Moving to Dominica in 2026: an affordable citizenship by investment passport

Among the Eastern Caribbean states, Dominica is the one whose administration publishes its tax regime most clearly. The personal income tax scale has a first exempt bracket, at a rate of 0%², followed by rising brackets, the highest of which reaches 35%³.

This scale applies to thresholds expressed in Eastern Caribbean dollars, and therefore to amounts that are modest compared with European incomes: an expatriate executive would quickly reach the top bracket. It is not a preferential regime and should not be read as such.

Corporate income tax is 25%⁴.

On the other hand, the investment promotion authority states explicitly that there is no capital gains tax, the applicable rate being 0%⁵. This is one of the few points for which we have, for the region, an official statement rather than a marketing claim.

We do not publish Dominica's inheritance and gift tax regime: it does not appear in the sources we were able to consult.

As elsewhere in the region, the key issue for a French national lies elsewhere: acquired citizenship moves neither the household nor the centre of economic interests, and Article 4 B of the French General Tax Code (code général des impôts) continues to apply. The absence of capital gains tax in Dominica only has an effect for an actual resident.

Like its neighbours, Dominica does not have a network of tax treaties comparable to that of European countries. In the absence of a treaty with France, there is no treaty mechanism to resolve two competing tax domiciles: departure from France must therefore be established under French law alone, without a safety net.

Dominica's citizenship by investment programme is one of the oldest and least expensive in the region. It is based on two main routes.

The Economic Diversification Fund

The donation route requires a non-refundable contribution to the Economic Diversification Fund of at least about $200,000⁶.

This amount was long the lowest in the region, and it partly explains the programme's popularity. However, the convergence under way between the Eastern Caribbean states tends to narrow this gap.

The real estate route

The real estate option requires an investment in an approved project, with a minimum holding period before resale and separate government fees.

The minimum amount for Dominica's real estate option, the government fees and the due diligence fees do not appear in our extracts: they must be requested from a licensed agent.

The programme has no physical presence requirement, which makes it a purely wealth-planning citizenship — unlike Antigua, which imposes a minimum stay.

Finally, it should be noted that applications must be filed through a licensed agent, and that due diligence covers every adult member of the application. This is the most selective part of the procedure, and the one where refusals are most frequent.

One factor should be weighed before committing to any Caribbean programme, and it applies to Dominica as much as to its neighbours: the value of the passport depends on the visa exemption agreements concluded by the issuing state, and those agreements can be suspended. In recent years, several major partners have reviewed the exemptions granted to the region, demanding stronger guarantees on applicant vetting.

In other words, what is purchased is not a stable right but a position at a given moment, dependent on the diplomacy of a small state. This uncertainty is structural: no contractual clause can remedy it, and it must be factored into the decision rather than discovered after the fact.

Purchases by foreigners in principle require an alien landholding licence, except within the programme, which has its own regime.

The approved market is narrow: Dominica does not have the hotel stock of its neighbours and its eligible projects can be counted on the fingers of one hand. The liquidity of a property acquired through this route is therefore low, and it depends entirely on the programme's continuity.

The island also has a high exposure to hurricanes, as the destruction of 2017 showed. This is not a theoretical consideration: it determines the insurability of a property, the cost of premiums and the resale value.

On the other hand, Dominica has embarked on a policy of resilient reconstruction and geothermal energy that sets its development plan apart from those of its neighbours. This is a long-term consideration, not an argument for short-term returns.

We do not publish Dominica's transfer taxes, property tax or the minimum holding period imposed on programme properties: they do not appear in our sources.

Dominica is one of the least touristy islands in the region, and one of the least expensive. The economy is as much agricultural as service-based, and local production of fruit, vegetables and fish is plentiful.

We do not publish a typical monthly budget: we have not found an official Dominican series measuring a basket of spending comparable to that of an expatriate.

Three items nonetheless dominate. Electricity, despite a geothermal potential that remains largely untapped. Healthcare, as local facilities handle routine medicine but serious cases require evacuation. And connectivity, which is more uneven than on islands geared towards tourism.

The island has no large international airport, which lengthens journeys and makes travel more expensive. For an actual resident, this is the heaviest day-to-day constraint, and it does not appear in any tax comparison.

For a non-resident holder — that is, almost all applicants — the question does not arise: Dominican citizenship imposes no stay.

1. Go through a licensed agent, the only channel for filing;
2. prepare the due diligence file for each adult: this is where refusals are decided;
3. choose between donation and real estate on the basis of net cost, taking into account the narrowness of the approved market;
4. budget for everything — contribution or investment, government fees, due diligence, professional fees;
5. treat departure from France as a separate matter: nationality does not amount to a transfer of tax residency.

We do not publish processing times: we have no official, quantified and dated source for the Dominica programme.

• The tax scale reaches 35%³ at a modest income level: Dominica is not a low-tax destination for an actual resident.
• The absence of capital gains tax, on the other hand, is established by an official source, at a rate of 0%⁵.
• The approved real estate market is very narrow: reselling a programme property can take a long time.
• Hurricane exposure determines the insurability and value of properties.
• The Dominican passport gives visa-free access to about 145⁷ — the lowest level among the region's programmes.

Finally, Dominica's programme was long the cheapest in the Caribbean, and that is what built its reputation. This advantage is shrinking with the regional convergence of thresholds, while its passport remains the least open of the five. For a French national, who already enjoys greater mobility, the decision can therefore only be based on price and the simplicity of the procedure — never on the usefulness of the document itself.