Countries with an exit tax in 2026, and what leaving costs

What leaving costs.

36 origins modeled for the charge on the way out: a tax on unrealized gains, a rule on returning early, or nothing at all.

In short, current to October 2026

15 of the 36 origins modeled charge tax on unrealized gains when residence ends: Toronto at 26.8%, Paris at 31.4%, Tel Aviv at 35%, Sydney at 23.5%, Munich at 28.5%, Amsterdam at 31%, Oslo at 37.8%, Johannesburg at 18%, Spain at 30%, Japan at 15.3%, Austria at 27.5%, Denmark at 42%, Poland at 19%, South Korea at 27.5% and Belgium at 10%.
On a $10,000,000 unrealized gain, that charge runs from $1M to $4.2M.
London and Ireland have no exit tax. They tax certain gains realized abroad only if you return within 5 years: London at 24% and Ireland at 31%.
Proposed for 2027: Italy's 2027 Budget Bill would add an exit tax of 26% on the unrealized gains of residents who leave with at least €800,000 in financial assets, from 1 January 2027. It is not law yet. What the bill says.
The United States does not tax a non citizen on leaving. A citizen stays taxed on worldwide income. Renouncing citizenship, or giving up a long-term green card, triggers a deemed sale only for a covered expatriate (net worth of $2M or more, high average income tax, or 5 years of compliance not certified), with gains above the exclusion taxed at up to 23.8%. The tests and the figures for 2026: the US exit tax.
17 origins have no general exit tax: Zurich, Dubai, Mumbai, Singapore, Hong Kong, Stockholm, São Paulo, Italy, China, Russia, Mexico, Finland, Portugal, Czech Republic, New Zealand, Argentina and Turkey. Portugal and New Zealand tax a few narrow items on departure, set out on their pages. Figures are current to October 2026.

Source: the Patrician.ch board, an original ranking of 100 residence addresses across 47 countries and territories. Tax rates, thresholds and routes are sourced. Cost, safety, schools, sun and beauty are Patrician.ch editorial indices. Figures current to October 2026. Updated 7 November 2026. Cite as: Patrician.ch, Countries with an exit tax in 2026, and what leaving costs, patrician.ch/answers/exit-tax-by-country/, October 2026.

By origin

The charge on a $10,000,000 gain.

Leaving	On departure	On a $10M gain	Deferral
New York	none, unless a citizen renounces	$0	Not applicable unless you renounce.
Los Angeles	none, unless a citizen renounces	$0	Not applicable unless you renounce.
Toronto	26.8%	$2.7M	Payment can be deferred until the actual sale by election, with security posted when the federal tax deferred exceeds 16,500 CAD.
London	none, 24% on early return	$0	No deferral.
Paris	31.4%	$3.1M	Automatic in the EU and in countries on France's assistance agreement list, on request with a representative and a guarantee elsewhere.
Zurich	none	$0	Not applicable.
Tel Aviv	35%	$3.5M	Deferred to the actual sale when not paid on departure, with the real gain apportioned by time.
Dubai	none	$0	Not applicable.
Mumbai	none	$0	Not applicable.
Singapore	none	$0	Not applicable.
Hong Kong	none	$0	Not applicable.
Sydney	23.5%	$2.4M	Elective, by treating the assets as Australian property until sold.
Munich	28.5%	$2.9M	On company shares and fund units, payable in 7 annual installments on application, usually against security.
Amsterdam	31%	$3.1M	Payment is deferred until you sell or take dividends, without security inside the EU or EEA and against security elsewhere.
Stockholm	none	$0	No deferral needed.
Oslo	37.8%	$3.8M	Up to 12 annual installments, against security outside the EEA, and 70% of any dividends taken meanwhile go toward it.
Johannesburg	18%	$1.8M	No deferral.
São Paulo	none	$0	Not applicable.
Spain	30%	$3M	On election, notified to the tax agency, inside the EU or EEA, falling due only if you sell or move outside it within 10 years.
Japan	15.3%	$1.5M	5 years, extendable to 10, if a tax agent is appointed before departure and collateral is posted.
Italy	none	$0	Not applicable.
China	none	$0	Not applicable.
Russia	none	$0	Not applicable.
Mexico	none	$0	Not applicable.
Austria	27.5%	$2.8M	Deferred on application inside the EU or EEA until you actually sell.
Denmark	42%	$4.2M	Deferral to the actual sale if you file by 1 July of the year after you leave and report the holdings every year, with no collateral inside the EU or the Nordic countries and collateral elsewhere.
Poland	19%	$1.9M	Payment is postponed to 31 December 2027 for individuals who leave by the end of November 2027, or to the 7th of the month after you sell the asset if that comes first (Dz.U. 2025 poz. 1280).
South Korea	27.5%	$2.8M	5 years, with collateral and a Korean tax agent.
Belgium	10%	$1M	Due only on a sale within 24 months of leaving, and canceled after that or if you return within 24 months.
Ireland	none, 31% on early return	$0	No deferral.
Finland	none	$0	Not applicable.
Portugal	none	$0	Not applicable to holdings you keep.
Czech Republic	none	$0	Not applicable.
New Zealand	none	$0	For revenue account method shares, the departure gain is taxed only on a sale within 3 years of leaving.
Argentina	none	$0	Not applicable.
Turkey	none	$0	Not applicable.

