Nauru

Last update: 2026-04-24
NR AUD$ English
Pros
Absence of corporate tax and no capital gains tax on private business investments.
Minimal regulatory oversight and low bureaucratic barriers for small-scale private entrepreneurial ventures.
High level of personal safety and low violent crime rates within the local community.
Cons
Severe infrastructure limitations in reliable electricity, high-speed internet, and modern transportation links.
Significant geographic isolation and extreme dependence on imported goods and foreign financial aid.
Historical concerns about government transparency and potential for systemic corruption in public administration.
Personal income
NONE
Corporate
NONE
Capital gains
NONE
VAT (standard)
NONE
i 4.7 DIVIDEND PIPELINE
i 3.7 HOLDING
i 2.9 VERY LOW TAX
i 2 CRYPTO HAVEN
i 2 PRIVACY GRADE
i 0.9 EASY CITIZENSHIP
VERYLOW TAX 2.9/10 HOLDING 3.7/10 DIVIDENDPIPELINE 4.7/10 CRYPTOHAVEN 2/10 PRIVACYGRADE 2/10 EASYCITIZENSHIP 0.9/10
01/08

Will Nauru tax what you earn?

income tax tax residency territorial system

NO. Nauru 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.

Personal income taxi
NONE
no personal income tax framework
Income simulatori
N/A
no income tax framework — nothing to simulate
Tax residence testi
N/A
no formal tax residency test · matters mainly for citizenship / immigration tracks
02/08

Will Nauru tax what you own?

capital gains wealth tax inheritance dividends interest

NO. Nauru 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.

Capital gainsi
NONE
no capital gains regime
Dividend taxi
NONE
no dividend tax
Interest incomei
NONE
no interest income tax
Wealth taxi
NONE
no annual wealth tax · no real-estate wealth tax · no net-worth assessment
Crypto · tax regimei
Regime
ZERO TAX
Rate
0%
Nauru does not impose capital gains tax, inheritance tax, or wealth tax on individuals. Recent legislation (2024/2025) established the Command Ridge Virtual Asset Authority (CRVAA) and explicitly classifies crypto-assets as commodities rather than securities. While casual investment gains are tax-free, professional trading activity is treated as business income and is subject to the Business Tax Act 2016 at a rate of 20%.
Crypto-to-cryptoi
NEUTRAL
a swap is not a taxable realisation event
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 Nauru?

corporate tax criminal liability public registry VAT IP box

YES. Nauru 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.

Corporate taxi
NONE
no corporate income tax framework
IP Box · Patent Boxi
NONE
no IP regime · IP income taxed under standard corporate rules
Misuse of corporate assetsi
NO CRIMINAL LIABILITY
N/A - Civil Matter / Corporations Act 1972
Nauru follows Common Law principles where a company is a separate legal entity, but the misuse of assets by a sole shareholder-director of a solvent company is primarily treated as a civil breach of fiduciary duty (Section 104 of the Corporations Act 1972) or a tax/accounting issue. Under the Crimes Act 2016, criminal offenses such as theft or fraud require a 'dishonest' intent to deprive another of property; in the case of a solvent company with a sole owner who consents to the use of funds, this criminal threshold is generally not met as there is no victim or intent to defraud third parties.
Shareholders privacyi
PUBLIC PAYWALL
Nauru Registrar of Corporations
Directors privacyi
PUBLIC PAYWALL
Nauru Registrar of Corporations
Incorporation costi
Private Limited Company
Proprietary Company
Government Incorporation & Registry Fees USD 352
Business Name Registration Fee USD 141
Annual Business License Fee (First Year) USD 211
Name Reservation and Beneficial Ownership Filing USD 67
Professional Incorporation & Legal Service Fees USD 1,760
Total USD 2,531
VAT standard ratei
NONE
no general VAT · no consumption tax framework
04/08

Is Nauru good for your holding company?

treaty network participation exemption withholding

NO. Nauru 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
WORLDWIDE
Individuals: territorial — foreign-source income generally untaxed. Corporates: worldwide.
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
no withholding on outbound dividends
WHT · interest
no withholding on outbound interest
WHT · royalties
no withholding on outbound royalties
Tax-haven WHT
no punitive rate on record
Treaties signedi
0
active
Treaties pending
in negotiation
Tax treaty networki
origin · NR 0% > 0% no treaty
Inspect a country
Hover any country on the map to read its withholding-tax treaty with NR.
Country Status Dividends Interest Royalties
// no treaties match
05/08

What does it cost to come and go from Nauru?

exit tax territorial system dual citizenship

LITTLE. Coming and going from Nauru 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 Nauru protect your privacy?

info exchange corporate registries

PARTLY. Nauru 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 2/10 active · 2 pending
CRS
2018
CARF
FATCA
MLI
BEPS
MAAC
2016
GLOBAL FORUM
EOIR
CRYPTO-CARF
CRYPTO TRAVEL RULE
07/08

Is Nauru itself a liability?

blacklists FATF standing

SOMEWHAT. Nauru 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 2 authorities
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 Nauru?

press freedom crypto CBDC EU

Not enough data to assess civil liberties and financial freedom in Nauru.

Press freedom · RSF indexi
Central bank digital currencyi
NONE
no announced CBDC program · no pilot · no retail or wholesale prototype on record
SEE ALSO

Other jurisdictions worth comparing

Picked by similarity of strategic profile to Nauru. 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.