The 10 countries with the highest Nomad Tax Index score for a self-employed remote worker, best first
The 10 countries with the highest Nomad Tax Index score for a self-employed remote worker, best first
The 10 best countries for digital nomads, one by one
1. Costa Rica
Remote workers on the Law 10008 stay permit pay no Costa Rican income tax on pay from abroad for up to 2 years, and a September 2026 bill would tax residents' foreign investment income.
Under Costa Rica's tax rules, foreign income is untaxed for new residents, and 183 days Source: taxsummaries.pwc.com, checked September 28, 2026. PwC, last reviewed June 30, 2026 in the country make you tax resident.
The easiest way in is Costa Rica's remote worker or service provider stay, which asks for at least $3,000 a month Source: rindhca.org, checked September 29, 2026. Law 10008, article 10(a): stable monthly pay, fixed income or an average monthly income over the last year of at least $3,000, or $4,000 including family, that continues while abroad of income, lasts 12 months and can be renewed. Total exemption from income tax on pay from abroad, and the holder is never a habitual resident for tax.
Best for a remote worker paid from abroad who wants 1 to 2 years at 0% with no company to run. The catch: Costa Rica will not certify you as its tax resident, so your home country has to accept on other evidence that you have left.
2. Barbados
A Barbados Welcome Stamp holder earning at least BBD 100,000 (about $50,000) a year abroad is deemed non-resident and pays no Barbados income tax; other residents pay 11.5% and 27.5%, with non-domiciled newcomers taxed on foreign income only when remitted.
Under Barbados's tax rules, foreign income is taxed only when it is brought into the country, and 183 days Source: taxsummaries.pwc.com, checked September 28, 2026. The ordinary residence route may need no day count in the country make you tax resident.
The easiest way in is the Barbados Welcome Stamp, which asks for at least $4,167 a month Source: visitbarbados.org, checked September 29, 2026. USD 50,000 over the 12 months of the stamp (BBD 100,000 in the Act), shown per month of income, lasts 12 months and can be renewed. The holder is deemed non-resident for income tax and pays no Barbados income tax on remote work income.
Best for someone earning $50,000 a year or more from abroad who wants a year on the island, with the option to apply again. The catch: there is no Barbados residence certificate to show a home country that still claims you, and clients in Barbados are off limits.
3. United Arab Emirates
The UAE has no personal income tax, and a self-employed person pays no corporate tax while business turnover stays at or below AED 1,000,000 (about $272,000) a year.
Under the United Arab Emirates' tax rules, foreign income is untaxed for new residents, and 90 days Source: tax.gov.ae, checked September 29, 2026. 90 days in 12 consecutive months with a residence permit plus a permanent home or UAE business (Federal Tax Authority's unofficial translation of Cabinet Decision No. 85 of 2022) in the country make you tax resident.
The easiest way in is the United Arab Emirates' remote work visa (virtual work residence permit), which asks for at least $3,500 a month Source: gdrfad.gov.ae, checked September 29, 2026. Dubai GDRFA service page: salary certificate of at least $3,500 a month or the equivalent in foreign currency, proof of remote work for an organization outside the UAE, health insurance and a medical test. The federal portal (u.ae, updated August 7, 2026) states the same $3,500 minimum of income, lasts 12 months and can be renewed. No income tax either way; with 90 days of presence and a home in the UAE, the permit meets the tax residence test.
Best for founders who want 0% with no end date and a certificate to prove it: the Federal Tax Authority issues tax residency certificates through EmaraTax in about 10 business days. High rents make it a poor pick on a tight budget.
4. Mauritius
On the Premium Visa, pay for remote work done from Mauritius is taxed only when remitted to Mauritius, and spending with a foreign card does not count, so earnings kept abroad pay 0%.
Under Mauritius's tax rules, foreign income is taxed only when it is brought into the country, and 183 days Source: mra.mu, checked September 29, 2026. Income Tax Act section 73(1)(a)(ii); the 270-day, 3-year test allows about 90 days a year once established in the country make you tax resident.
The easiest way in is Mauritius's Premium Visa, which asks for at least $1,500 a month Source: edbmauritius.org, checked September 29, 2026. Economic Development Board FAQ (December 2023): at least $1,500 a month per adult applicant and $500 a month per dependent child, shown with 3 months of bank statements and proof of monthly income of income, lasts 12 months and can be renewed. Pay for remote work done from Mauritius is taxed only when remitted to Mauritius, and foreign card spending is not a remittance.
