Maldives
| 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 |
Will Maldives tax what you earn?
NO. Maldives doesn't tax personal income, and doesn't reach for you when you settle. No withholding, no return, no centre-of-vital-interests test waiting to trip. Salary is a non-event here, both in the rate and in the paperwork.
Will Maldives tax what you own?
NO. Maldives doesn't tax what you hold. No capital gains, no annual wealth assessment, no inheritance regime. The value sitting in your portfolio compounds untouched, and leaves it the same way it arrived.
Is it easy to run a company in Maldives?
YES. Maldives has no corporate income tax and no criminal liability for misuse of corporate assets: fiscally and legally weightless. The catch: corporate registries are public, so your name as shareholder shows up in a search portal. The state doesn't tax you and doesn't prosecute you; it just exposes you.
Is Maldives good for your holding company?
NO. Maldives 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.
| Country | Status | Dividends | Interest | Royalties |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| ∅ // no treaties match | ||||
What does it cost to come and go from Maldives?
SOME. Maldives taxes worldwide income while you're resident, but there's no exit tax on the way out. The cost of leaving is mostly paperwork: unrealised gains follow you to the next jurisdiction untouched.
Will Maldives protect your privacy?
PARTLY. Maldives 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.
Is Maldives itself a liability?
SOMEWHAT. Maldives 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.
Will you feel free in Maldives?
NO. Press freedom in Maldives is restricted (RSF rank #104). 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.
| Program | Status | Cross-border | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Maldives CBDC
Maldives Monetary Authority
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RESEARCH | — | announce → |
Other jurisdictions worth comparing
Picked by similarity of strategic profile to Maldives. No editorial ranking — neighbours in the same scoring space.