Relocation intelligence
🇧🇹 Moving to Bhutan: tax, residency and cost of living
Bhutan levies progressive income tax rising to 25%, with the first BTN 300,000 exempt. The effective burden on an income worth roughly EUR 54,000 is around 23%. Corporate tax is 25% and a single-stage sales tax of 7% applies. The ngultrum is pegged to the Indian rupee. The Himalayan kingdom steers on Gross National Happiness, but is tightly regulated and very restrictive toward foreign settlement.
Thinking of moving to Bhutan? Here is the tax, residency, property and quality-of-life picture in plain numbers, with sources.
Key facts
- Top income tax
- 25%
- Corporate tax
- 25%
- Capital gains
- 0%
- Wealth tax
- No
- Inheritance tax
- No
- Cost of living index
- 42
- Safety
- 4/10
- Internet quality
- 3/10
- Visa-free destinations
- 52
- Foreigners can own property
- No
- Residency in
- 6 months
- Citizenship in
- 5 years
Taxes
Progressive income tax up to 25% with the first BTN 300,000 exempt, effectively around 23% at EUR 54,000. Corporate tax 25%, sales tax 7%.
Residency and visas
Bhutan is very restrictive toward foreign settlement; residence and work are tightly regulated and tourism has a daily fee.
Property ownership
Foreigners cannot own land; land ownership is reserved for Bhutanese citizens.
Cost of living and quality of life
Bhutan is safe, clean and rich in nature with a strong culture, but tightly regulated, isolated and with limited specialist healthcare.
Passport and mobility
The Bhutanese passport gives visa-free access to about 52 destinations.
Why people move to Bhutan
Safe, clean and stable
Bhutan has very low crime, pristine nature and stable governance focused on Gross National Happiness.
Rupee-pegged currency
The ngultrum is pegged to the Indian rupee, giving nominal exchange-rate stability with the large neighbor.
Honest trade-offs
- Bhutan is zeer terughoudend met buitenlandse vestiging en het verkrijgen van burgerschap is uitzonderlijk moeilijk.
- Buitenlanders mogen geen grond in eigendom hebben; grondbezit is voorbehouden aan Bhutaanse burgers.
- Het land is geisoleerd en gespecialiseerde gezondheidszorg is beperkt beschikbaar.
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