Best for a remote worker who can live on a foreign card and keep savings abroad. Its income floor is the lowest stated in this top 10; the catch is that deposits into a Mauritian bank account are taxed unless you declare the tax was paid where you came from.
5. Cayman Islands
The Cayman Islands tax no individual income at all, but the remote worker program closed to new applicants in 2022, so residence now takes a Cayman business, a local job or an investment of KYD 1,000,000 (about $1,200,000).
Under the Cayman Islands' tax rules, foreign income is untaxed for new residents, and there is no income tax residence test to pass.
The easiest way in is the Cayman Islands' Residency Certificate for Persons of Independent Means, which asks for at least KYD 120,000 (about $144,000) a year Source: stuartslaw.com, checked September 28, 2026. Grand Cayman: KYD 120,000 (about $144,000) a year, or a KYD 400,000 local deposit instead. Sister Islands: KYD 75,000 of income, lasts 25 years and can be renewed. No income tax applies either way; the certificate does not allow local employment.
Best for someone with capital or a Cayman business, not a laptop alone. With no nomad permit open, access scores 8 of 20 points, the lowest in this top 10, and living costs and import duties are high.
6. Georgia
Georgia taxes work done in the country but not foreign income: an individual entrepreneur in an eligible activity pays 1% of turnover up to GEL 500,000 (about $192,000) a year, and foreign dividends and gains are tax-free.
Under Georgia's tax rules, foreign income is untaxed for new residents, and 183 days Source: matsne.gov.ge, checked September 29, 2026. Tax Code Article 34(2) in the country make you tax resident.
The easiest way in is Georgia's visa-free stay of 1 full year, which sets no income test. No permit is needed; days in Georgia count toward the 183-day test.
Best for a freelancer planning to stay for years: nationals of 94 countries get a full year without a permit, and small business status has no time limit while turnover stays under the cap. Consultants, lawyers and auditors are shut out of it and pay 20%.
7. The Bahamas
The Bahamas has no personal income tax, so a self-employed resident pays only National Insurance of 10.3% on profit up to BSD 43,160 (about $43,160) a year.
Under the Bahamas' tax rules, foreign income is untaxed for new residents, and there is no income tax residence test to pass.
The easiest way in is the Bahamas' BEATS remote work permit, which has no income minimum, lasts 12 months and can be renewed. No income tax applies either way; the permit is for remote work only, not for Bahamian employers.
Best for a nomad who wants no income test and no minimum stay: the BEATS permit asks for neither, and renewals can run to 3 years. Because National Insurance has a ceiling, the bill falls from 10% to 15% of profit at $50,000 of revenue to under 5% at $250,000.
8. Montenegro
Montenegro exempts the self-employment income that digital nomads earn from payers not registered in Montenegro, so a nomad permit holder pays 0% on client work; without the permit, business income is taxed at 0%, 9% and 15% plus a 13% to 15% municipal surtax.
Under Montenegro's tax rules, foreign income is partly exempt for new residents, and 183 days Source: taxsummaries.pwc.com, checked September 29, 2026. PwC, last reviewed August 7, 2026. Domicile or center of interests can make a person resident with fewer days in the country make you tax resident.
The easiest way in is Montenegro's temporary residence for digital nomads, which asks for at least €1,350 (about $1,540) a month Source: gov.me, checked September 28, 2026 of income, lasts 2 years and can be renewed. Self-employment or independent-activity income from payers not registered in Montenegro is exempt from income tax; other income is taxed normally.
Best for a nomad who wants a low-cost euro base outside the EU, 2 years at a time. The catch is investment income: foreign dividends and gains are taxed at 15% plus the municipal surtax, so Montenegro scores 0 of the 10 foreign income points.
9. Paraguay
Work done while living in Paraguay is taxed at 8% to 10% of net income even when every client is abroad, and foreign investment income is not taxed at all.
