Top income-tax rate, by destination
Headline personal income-tax rates across 30 markets. 9 of them tax foreign-source income territorially.
Green markets tax foreign-source income territorially — in principle, only what you earn locally.
What the chart says
- The range is the whole spread of the argument: 0% to 48%. The UAE takes nothing; Portugal's top bracket is 48%.
- Territorial beats low. A 35% territorial system can cost a foreigner less than a 25% worldwide one, because the rate is applied to a different base.
All 35
Every market, lowest rate first.
| # | Market | System | Top income-tax rate | Digital-nomad route |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ARE | no personal income tax | 0% | {'name': 'remote-work visa', 'note': 'A one-year virtual-working / remote-work residence visa exists.'} |
| 2 | ROU | worldwide (residents), flat rate | 10% | {'name': 'digital-nomad long-stay visa', 'note': "Requires income of roughly 3x Romania's average gross salary; launched 2022."} |
| 3 | BGR | worldwide (residents), flat rate | 10% | {'name': 'Digital Nomad residence permit', 'note': 'Introduced via a December 2025 amendment to the Law on Foreigners, applications opening 20 December 2025 — for non-EU/EEA remote workers earning income from outside Bulgaria. Filed as a Type D visa abroad, then a local residence-permit application; issued for 1 year, renewable once. Very new at time of writing, verify current requirements before relying on it.'} |
| 4 | PRY | territorial | 10% | — |
| 5 | HUN | worldwide (residents), flat rate | 15% | {'name': 'White Card (digital-nomad residence permit)', 'note': "Launched 2024, for third-country nationals only (EU/EEA/Swiss citizens don't need it): roughly EUR 3,000/month in documented remote income from a non-Hungarian employer, plus private health insurance. Valid 1 year, renewable once, then a mandatory exit before reapplying."} |
| 6 | GEO | territorial | 20% | {'name': 'Small Business Status', 'note': "Individual entrepreneurs under GEL 500k turnover can be taxed at 1%. 'Remotely from Georgia' targets nomads."} |
| 7 | KHM | residency-based, largely territorial in practice | 20% | — |
| 8 | CZE | worldwide (residents) | 23% | {'name': 'trade licence (živnostenský list)', 'note': 'No dedicated digital-nomad visa; most long-stay remote workers register as a Czech sole trader instead.'} |
| 9 | PAN | territorial | 25% | {'name': 'Pensionado / Friendly Nations residency', 'note': 'No dedicated nomad tax break needed — the territorial system already exempts foreign pensions and foreign salaries regardless of visa category. The Pensionado (retiree) visa needs USD 1,000/mo pension income, no minimum age; the Friendly Nations Visa needs an economic tie or a USD 200k+ investment (tightened in 2021).'} |
| 10 | CRI | territorial | 25% | {'name': 'Rentista / digital-nomad', 'note': 'A digital-nomad visa exempts qualifying foreign income.'} |
| 11 | LAO | worldwide (residents), monthly progressive brackets | 25% | — |
| 12 | SRB | flat rate + annual surtax, worldwide (residents) | 25% | — |
| 13 | BRA | worldwide (residents) | 27.5% | {'name': 'VITEM XIV (digital-nomad visa)', 'note': 'Live since Jan 2022 (CNIg RN 45/2021): ~US$1,500/mo income or ~US$18,000 in funds, 1 year renewable once. Not a tax shelter — 183 days on it still makes you a worldwide-income resident.'} |
| 14 | MYS | territorial | 30% | {'name': 'DE Rantau / MM2H', 'note': 'DE Rantau nomad pass; MM2H long-stay programme.'} |
| 15 | POL | worldwide (residents) | 32% | — |
| 16 | CAN | worldwide | 33% | — |
| 17 | LVA | worldwide (residents), progressive | 33% | {'name': 'digital nomad visa', 'note': 'For remote employees/freelancers of OECD-registered companies: needs ~2.5x the Latvian minimum wage in documented monthly income (~EUR 2,875), health insurance (EUR 42,600+ cover) and proof of accommodation. Valid 1 year, renewable once.'} |
| 18 | PHL | territorial (for foreigners) | 35% | — |
| 19 | THA | remittance-based | 35% | {'name': 'LTR / DTV', 'note': 'Long-Term Resident and Destination Thailand visas exist; LTR carries tax concessions on qualifying foreign income.'} |
| 20 | MEX | worldwide (residents) | 35% | — |
| 21 | VNM | worldwide (residents) | 35% | — |
| 22 | IDN | worldwide (residents) | 35% | {'name': 'E33G remote-worker visa', 'note': 'A remote-worker KITAS exists; foreign-earned income may be exempt if not Indonesia-sourced.'} |
| 23 | ARG | worldwide (residents) | 35% | {'name': 'digital-nomad transitory residence', 'note': '180 days, renewable once, in-person only. Being transitory, it does not accumulate toward the 12-month residency test.'} |
