# Bhutan: taxes, residence and cost of living Source: https://domicile.wiki/places/bhutan/ (domicile.wiki, researched 2026-10-15). Data licence CC BY-SA 4.0. Research, not tax or legal advice. ## At a glance For an EU-citizen family of five living off a EUR 30M portfolio (the guide's default reader). - Score for a wealthy family: 69 / 100 - Tax on a €30M portfolio: €54,600 a year - Wealth tax: none - Children inherit: tax-free - EU member: no - Currency: BTN - Capital: Thimphu ## Tax on investments, inheritance and wealth Bhutan's Income Tax Act 2025 took effect on 1 January 2026: progressive personal rates up to 30% above Nu 3.5M, dividends above Nu 300,000 taxed at 10%, and (per press reports of the Act) no capital gains tax on individuals' non-business assets. No wealth, inheritance or gift tax was found. Practically, Bhutan offers no residence route for a wealthy foreign family; the Gelephu Mindfulness City special region is still being set up. Research is thin (no Big-4 summary exists): low confidence. - **Bhutan tax residence**: Income Tax Act of Bhutan 2025: 10% on dividends above Nu 300,000; gains on personal assets reportedly untaxed. ## Inheritance law and trusts Bhutan's Inheritance Act 1980 lets a person pass property by written or oral will, with shares for the family fixed by the Act when there is no will. Non-Bhutanese, including foreign spouses and children, cannot inherit land or houses and are shut out of any share of an inheritance. There is no trust or private foundation law. ## Daily life (0-100, higher is better) - Safety and personal security: 68 - Political and institutional stability: 65 - Corruption and government integrity: 74 - Legal system and property rights: 61 - Healthcare quality and access: 55 - Education quality: 29 - Human development and quality of life: 40 - Infrastructure and connectivity: 64 - Business opportunities and economy: 51 - Cultural fit and lifestyle: 25 ## Research notes ### Bhutan — family-office tax dossier Last reviewed: 2026-10-15 Tax year: 2026 Reviewer: research agent (Claude), unreviewed by a tax adviser #### Summary Bhutan's Income Tax Act 2025 took effect on 1 January 2026: progressive personal rates up to 30% above Nu 3.5M, dividends above Nu 300,000 taxed at 10%, and (per press reports of the Act) no capital gains tax on individuals' non-business assets. No wealth, inheritance or gift tax was found. Practically, Bhutan offers no residence route for a wealthy foreign family; the Gelephu Mindfulness City special region is still being set up. Research is thin (no Big-4 summary exists): low confidence. #### Residence and eligibility Defined in the Income Tax Act of Bhutan 2025; not verified in this pass. - **No investor residence route** (EU, US, OTHER): Bhutan admits foreigners mainly on work permits; no residence-by-investment route was found. Gelephu Mindfulness City (a special administrative region with its own laws) plans its own residency; status not verified. #### Capital gains Press reports on the Income Tax Act of Bhutan 2025 (in force 1 January 2026) state there is no capital gains tax for individuals selling personal assets outside business use. Treatment of listed shares, foreign securities and real estate was not confirmed from the Act. - **Rate basis:** Scored 0 for securities and private shares on the basis of the reported 'no CGT on personal assets'. Real estate left null: not verified (a property transfer tax existed under the old law). - **Confidence:** low (unverified), verified 2026-10-15. - **JSON numbers:** headline 0.0; listed domestic 0.0, listed foreign 0.0, private business 0.0, local real estate None, foreign real estate None. #### Dividends Dividends up to Nu 300,000 a year are exempt and dividends above are taxed at 10% (Income Tax Act 2025, as passed by the National Assembly; 10% TDS on dividends for resident and non-resident individuals per the DRC notification). - **Rate basis:** 10% flat on dividends above Nu 300,000. Foreign dividends assumed taxed the same way (not verified); credit method assumed. - **Outbound WHT:** 10% TDS on dividends paid to resident and non-resident individuals (DRC notification). - **Treaty network:** Very limited (treaties with India and Bangladesh reported; not verified). - **Confidence:** low (partially_verified), verified 2026-10-15. - **JSON numbers:** headline 0.1, domestic 0.1, foreign gross 0.1, credit method `credit`. #### Inheritance and gifts to children No inheritance, estate or gift tax found. - **Gift tax:** No gift tax found; income-tax treatment of gifts not verified. - **Foreign assets:** No tax found on any asset. - **Domicile rules:** Not relevant. - **Confidence:** low (unverified), verified 2026-10-15. - **JSON numbers:** basis `none`, children `fully_exempt`, exemption 0, brackets none, other transfer cost 0.0. #### Wealth tax No net wealth tax found. - **Property taxes:** Municipal urban property tax and rural land tax exist; rates not verified. - **Confidence:** low (unverified), verified 2026-10-15. - **JSON:** type `none`. #### Special regimes None modelled. No special tax regime for newly arriving wealthy residents was found. #### Company taxation (kept separate from personal tax) CIT 22% for all companies from 1 January 2026 (Income Tax Act 2025); trusts 30%. #### Cost of living notes No cost-of-living items were sourced in this pass. **US citizens:** US citizens remain US-taxed; no US-Bhutan tax treaty. #### Open questions - Bhutan has no realistic residence route for a wealthy foreign family; the tax figures are of limited practical use. - The text of the Income Tax Act of Bhutan 2025 on gains from shares and real estate, and on foreign-source income of residents, was not read; scored from press reports only. - Whether foreign-source dividends of residents are taxable and creditable under the 2025 Act was not verified. - Whether the 10% is final or dividends enter the progressive slabs (up to 30%) was not verified. - Absence of inheritance/gift tax not confirmed from an official source. #### Sources - [Major changes in Bhutan's Income Tax from 2026 explained](https://thebhutanese.bt/major-changes-in-bhutans-income-tax-from-2026-explained/) - [Notification: Tax rates, filing obligation and presumptive taxation under the Income Tax Act of Bhutan 2025 (16 Dec 2025)](https://www.drc.gov.bt/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Public-Notification-on-new-Income-Tax-Act.docx-1.pdf) - [NA keeps Nu 400,000 exemption for fixed deposits and Nu 300,000 for dividends](https://thebhutanese.bt/?p=39711) #### Change log - 2026-10-15: initial research. ## Residence and succession sources - [HCCH status table: Convention of 1 July 1985 on the Law Applicable to Trusts and on their Recognition](https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/status-table/?cid=59) — Hague Conference on Private International Law - [Inheritance Act of Bhutan 1980 (English)](https://www.judiciary.gov.bt/storage/files/1/Inheritance%20Act%20of%20Bhutan%201980%20(English).pdf) — Royal Court of Justice, Bhutan