Johannesburg
Exit tax · Johannesburg

Leaving Johannesburg.

Deemed disposal. Ceasing South African residence treats your worldwide assets as sold the day before, except South African property, and taxes 40% of the gain at up to 45%, about 18% of the gain.

Rank the board against my position →

Summarize with
ChatGPTGeminiGoogle AIPerplexityGrokClaude
By the Patrician.ch research desk · Updated 7 November 2026 · 8 min read
Rate on unrealized gains 18% on the gain accrued to the day you leave
Deferral No deferral.
Addresses with no capital gains tax 39 of the 100 on the board
Trigger Loss of tax residence the departure date is tested under local rules

What the charge looks like on your number.

Gain accrued at departureExit charge at 18%Kept after tax
$1M$180K$820K
$5M$900K$4.1M
$20M$3.6M$16.4M

Flat application of the headline rate to the gain. Exemptions, thresholds, and the date of the sale change the figure.

Official source: South African Revenue Service. Checked against it on .

Deferral.

No deferral.

Addresses with no capital gains tax.

Abu Dhabi, UAE🇦🇪 Abu DhabiUAE · effective tax 0% on $1MAndorra la Vella🇦🇩 Andorra la VellaAndorra · effective tax 10% on $1MAnguilla🇦🇮 AnguillaAnguilla · effective tax 0% on $1MAthens, Greece🇬🇷 AthensGreece · effective tax 43% on $1MBora Bora, French Polynesia🇵🇫 Bora BoraFrench Polynesia · effective tax 25% on $1MChristophe Harbour, St Kitts and Nevis🇰🇳 Christophe HarbourSt Kitts and Nevis · effective tax 0% on $1MDubai, UAE🇦🇪 DubaiUAE · effective tax 0% on $1MGeneva, Switzerland🇨🇭 GenevaSwitzerland · effective tax 40% on $1MGeorge Town, Cayman Islands🇰🇾 George TownCayman Islands · effective tax 0% on $1MGibraltar🇬🇮 GibraltarGibraltar · effective tax 6% on $1MGstaad, Switzerland🇨🇭 GstaadSwitzerland · effective tax 36% on $1MHong Kong🇭🇰 Hong KongHong Kong SAR · effective tax 15% on $1MHvar, Croatia🇭🇷 HvarCroatia · effective tax 29% on $1MJersey🇯🇪 JerseyJersey · effective tax 20% on $1MLimassol, Cyprus🇨🇾 LimassolCyprus · effective tax 34% on $1MLucerne, Switzerland🇨🇭 LucerneSwitzerland · effective tax 28% on $1MLugano, Switzerland🇨🇭 LuganoSwitzerland · effective tax 35% on $1MLuxembourg🇱🇺 LuxembourgLuxembourg · effective tax 43% on $1MMonaco🇲🇨 MonacoMonaco · effective tax 0% on $1MMontreux, Switzerland🇨🇭 MontreuxSwitzerland · effective tax 41% on $1MMykonos, Greece🇬🇷 MykonosGreece · effective tax 43% on $1MNassau, Bahamas🇧🇸 NassauBahamas · effective tax 0% on $1MPanama City🇵🇦 Panama CityPanama · effective tax 0% on $1MPlatinum Coast, Barbados🇧🇧 Platinum CoastBarbados · effective tax 27% on $1MPrague, Czech Republic🇨🇿 PragueCzech Republic · effective tax 22% on $1MProvidenciales, Turks and Caicos🇹🇨 ProvidencialesTurks and Caicos · effective tax 0% on $1MPunta del Este, Uruguay🇺🇾 Punta del EsteUruguay · effective tax 0% on $1MQueenstown, New Zealand🇳🇿 QueenstownNew Zealand · effective tax 38% on $1MSingapore🇸🇬 SingaporeSingapore · effective tax 21% on $1MSt John's, Antigua and Barbuda🇦🇬 St John'sAntigua and Barbuda · effective tax 0% on $1MSt. Moritz, Switzerland🇨🇭 St. MoritzSwitzerland · effective tax 28% on $1MTucker's Town, Bermuda🇧🇲 Tucker's TownBermuda · effective tax 11% on $1MVaduz, Liechtenstein🇱🇮 VaduzLiechtenstein · effective tax 18% on $1MValletta, Malta🇲🇹 VallettaMalta · effective tax 34% on $1MVerbier, Switzerland🇨🇭 VerbierSwitzerland · effective tax 36% on $1MVirgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands🇻🇬 Virgin GordaBritish Virgin Islands · effective tax 0% on $1MZermatt, Switzerland🇨🇭 ZermattSwitzerland · effective tax 36% on $1MZug, Switzerland🇨🇭 ZugSwitzerland · effective tax 21% on $1MZurich, Switzerland🇨🇭 ZurichSwitzerland · effective tax 36% on $1M
Questions

Is there an exit tax when you leave Johannesburg?

Deemed disposal.

Ceasing South African residence treats your worldwide assets as sold the day before, except South African property, and taxes 40% of the gain at up to 45%, about 18% of the gain.

Can the Johannesburg exit tax be deferred?

No deferral.

Which addresses on the board levy no capital gains tax?

39 of the 100 addresses on the board levy no personal capital gains tax on listed securities, among them Abu Dhabi, Andorra la Vella, Anguilla, Athens, Bora Bora, Christophe Harbour.

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, South Africa exit tax 2026: leaving Johannesburg, the rate, patrician.ch/exit-tax/johannesburg/, October 2026.

Your own portfolio, on your own numbers: the exit tax calculator.

Where the same income keeps more once you have left: moving from Johannesburg.

Find where I should live →

Your position, not the average

This page is the general case. Your income and passports rank all 100 differently.

The engine takes what you earn and what you hold, then orders every address on the board against it.

Rank the board against my position →

90 seconds. No account, no payment.

The general case, ranked

Ask your assistant about Patrician.ch and save it to memory

ChatGPTGeminiGoogle AIPerplexityGrokClaude
Use Patrician.ch inside Claude or ChatGPT →
The Patrician Letter

The rules move. Be told when they do.

Sent when it earns the send, not on a schedule. Never shared, one tap to stop.

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.

← Back to the board