn't formally banned.

Press freedom · RSF indexi
142/180
score 38 · ↑ 4 ranks year-on-year
Central bank digital currencyi
Program Status Cross-border Sources
Honduras CBDC
Central Bank of Honduras
RESEARCH
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.
NOTABLY MORE FAVORABLE Same family of strategies, higher total score.
NOTABLY LESS FAVORABLE Same family of strategies, lower total score.