Under Paraguay's tax rules, foreign income is untaxed for new residents, and 120 days Source: dnit.gov.py, checked September 29, 2026. Law 125/1991, article 152: domicile is presumed at the place of habitual residence, presumed after more than 120 days. Law 6380 itself sets no day count for individuals, and Resolucion General 65/2020 sets none for the certificate; the certificate relies on the migration record in the country make you tax resident.
The easiest way in is Paraguay's temporary residence, which has no income minimum, lasts 2 years and can be renewed. No tax effect by itself; tax residence follows more than 120 days in Paraguay, and work done there is then taxed at 8% to 10%.
Best for a long-term base with no income test and no mandatory social contributions for the self-employed. DNIT issues a tax residence certificate within 10 business days, valid for 1 year, which makes leaving a high-tax home easier to prove.
10. Croatia
A non-EU remote worker on Croatia's digital nomad permit pays 0% income tax on pay from an employer or own company registered abroad, for a stay of up to 18 months, with no compulsory Croatian health or pension contributions.
Under Croatia's tax rules, foreign income is partly exempt for new residents, and 183 days Source: porezna-uprava.gov.hr, checked September 29, 2026. General Tax Act art. 43 (zakon.hr consolidated text to NN 105/26, read September 29, 2026): domicile (prebivaliste) is where the person owns or has at their disposal a home continuously for at least 183 days in one or two calendar years, and living in it is not required; habitual residence (uobicajeno boraviste) is a stay of at least 183 days in one or two calendar years. The Tax Administration page states the same domicile rule, including that living in the home is not required. A home at one's disposal can make a person resident with few days of presence in the country make you tax resident.
The easiest way in is Croatia's temporary stay of digital nomads, which asks for at least €3,622.50 (about $4,120) a month Source: mup.gov.hr, checked September 29, 2026. 2.5 times the previous year's average monthly net salary (Regulation in Official Gazette 14/21 and 3/26): EUR 3,622.50 (about $4,120) a month, or savings of EUR 43,470 for 12 months or EUR 65,205 for 18 months. Plus 10% of the average net salary per family member of income and lasts 18 months. Pay from the foreign employer or own foreign company is exempt from Croatian income tax for the length of the stay.
Best for a non-EU remote employee, or the owner of a foreign company, who wants an EU base for a year or so. A new stay needs 6 months away first, and a freelancer invoicing Croatian clients cannot use the permit.
How the 10 countries are scored
Every country in the Index gets a score out of 100 for one reader: a self-employed remote worker who is not a US citizen and sells services to clients abroad. Under the Index scoring rules, tax at $100,000 of revenue, with 15% business costs and the best legal structure a newcomer can use without investing, is worth 50 points. Access is worth 20, foreign investment income 10, the days needed for tax residency 10 and stability 10.
Tax decides most of the order. The 7 countries at 0% take the full 50 points, Georgia's band of up to 5% takes 42, and the Bahamas and Paraguay, both between 5% and 10%, take 34. Access separates the rest: no permit at all, or a permit with an income floor of $3,000 a month or less, earns 20 points, a floor up to $5,000 earns 15, and a route open only to investors or local businesses earns 8.
The last 30 points reward untaxed foreign dividends and gains, a short route to tax residency and a clean record: no place on the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions or the FATF grey list, and no change for the worse in the last 24 months. Montenegro and Croatia lose all 10 foreign income points, since both tax a resident's foreign investment income. Ties break on the tax band at $250,000, then on access points.
| Costa Rica, Barbados, the UAE, Mauritius, the Cayman Islands, Montenegro, Croatia | 0% |
|---|---|
| Georgia: 1% of turnover as an individual entrepreneur | GEL 2,608 (about $1,000), 1.2% of profit |
| The Bahamas: National Insurance at 10.3% up to its ceiling | BSD 4,445 (about $4,450), 5.2% of profit |
| Paraguay: income tax on net income | PYG 47,924,240 (about $8,160), 9.6% of profit |
Profit is $85,000 after 15% business costs. Rates from the Tax Code of Georgia, PwC's summary of Bahamas National Insurance and Paraguay's Law 6380.
A 0% result holds only for income that fits the rule behind it. Montenegro's is the clearest case, because the exemption turns on who pays you rather than where you work.
Montenegro's 0%: which fees it covers
Pays 0%
A UX designer with digital nomad status invoices a Berlin agency €7,000 (about $7,960) a month. The agency is not registered in Montenegro, so under article 32d of the income tax law her fees are exempt from income tax and contributions.