| 24 | KEN | worldwide (residents) | 35% | {'name': 'Class N Digital Nomad permit', 'note': 'Live April 2025: 1-2 years renewable, US$200 processing + US$1,000/year. The official immigration infopack publishes no minimum income, asking only for three months of statements — the US$24k/36k/55k thresholds quoted by visa-advisory sites are third-party interpretations, not the rule.'} |
| 25 | SVK | worldwide (residents), progressive (4 brackets) | 35% | {'name': 'no dedicated nomad visa — ordinary business/self-employment residence permit', 'note': 'Slovakia has no digital-nomad or remote-worker visa scheme. Non-EU remote workers use the standard temporary-residence-for-business route, which requires a Slovak trade licence (zivnostensky list); EU/EEA citizens need no permit at all.'} |
| 26 | URY | territorial, with a notable new-resident foreign-income tax holiday | 36% | — |
| 27 | USA | worldwide (citizenship-based) | 37% | — |
| 28 | MAR | worldwide (residents) | 37% | — |
| 29 | COL | worldwide (residents) | 39% | {'name': 'digital-nomad visa', 'note': 'A nomad visa exists; it does not by itself change tax-residency rules.'} |
| 30 | TWN | worldwide for residents; territorial-leaning for non-residents | 40% | {'name': 'Employment Gold Card / Digital Nomad Visa', 'note': 'Gold Card combines work permit + resident visa + ARC, 1-3 years renewable, NT$160,000/month salary route, PR-eligible after 3 years. Separate Digital Nomad Visa: 6 months initial, up to 3 extensions (2 years max), income floor US$20k/yr (age 20-29) or US$40k/yr (30+).'} |
| 31 | KOR | worldwide for permanent residents; limited for others | 45% | {'name': 'F-1-D (Workation / digital nomad visa)', 'note': "Launched Jan 2024 for remote employees/freelancers of a foreign employer, up to 2 years (1+1). Requires proof of income roughly 2x Korea's GNI per capita (~USD 66,000) and private health insurance; does not permit work for a Korean employer."} |
| 32 | JPN | worldwide for permanent tax residents; limited for others | 45% | {'name': 'digital-nomad visa', 'note': 'Launched March 2024: 6 months, non-renewable consecutively, ¥10M+/year income, open to ~50 treaty countries only. The short stay does not itself trigger Japanese tax residency.'} |
| 33 | DEU | worldwide (residents) | 45% | {'name': 'no dedicated nomad visa — freelance/self-employment residence permit (§ 21 AufenthG)', 'note': 'Non-EU remote workers generally need a German employer sponsor or a freelance (Freiberufler)/self-employment residence permit; there is no separate digital-nomad visa track.'} |
| 34 | ESP | worldwide (residents) | 47% | {'name': 'Beckham regime / nomad visa', 'note': "The 'Beckham' regime lets qualifying newcomers be taxed as non-residents (24% flat to EUR 600k) for up to 6 years; a digital-nomad visa feeds into it."} |
| 35 | PRT | worldwide (residents), progressive (9 brackets) | 48% | {'name': 'D8 digital nomad visa (2022)', 'note': 'For remote employees/freelancers: needs monthly income around 4x the Portuguese minimum wage (a moving target as the minimum wage rises each year — confirm the current threshold before applying), proof of accommodation and savings, and health insurance. Temporary-stay (1 year, non-renewable-track) or residence-visa (2 years, renewable, path to permanent residence) options.'} |
Headline top marginal rate only. Thresholds, social charges, regional surcharges and treaty relief all move the real number, often by a lot.
Where this is wrong
- A headline rate is not a tax bill. It says nothing about where the top bracket starts, what social contributions apply, or what a treaty does.
- Residency rules decide which system you are in, and they differ per market — the residency summary is a description, not a test.
- Not tax advice. Every one of these needs checking against the current year's rules with someone qualified in that jurisdiction.
Sources
Tax: national revenue authorities per market, current as of July 2026 — see methodology for the per-country source list. Built with Python and matplotlib.
Tax sits on every country deep-dive alongside visa, cost and the ratio.
Compare tax against cost and visa →
A headline rate decides very little on its own. The desk puts the system, the nomad route and the cost of living in one row.
The per-market deep-dives — 13 tabs of cost, visa, tax, safety and sub-national ratio for one country — are behind the Pro gate. Everything on this page is not.