Answers · current to September 2026

The regimes written for arriving foreigners.

48 of the 100 addresses sit in a jurisdiction that taxes an arriving foreigner differently from a local.

In short, current to September 2026

  • 48 of the 100 addresses on the Patrician board sit in a jurisdiction operating a special regime for arriving foreigners, against 52 that tax an arrival exactly as they tax a local.
  • The forms differ: taxation on living costs rather than income, a flat rate on foreign income, a percentage of employment income exempted for a fixed number of years, or a remittance basis. Each carries its own qualifying test, and most are time limited.
  • A regime is not a rate. Two addresses in the same country can show different effective rates once a regime, a cantonal or regional surcharge, and a wealth tax are applied together, which is why the board scores addresses rather than countries.
  • Figures are current to September 2026. Several of these regimes were amended inside the last 24 months. Confirm the current terms with counsel.

Source: the Patrician.ch board, an original ranking of 100 residence addresses across 48 countries and territories. Tax rates, thresholds and routes are sourced. Cost, safety, schools, sun and beauty are Patrician.ch editorial indices. Figures current to September 2026. Updated . Cite as: Patrician.ch, Non-dom and flat tax regimes for new residents, 2026: all 48, patrician.ch/answers/special-tax-regimes-for-new-arrivals/, September 2026.

Ranked

48 regimes, the 20 that keep the most.

Ordered by effective income tax on $1,000,000 for a single filer with the regime applied.

01
Gustavia 🇫🇷 St BarthsFrench income tax on local income falls away after 5 years of residence
0%
02
Punta del Este 🇺🇾 UruguayTerritorial tax: foreign income is not taxed for 11 years by election, then foreign dividends and interest at 12%, or a flat 7% from day one.
0%
03
San Juan 🇵🇷 Puerto RicoAct 60 for bona fide residents, 4% on export services income and 2% for the first 5 years under $3M of volume.
4%
04
Zug 🇨🇭 SwitzerlandLump sum taxation is available in Zug, one of the 21 cantons that still offer it.
20%
05
Jersey 🇯🇪 JerseyHigh Value Residency: 20% on the first £1.25M of worldwide income and 1% on everything above, a minimum tax of £250K a year, and a home bought above £3.5M
20%
06
Gibraltar 🇬🇮 GibraltarCategory 2 status: tax is charged on the first £118K of income only, so the bill is capped at about £44,740 a year whatever you earn, with a floor of about £37K.
21%
07
Zermatt 🇨🇭 SwitzerlandLump sum taxation in the canton of Valais under Article 14 DBG, for foreign residents who do not work in Switzerland.
32%
08
Verbier 🇨🇭 SwitzerlandLump sum taxation in the canton of Valais under Article 14 DBG, for foreign residents who do not work in Switzerland.
32%
09
Lucerne 🇨🇭 SwitzerlandLump sum taxation available in the canton of Lucerne for non working foreign residents, and one of the lowest cantonal tax loads in Switzerland
32%
10
St. Moritz 🇨🇭 SwitzerlandLump sum taxation available in Graubünden for non working foreign residents, negotiated on living expenses rather than income
32%
11
Lugano 🇨🇭 SwitzerlandLump sum taxation available in Ticino for non working foreign residents, and the canton courts crypto and family office capital openly
32%
12
Phuket 🇹🇭 ThailandLong-Term Resident visa with a 17% flat tax on employment income for highly skilled professionals, and a full exemption on foreign income for the qualifying LTR.
34%
13
Bangkok 🇹🇭 ThailandLong-Term Resident visa with a 17% flat tax on employment income for highly skilled professionals, and a full exemption on foreign income for the qualifying LTR.
34%
14
Limassol 🇨🇾 CyprusNon-dom status for 17 years: no tax on dividends and interest, no capital gains tax except on Cyprus property, 50% exemption on employment income above €55K, and tax.
34%
15
Valletta 🇲🇹 MaltaNon domiciled residents pay tax only on income remitted to Malta, 15% under the Global Residence Program
34%
16
Montreux 🇨🇭 SwitzerlandLump sum taxation in the canton of Vaud under Article 14 DBG, the Riviera vaudoise has hosted it for a century.
36%
17
Gstaad 🇨🇭 SwitzerlandLump sum taxation in the canton of Bern under Article 14 DBG, for foreign residents who do not work in Switzerland.
36%
18
Geneva 🇨🇭 SwitzerlandLump sum taxation is available in Geneva, on a deemed spending base of at least 7 times the rent or rental value of the home, with a federal floor around CHF 435,000 for.
36%
19
Queenstown 🇳🇿 New ZealandNew tax residents are not taxed on most foreign income for 4 years, and there is no general capital gains tax
38%
20
Athens 🇬🇷 GreeceNon dom flat tax of €100K a year on all foreign income for 15 years, plus a 7% flat rate for foreign pensioners
43%
Questions

The short answers.

Which countries have special tax regimes for new residents?

48 of the 100 addresses on the Patrician board do, across 16 countries.

They include Lugano (Switzerland), Lake Como (Italy), St. Moritz (Switzerland), Portofino (Italy), Gustavia (St Barths), Tuscany (Italy), Provence (France), Porto Cervo (Italy).

What is lump sum taxation?

A tax based on your living costs rather than on your income or wealth, available in some Swiss cantons to foreigners who do not work in Switzerland.

The base is negotiated with the canton against a statutory minimum, so the effective rate depends on the household rather than on the earnings.

Which countries still have a non-dom regime in 2026?

The UK abolished non-dom status from April 2025 and replaced it with a 4 year exemption for new arrivals on foreign income and gains. Among the regimes on the board that still tax a newcomer on a flat or remittance basis are Italy, Switzerland, Greece, Cyprus and Malta.

Each address page names its regime and its terms.

How much is the Italian flat tax in 2026?

€300,000 a year on all foreign income for anyone who becomes resident from 1 January 2026, plus €50,000 for each family member, for up to 15 years.

Earlier entrants keep the €100,000 or €200,000 rate they joined on (2026 Budget Law). Italian source income is taxed at ordinary rates.

Do these regimes expire?

Most are time limited, commonly between 5 and 10 years, after which ordinary resident rates apply.

A plan that only works during the regime window is a plan with an end date, which is the thing to model before moving rather than after.

The Dossier: your top 3, on your numbers.Your top 3 modeled and compared on your income, exit, passports, and family. 10 chapters, written the moment you pay, usually ready within 2 minutes. The Dossier is $500. The founding price, $250, holds until 31 October. Refunded within 7 days if it does not change how you think.
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This page is the general case. Your income and passports rank all 100 differently.

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The general case, ranked: Where should high earners live in 2026 · Best country to live in if you are rich · Best countries for high earners after tax · Europe · United States

Tax figures use a simplified marginal model with indicative 2026 brackets for a non-US single filer, ignore social contributions, most deductions, wealth taxes, and treaties, and are not advice. Residence rules change often. Verify before acting.

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