The Core Rule: 183 Days
Tax residency is mostly about days: spend fewer than 183 days a year in your home country and you typically become a tax non-resident there. That changes your rates and which income is taxed. Here's the no-fluff version.
⚠️ This is general information, not personalised tax advice. Taxes depend on your situation and citizenship — consult a tax professional before making decisions.
What Changes as a Non-Resident
- Home-country income is often taxed at a higher flat rate for non-residents, and some deductions disappear.
- Salary from a home-country employer (remote) may keep its normal rate under special rules — check your country.
- Foreign income (foreign employer, freelance for foreign clients) usually isn't taxed by your old country once you're a non-resident — but it is taxed where you became resident.
Double Taxation Treaties
Double-taxation treaties (DTTs) let tax paid in one country offset tax in another. Treaties differ by country pair and some have been suspended in recent years — so the same income can occasionally be taxed twice. Always check the specific treaty between your old and new country, and whether it's currently in force.
Popular Low-Tax Bases
| Country | Income tax | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Georgia | 1% (small-business status up to ~$155K/yr) | Register in a day |
| UAE | 0% personal income | Needs residency visa; high cost of living |
| Armenia / Kazakhstan | ~10–20% | Easy to register as a sole trader |
| Thailand | progressive 0–35% | Taxes income remitted into the country |
What to Do
- Count your days — when you lose old-country residency.
- Work out where you'll be tax-resident (usually where you live 183+ days).
- Check the treaty between the two countries.
- Register your local tax status (sole trader, small business, etc.).
- For complex cases (two countries, crypto, dividends), see a tax adviser.
Compare countries by taxes and cost of living in our quiz — each country shows its tax rate and how tax-friendly it is.