Headline rate applied flat to the whole gain. Thresholds, exemptions and the holding structure change the figure. Each origin page carries the full rule.

Your own portfolio, on your own numbers: the exit tax calculator, with the residence test, the threshold and the deferral for each country.

What the rules also say.

The table is the headline rate on the whole gain. What is charged turns on a few published rules.

France and Belgium cancel it on what you keep. Leave France for another EU country, or a country on its recovery assistance list, and the tax is deferred without asking. Securities still held 2 years after departure, or 5 years above 2.57M EUR, drop off the bill, and a return to France cancels it too. Belgium works the same way over 24 months. Only what is sold inside the window is taxed, and the yearly forms have to be filed.

Germany tests each fund on what it cost. Since 2025, fund units are caught when 500,000 EUR or more was paid for a single fund, or 1% of a fund was held. The test reads purchase cost, not market value, and each fund on its own, so 2 different funds that each cost less stay out. Share classes of the same fund are likely counted together, each spouse is tested separately, and once a fund crosses the line its whole gain is in scope. On equity funds the charge is about 18.5% of the gain, payable in 7 annual installments, and it falls away on a return within 7 years.

The new country may reset your cost. Canada, Australia, Denmark and Belgium value what you bring at market price on the day you become resident, so only growth after the move is taxed there. Spain, Portugal and France keep your original purchase price, so a gain built up before the move is taxed there when you sell.

Some exits reopen on a return. London and Ireland tax certain gains realized abroad if you come back within 5 years. France and Germany do the reverse: coming back still holding the assets cancels the charge.

The 6 facts each rule turns on.

Fact	What it decides
Years of residence	The charge needs a minimum stay: 6 of the last 10 years in France, 7 of 12 in Germany, 7 of 10 in Denmark, 10 of 15 in Spain.
How holdings are measured	Market value in France and Spain, cost per fund in Germany, DKK 100,000 in Denmark, no threshold in Canada, Australia or Austria.
Accounts outside the charge	The RRSP and TFSA in Canada, super in Australia and the PEA in France sit outside the charge.
The destination	Off the origin's deferral list, deferral can need a guarantee lodged before you leave, with the request filed within the 90 days before departure for France.
The holding window	France and Belgium charge only what is sold inside the window: 2 years in France, 5 above 2.57M EUR, and 24 months in Belgium.
Deadlines	Denmark's interest-free deferral is lost if the return is not filed by 1 July of the year after you leave.

Further reading, by the Patrician.ch research desk: Retiring Abroad? The Exit Tax That Hits Your Portfolio Before You Sell, on The Good Life Journey.

