Retirement and tax · updated October 2026
Tax-free retirement countries
26 jurisdictions charge no tax on foreign-source income, which is how most people living abroad receive a pension. Ranked by the Tax Atlas healthcare rating, then safety, since a pension that keeps its full value is only worth as much as the care and security it can buy.
The table
No tax on foreign pensions, ranked by healthcare
| Country | Healthcare /100 | Safety /100 | Foreign income | Retiree residency route | Overall rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SingaporeSingapore | 93 | 92 | Territorial | – general residency | #4 |
| MonacoMonaco | 92 | 92 | Exempt | – general residency | #18 |
| Hong KongHong Kong | 88 | 85 | Territorial | – general residency | #7 |
| United Arab EmiratesDubai | 85 | 87 | Exempt | – general residency | #1 |
| QatarDoha | 82 | 88 | Exempt | – general residency | #5 |
| MalaysiaKuala Lumpur | 80 | 72 | Territorial | – general residency | #11 |
| KuwaitKuwait City | 76 | 80 | Exempt | – general residency | #10 |
| BermudaHamilton | 75 | 75 | Exempt | – general residency | #24 |
| BahrainManama | 75 | 72 | Exempt | – general residency | #6 |
| Costa RicaSan José (Central Valley) | 75 | 52 | Territorial | Pensionado | #34 |
| UruguayMontevideo | 74 | 62 | Territorial | – general residency | #17 |
| BruneiBandar Seri Begawan | 72 | 85 | Exempt | – general residency | #12 |
| OmanMuscat | 72 | 85 | Exempt | – general residency | #9 |
| Cayman IslandsGeorge Town | 72 | 78 | Exempt | – general residency | #23 |
| PanamaPanama City | 72 | 58 | Territorial | Pensionado visa | #15 |
| BahamasNassau | 65 | 55 | Exempt | – general residency | #28 |
| GeorgiaTbilisi | 62 | 72 | Territorial | – general residency | #16 |
| PhilippinesManila (Makati / BGC) | 60 | 50 | Territorial | Special Resident Retiree's Visa (SRRV) | #37 |
| Dominican RepublicSanto Domingo | 60 | 48 | Territorial | Retiree (pensionado) residency | #29 |
| Turks and CaicosProvidenciales | 58 | 60 | Exempt | – general residency | #41 |
| ParaguayAsunción | 58 | 55 | Territorial | – general residency | #19 |
| British Virgin IslandsRoad Town | 55 | 70 | Exempt | – general residency | #38 |
| Antigua & BarbudaSt John's | 55 | 65 | Exempt | – general residency | #14 |
| Saint Kitts & NevisBasseterre | 50 | 60 | Exempt | – general residency | #22 |
| AnguillaThe Valley | 48 | 72 | Exempt | – general residency | #33 |
| VanuatuPort Vila | 35 | 62 | Exempt | – general residency | #39 |
Foreign income treatment and residency routes come from each country profile in the Tax Atlas dataset. Healthcare and safety are editorial composite ratings for comparison, not official index values. Overall rank is the position on the default best places to live ranking. Not tax, retirement or immigration advice: verify with a qualified adviser before moving a pension across borders.
Before you choose
What the table does not show
- Where the pension is paid from matters too. Your home country or pension provider may withhold tax before the money ever arrives, and a tax treaty can override the local rule. Check the country page and your pension provider.
- Territorial is not the same as exempt. A territorial system taxes local-source income normally; it is only foreign-source income, like most pensions, that passes through untaxed. See the territorial tax countries list.
- Healthcare and safety for the retiree persona. See the full best countries to retire abroad ranking, which also weighs cost of living and climate.
- Safety and healthcare on their own. See the safest low-tax countries and low-tax countries with good healthcare rankings.
Questions
Frequently asked
Which countries do not tax foreign pensions?+
26 jurisdictions in the Tax Atlas dataset either charge no personal income tax at all or run a territorial or exempt system that does not tax foreign-source income, which covers most pensions paid from abroad. Singapore, Monaco, Hong Kong lead this list once healthcare and safety are factored in.
Is a tax-free pension really tax-free?+
Usually it means the pension is not taxed where you live, not that it was never taxed anywhere. Withholding in the country that pays the pension, tax treaties and rules in your former home country can still apply. Check the country page and confirm with a qualified adviser before relying on this.
Do these countries have retirement visas?+
Costa Rica, Panama, Philippines, Dominican Republic list a dedicated pensionado, retiree or rentier residency route in the Tax Atlas data, usually tied to a minimum monthly pension or deposit. The rest allow retirees in through a general residency or investment route; see each country page.
Are any of these countries also safe and have good healthcare?+
Yes. The table is ordered by the Tax Atlas healthcare rating first, then safety, so the countries at the top combine no tax on foreign pensions with the strongest healthcare access among this group. 16 of the 26 charge no personal income tax at all.
More rankings
Best places to live for…
- Overall
- Remote workers
- Retirees
- Families
- Founders
- Investors
- On a budget
- High tax, with breaks
- Safest, low tax
- Europe
- Asia-Pacific
- The Americas
- Middle East & Africa
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