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Monaco tax residency explained – no income tax, the French exception, customs and pets

Last updated 25 September 2026Rules checked every MondayOfficial sourcesSources & methodology →

Residents of Monaco pay no personal income tax, and there is no wealth, property or council tax either. The catch is in the details: French nationals are taxed by France, your home country keeps its own rules, and the customs and pet rules at the border are French ones. Here is how it fits together.

A woman goes through papers with a laptop and a calculator at a dining table in a bright Monaco apartment, the balcony open to the sea and hillside
Illustration: Relocate in Europe

Monaco tax residency comes down to one rule: Monegasque nationals and residents pay no personal income tax, except French nationals, who fall under the Franco-Monegasque tax convention of 18 May 1963. The one 2026 change worth knowing is about transparency rather than tax: a protocol amending the agreement between Monaco and the European Union on automatic exchange of financial-account information entered into force on 1 January 2026.

Who pays no income tax in Monaco – and who still does

The exemption dates from an ordinance of Prince Charles III in 1869. The only direct tax is the ISB on business profits, for firms making more than 25 per cent of their turnover outside Monaco; there is no wealth tax, no taxe foncière (property tax) and no taxe d'habitation (council tax). The exemption only covers people genuinely established in Monaco and does not bind other states, so your home country may still tax you. French nationals who move to Monaco, meanwhile, pay French income tax as if they lived in France, under Article 7 of the 1963 convention; those who moved from 1 January 1989 have also paid the French wealth tax since 1 January 2002. Holding French and another non-Monegasque nationality counts as French only.

The exceptions are narrow: French people habitually resident in Monaco since before 13 October 1957 and still there without interruption, those resident since birth, members of the Sovereign House, and Monegasque public servants settled before 13 October 1962. They get a certificat de domicile (certificate of domicile) from the Direction des Services Fiscaux (the tax office), Le Panorama, 57 rue Grimaldi: €12, valid three years, renewed after a check of effective residence.

Your situationIncome tax
Resident of any nationality except FrenchNone in Monaco; your home country applies its own rules
French national who moves to MonacoFrench income tax as if in France; French wealth tax if you moved from 1 January 1989
French, resident since before 13 October 1957 or since birthDomiciled outside France, with a certificat de domicile
Dual French and other nationalityTreated as French only

Source: Direction des Services Fiscaux and Legimonaco, read 24 September 2026.

How do you prove Monaco tax residency?

When a foreign bank or tax office asks for proof, non-French residents use the certificat de résidence à des fins de formalités fiscales (certificate of residence for tax purposes) from the Sûreté Publique – Section des Résidents (the police residents' section), 9 rue Suffren-Reymond. You need a valid carte de séjour (residence card) and one of three things: more than 183 days a year in Monaco, your main centre of activities there, or your longest stay of the year there; under Sovereign Ordinance 8.566, fewer days count if you are present in Monaco longer than anywhere else. It is valid one year and costs €600 on collection (cash, card or cheque).

Apply by email or post with your passport or ID card, the request from the body asking for it, your latest water, energy or gas bill, proof of income such as a bank statement under one month old or your last payslip, and a free-accommodation certificate if you are hosted; collection is by appointment. With under six months in Monaco you only get one with documents justifying an exception. The administrative certificat de résidence is a different, cheaper document: valid six months, €5, and since 18 December 2025 available online on MonGuichet.

Monaco applies the OECD Common Reporting Standard and has exchanged financial-account information automatically since 2018, so a Monaco bank reports the accounts of clients resident elsewhere to their home tax authorities.

Inheritance duty, VAT and the taxes you will meet anyway

Inheritance and gift duties apply to assets located in Monaco whatever the domicile, residence or nationality of the deceased or donor, subject to the Franco-Monegasque convention of 1 April 1950.