Questions

The short answers.

Which countries have an exit tax?

Of the 36 origins modeled, Toronto, Paris, Tel Aviv, Sydney, Munich, Amsterdam, Oslo, Johannesburg, Spain, Japan, Austria, Denmark, Poland, South Korea and Belgium tax unrealized gains when residence ends.

London and Ireland have no exit tax as such but tax certain gains realized abroad on an early return. The United States charges only a covered expatriate who renounces citizenship or gives up a long-term green card, not someone who simply moves.

How much is the exit tax on a $10 million gain?

Between $1M and $4.2M across the 15 origins that charge one, at the headline rate.

Thresholds and exemptions lower it, and France charges only above 800,000 EUR of holdings or a 50% stake.

Can the exit tax be deferred?

Yes, in 14 of the 15 origins that charge one: Toronto, Paris, Tel Aviv, Sydney, Munich, Amsterdam, Oslo, Spain, Japan, Austria, Denmark, Poland, South Korea and Belgium.

Toronto: Payment can be deferred until the actual sale by election, with security posted when the federal tax deferred exceeds 16,500 CAD. Paris: Automatic in the EU and in countries on France's assistance agreement list, on request with a representative and a guarantee elsewhere. Tel Aviv: Deferred to the actual sale when not paid on departure, with the real gain apportioned by time. Sydney: Elective, by treating the assets as Australian property until sold. Munich: On company shares and fund units, payable in 7 annual installments on application, usually against security. Amsterdam: Payment is deferred until you sell or take dividends, without security inside the EU or EEA and against security elsewhere. Oslo: Up to 12 annual installments, against security outside the EEA, and 70% of any dividends taken meanwhile go toward it. Spain: On election, notified to the tax agency, inside the EU or EEA, falling due only if you sell or move outside it within 10 years. Japan: 5 years, extendable to 10, if a tax agent is appointed before departure and collateral is posted. Austria: Deferred on application inside the EU or EEA until you actually sell. Denmark: Deferral to the actual sale if you file by 1 July of the year after you leave and report the holdings every year, with no collateral inside the EU or the Nordic countries and collateral elsewhere. Poland: Payment is postponed to 31 December 2027 for individuals who leave by the end of November 2027, or to the 7th of the month after you sell the asset if that comes first (Dz.U. 2025 poz. 1280). South Korea: 5 years, with collateral and a Korean tax agent. Belgium: Due only on a sale within 24 months of leaving, and canceled after that or if you return within 24 months.

Can the French exit tax be canceled?

Yes. The deferred tax is canceled on securities still held 2 years after departure, or 5 years above 2.57M EUR, and on a return to France.

Only securities sold inside that window are taxed. Deferral is automatic inside the EU and for countries on France's recovery assistance list, and on request elsewhere.

Does splitting ETFs avoid Germany's exit tax on funds?

Usually, if each fund cost less than 500,000 EUR and you hold under 1% of it. Germany tests the purchase cost of each fund on its own, not the total.

Share classes of the same fund are likely counted as 1 fund, and each person is tested separately. Once a fund crosses the line, its whole gain is in scope.

Which countries reset the cost basis on arrival?

Canada, Australia, Denmark and Belgium value assets you bring at market price on the day you become resident.

Spain, Portugal and France keep your original purchase price, so gains from before the move are taxed when you sell there.

Is there an exit tax when you leave the UK?

No. The United Kingdom has no exit tax on departure.

Gains realized abroad are taxed at 24% if you return within 5 years. After more than 5 years of non residence the rule no longer applies.

The Dossier: your top 3, on your numbers.A written report on the 3 places that rank first for you, compared line by line on your income, a sale, your passports and your family. 10 chapters, written the moment you pay. Every tax figure carries its official source and the date it was last checked. The Dossier is $500. The founding price, $250, holds until 30 November. Refunded in full within 7 days of delivery, no reason needed.

Read chapters 1 to 3, free →

What leaving costs.