Pays tax
She takes on a hotel in Budva as a client for the summer. Its fees come from a payer registered in Montenegro, so they fall outside the exemption and are taxed like any resident's business income.
How long the 0% lasts
The top 10 reach a low bill in 3 ways, and only 1 of them depends on holding a particular permit. The UAE, the Cayman Islands and the Bahamas, 3 of the Index's countries with no income tax, charge no personal income tax at all, so nothing expires except the permit you renew. Georgia and Paraguay are territorial tax countries that leave foreign investment income alone, and neither low rate is tied to a nomad permit.
The other 5 exempt you through a permit, and the exemption ends when the permit does. Costa Rica's Law 10008 stay runs 1 year and can be extended once, for 1 more year, if you spent at least 180 days in the country in the first (Law 10008, article 15). Croatia's digital nomad stay lasts up to 18 months, and a new one needs 6 months away first, according to the Ministry of the Interior. Barbados's Welcome Stamp and Mauritius's Premium Visa run 1 year and can be renewed, and Montenegro's nomad residence runs 2 years.
A nomad permit is not always tax residence
Costa Rica's Law 10008 stay means you are never a habitual resident for tax, and a Barbados Welcome Stamp holder is deemed non-resident under the Remote Employment Act, 2020. Neither country will certify you as its resident. If the country you came from still sees a home, family or enough days there, it can keep taxing your worldwide income while you pay nothing where you live.
Becoming tax resident in a top 10 country
Where a day count applies, it is usually 183 days: Georgia, Mauritius, Montenegro and Croatia all use it. The UAE accepts 90 days in any 12 months from a residence permit holder who also has a permanent home or a business there, under Cabinet Decision No. 85 of 2022, and Paraguay presumes residence after more than 120 days under Law 125/1991, article 152. The Cayman Islands and the Bahamas have no income tax, so they have no residence test either.
A certificate is what your former country will ask for. The UAE's Federal Tax Authority issues one through EmaraTax in about 10 business days, Paraguay's DNIT issues one valid for 1 year, and Georgia's Revenue Service issues one on the 183-day test. The permit changes the answer too: among the digital nomad visas the Index covers, most only start the day count, while a few exempt your pay without making you resident.
Your former country applies its own test, usually your home, family, work and days. US citizens stay taxable in the US wherever they live: the 2026 foreign earned income exclusion covers up to $132,900 of earnings, and self-employment tax still applies to a freelancer's profit.
Before you move for a top 10 rate
- Check that your work fits the rule: Croatia's exemption covers pay from a foreign employer or your own foreign company, and Georgia's 1% bars consulting.
- Keep your clients where the rule needs them: Montenegro exempts only payers not registered there, and the Welcome Stamp is for work for companies and clients outside Barbados.
- Get the permit before the long stay: Mauritius requires the Premium Visa for more than 180 days in a calendar year.
- Count your days and keep the proof: flight records, a lease and, where one is issued, a tax residence certificate.
- Leave your old country in the same year: tell its tax office, and close or let out the home that ties you there.
Popular nomad countries outside the top 10
Mexico misses the list by 1 point. A self-employed resident can pay 1% to 2.5% of gross income up to MXN 3,500,000 (about $197,000) a year under article 113-E of the income tax law, but a resident of Mexico is taxed on foreign dividends and gains, which costs all 10 foreign income points.
Working from Thailand costs about 25% of profit at $100,000 of revenue, because work done while you are there is taxed at 0% to 35% even when every client is abroad, which leaves it 25th. Spain comes to about 34% of profit with state and regional income tax plus self-employed social security, and Portugal's simplified regime to about 43%, which puts them 38th and last.
Taxed at $100,000 of revenue alone, the order changes: the ranking of low tax countries takes every country where a remote worker pays 25% or less, lowest tax first, and Mexico, Albania and Monaco all come in under 10% there.
David's note
I would choose from this list by how long you plan to stay. For 1 or 2 years, the permit exemptions near the top are hard to beat, as long as your home country accepts that you have left. For a base you keep 5 years or more, I would look first at the UAE, Georgia or Paraguay, where the low rate does not end with a permit and you can get a certificate to prove where you live.