RelationshipInheritance duty
Parents and children, or spouses0 per cent
Brothers and sisters8 per cent
Uncles, aunts, nephews and nieces10 per cent
Other collateral relatives13 per cent
Unrelated persons16 per cent

Source: Direction des Services Fiscaux, read 24 September 2026.

VAT follows France, on the same basis and at the same rates: 20 per cent standard, 10 per cent reduced, 5.5 per cent for basic necessities such as most food and 2.1 per cent for certain reimbursable medicines and the press. Newcomers also pay registration duties: a lease is registered with the tax office within three months and carries a 1 per cent duty on rent plus charges, paid by the tenant, and a purchase costs 4.5 per cent if you meet the transparency rules of Law 1.381 of 29 June 2011, otherwise 7.5 per cent.

Customs: moving your belongings into the customs union

France and Monaco form a customs union under the Customs Convention of 18 May 1963: the French Customs Code applies, the only customs line is on the sea side, and duties are collected by the French administration. Monaco remains a third country for the EU but sits inside the EU customs territory, so the rules below are French, and French customs (DGDDI) is the authority.

Moving fromFormalityConditions
An EU countryNo particular customs formalityNone
Outside the EUPersonal belongings admitted free of duties and taxesYou lived there at least 12 months; goods in private use at least 6 months; imported within 12 months of the move; not sold, lent or pledged for 12 months
Outside the EU – papersDetailed, estimated, dated and signed inventory in two copies; Cerfa form 10070; proof of your former residence and of settlingCustoms returns a stamped inventory and, for a vehicle, certificate 846 A
Anywhere, with cashDeclare cash and bearer instruments above €10,000 to the Sûreté PubliqueFailing to declare is fined half the sum

Source: French customs (DGDDI) and Mon Service Public, read 24 September 2026.

Alcohol, tobacco, utility vehicles, mobile homes and professional equipment get no relief, nor do goods for a second home. Infos Douane Service takes questions on 0 800 94 40 40 (free, weekdays 8:30 to 18:00) or +33 1 72 40 78 50 from abroad.

Bringing your pet to Monaco

Article 3 of the customs convention makes French sanitary rules applicable in Monaco, so your pet enters under French and EU rules. Dogs, cats and ferrets need a microchip, or a tattoo made before 3 July 2011, and a valid rabies vaccination given after identification; within the EU they travel on the EU pet passport, and Monaco issues a similar passport that is accepted. Start the vet formalities at least three months ahead.

Pet arriving fromWhat it needs
An EU countryMicrochip or pre-2011 tattoo, valid rabies vaccination, EU pet passport
Outside the EUThe above plus a rabies antibody titration test and an original health certificate from an official vet; declared to customs on arrival; at most 5 animals per person; none under 16 weeks

Source: French customs (DGDDI), read 24 September 2026.

In Monaco, Law 1.351 of 28 October 2008 requires every dog to be on a lead and under constant supervision on public roads, in places open to the public and in the common parts of buildings. Category 1 attack dogs may not be owned or brought in; category 2 guard dogs must be declared to the Direction de la Sûreté Publique, insured, muzzled and leashed. There is no general dog registration.

What to do now

StepWhatWhen
1Check whether you count as French, or dual French, under the 1963 conventionBefore you move
2Ask your home tax authority how it treats a Monaco residentBefore you move
3Register your lease with the tax office; pay the 1 per cent dutyWithin 3 months of signing
4From outside the EU: inventory, Cerfa 10070, proof of residenceBefore the van leaves
5Pet: microchip, rabies vaccination, passport or certificate3 months before travel
6Request the tax-purposes certificate when askedWith a residence card, normally after 6 months

Source: Direction des Services Fiscaux, Direction de la Sûreté Publique and French customs (DGDDI), read 24 September 2026.

Official sources

The official pages this guide is based on, read 24 September 2026. Links open the authority’s own website.

Relocate in Europe provides general information, not legal or financial advice for your individual situation. Check with the authority named above before you act – rules change, and your case may differ.