Vanuatu
| Pros |
|---|
| Absence of personal income, corporate, capital gains, or inheritance taxes for residents and businesses. |
| Fast-track citizenship by investment program providing increased global mobility and alternative residency options. |
| Minimal government interference in private enterprise and simplified registration for international business companies. |
| Cons |
|---|
| Inadequate infrastructure with frequent power outages and limited high-speed internet outside the capital. |
| Significant vulnerability to devastating natural disasters like cyclones, impacting long-term physical asset security. |
| Persistent concerns regarding government transparency and occasional political instability affecting legal predictability. |
Will Vanuatu tax what you earn?
NO. Vanuatu 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 Vanuatu tax what you own?
NO. Vanuatu 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 Vanuatu?
YES. Vanuatu 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 Vanuatu good for your holding company?
NO. Vanuatu 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 Vanuatu?
LITTLE. Coming and going from Vanuatu 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.
Will Vanuatu protect your privacy?
PARTLY. Vanuatu 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 Vanuatu itself a liability?
YES. Vanuatu sits on multiple major blacklists. Counterparties routinely apply anti-abuse rules, higher withholding, or refuse the transaction entirely. The jurisdiction itself is the risk, regardless of the substance of what you're doing inside it.
Will you feel free in Vanuatu?
Not enough data to assess civil liberties and financial freedom in Vanuatu.
| Program | Status | Cross-border | Sources |
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Vanuatu CBDC
The purpose of this groundbreaking study is to chart a path for the Pacific Island countries into the age of digital finance. It will systematically investigate financial infrastructures in four countries: Fiji, Solomon Islands, Tonga, and Vanuatu. In addition to assessing current procedures for wholesale settlements (i.e., between financial institutions) and cash-based and cashless retail settlements (e.g., between end users), SORAMITSU will evaluate the potential risks and benefits of introducing central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and other novel digital assets.
Reserve Bank of Vanuatu
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RESEARCH | — | announce → |
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Picked by similarity of strategic profile to Vanuatu. No editorial ranking — neighbours in the same scoring space.