Monaco, Monaco
Answers · current to October 2026

Moving to Monaco from Munich.

What a high earner from Munich keeps after income tax at home and in Monaco, on 2026 rules: $451K more a year on $1M in Monaco, and the German rule that follows the move.

In short, current to October 2026

  • On $1M of income, a single filer in Munich owes $451K in income tax, an effective 45%, on Patrician.ch's 2026 model. In Monaco, which has levied no personal income tax since 1869, the figure is $0 for a non-US national who is not French.
  • Monaco keeps $451K more a year on $1M, $4.5M over 10 years.
  • A US citizen owes US federal income tax on worldwide income wherever they live, so in Monaco a US citizen on the same $1M still owes $320K on the engine's federal floor.
  • For a German or other EU passport the route into Monaco is a straightforward permit: residence card with proof of accommodation and a local bank relationship. Nationals from outside the EEA and Switzerland route through a French long stay visa first. The flight from Munich is 1h 30m nonstop.
  • Figures are current to October 2026 and modeled on 2026 headline brackets for a single filer. Not tax, legal or immigration advice.

Official sources: Légimonaco, Government of Monaco, German Federal Law. Checked against them between and .

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 . Cite as: Patrician.ch, Moving to Monaco from Munich 2026: tax, residence and the catch, patrician.ch/answers/moving-to-monaco-from-munich/, October 2026.

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By the Patrician.ch research desk · Updated 23 October 2026 · 9 min read
Income tax, a year

Munich or Monaco, on the same income.

A single filer, income tax only, on Patrician.ch's 2026 model, converted at the board's reference rates. The Munich figure comes from the board's Munich record. Monaco levies no personal income tax.

IncomeMunichMonacoMonaco keeps more, a yearOver 10 yrs
$500K$213K (43%)$0 (0%)$213K$2.1M
$1M$451K (45%)$0 (0%)$451K$4.5M
$3M$1.4M (47%)$0 (0%)$1.4M$14.0M
See these 2 places for your own income.Monaco and Munich, side by side on your income, passports and family. Free, in the ranking of all 100. Then the Dossier: a written report in 10 chapters on the 3 places that rank first for you. The Dossier is $500. The founding price, $250, holds until 31 October.
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Social contributions and most deductions are not modeled. A US citizen in Monaco owes US federal tax: $138K on $500K, $320K on $1M, $1.1M on $3M on the engine's floor. The foreign earned income exclusion covers a capped slice of salary and none of the investment income, so the model leaves it out.

The catch

What the move does not settle.

Germany taxes shareholdings on the way out. Exit tax on shareholdings of 1% or more in a company and, since 2025, on investment fund units, ETFs included, where you held 1% of a fund in the 5 years before leaving or bought units of a single fund for 500,000 EUR or more. Germany deems them sold the day you leave if you were fully tax resident for at least 7 of the last 12 years. On company shares it taxes 60% of the gain at up to 45% plus the solidarity surcharge, about 28.5% of the gain. Leaving Germany: the exit tax →

German income can stay taxed for 10 years. Under section 2 of the Aussensteuergesetz, a German national who was fully taxable in Germany for at least 5 of the 10 years before leaving, and who moves to a country with low taxation while keeping substantial economic interests in Germany, stays taxable in Germany on income other than foreign income for 10 years after the year of departure, in any year that income passes 16,500 euros. Taxation counts as low when it is more than a third below German income tax on 77,000 euros. Monaco levies no personal income tax (gesetze-im-internet.de, read 23 October 2026).

A US passport keeps its tax. The United States taxes its citizens on worldwide income wherever they live. Monaco levies none, so a US citizen there owes the full federal figure, $320K on $1M. How a US citizen is taxed abroad →

The route in

Residence in Monaco.

For a German or other EU passport the route is a straightforward permit. Residence card with proof of accommodation and a local bank relationship. Nationals from outside the EEA and Switzerland route through a French long stay visa first.

Cost and life.

MunichMonaco
Cost index (Zurich 100)80125
Safety10/1010/10
Schools8/108/10
Sun hours a year1,8402,700

Every Monaco figure: Monaco on the board. Munich on the board: Munich. Leaving Munich for anywhere: moving from Munich. Monaco against Dubai and Singapore: Dubai vs Monaco vs Singapore for a family.

Moving to Monaco from the other cities: London · Paris · Milan · Zurich · Stockholm.

Questions

The short answers.

How much tax do you pay in Monaco moving from Munich?

No Monaco income tax. On $1M, a single filer owes $0 in Monaco against $451K in Munich, so Monaco keeps $451K more a year.

Patrician.ch's 2026 model, income tax only. A US citizen still owes US federal tax, $320K on $1M.

Does Germany tax a German who moves to Monaco?

On German income, for up to 10 years, when the conditions of section 2 of the Aussensteuergesetz are met: German nationality, full German tax liability for 5 of the last 10 years, low taxation abroad and substantial economic interests in Germany.

Shareholdings of 1% or more are taxed on departure under section 6.

Do US citizens living in Monaco pay US tax?

Yes. The US taxes its citizens on worldwide income wherever they live, and Monaco levies no income tax to credit, so the federal tax is owed in full.

$320K on $1M on the engine's federal floor.

How do you get residence in Monaco?

For a German or other EU passport the route is a straightforward permit.

Residence card with proof of accommodation and a local bank relationship. Nationals from outside the EEA and Switzerland route through a French long stay visa first.

Is Monaco more expensive than Munich?

On the Patrician.ch cost index, where Zurich is 100, Munich scores 80 and Monaco 125.

The index is an editorial judgment, not a published statistic.

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 31 October. Refunded in full within 7 days of delivery, no reason needed.
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Income tax on the published 2026 rules. Social contributions, most deductions and treaties are not modeled. Figures are for a non-US single filer. Wealth tax, an exit and your passports are added when you run the engine on your own numbers. Not advice. Residence rules change often. Verify before acting.

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