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2025 in review: the year of major tax reforms

A single logic runs through recent reforms: incentive regimes are tightening, no-tax jurisdictions are demanding real presence, and transparency is spreading. Three movements, one direction.

By Editorial team · on December 30, 2025

First movement: incentive regimes are tightening

Portugal closed its non-habitual resident status and replaced it with a regime tied to qualified roles, applying 20%¹ for 10 years², from which retirees are excluded.

Italy raised its flat tax for new residents in dated stages, up to €300,000³ for the most recent moves, compared with €100,000⁴ before August 2024.

Spain abolished its residency by real estate investment, and Portugal removed real estate from its own scheme. Greece raised its thresholds to €800,000⁵ in Attica and on the most populous islands.

The United Kingdom ended its non-dom status, a notable precedent for jurisdictions that operate one, Cyprus and Malta first and foremost.

These reforms share one feature: they target new entrants and leave existing beneficiaries in place, which rewards getting in early and accelerates arrivals as each deadline approaches.

A common explanation sheds light on these decisions: housing pressure in the cities concerned. Incentive regimes have been criticised less for their budgetary cost than for their effect on property prices, and it is this debate that carried the reforms.

Second movement: substance becomes mandatory

The Emirates introduced a corporate income tax of 9%⁶ above AED 375,000⁷, and made the zero rate in their free zones conditional on real substance.

The Cayman Islands adopted comparable requirements, and a top-up minimum tax was introduced in the Bahamas, Bahrain and Qatar for large groups.

Cyprus raised its corporate tax to 15%⁸, from 12.5%⁹, under the influence of the global minimum tax.

The practical consequence is singular and applies everywhere: domiciliation without presence has stopped working. What remains is aimed at those who genuinely settle.

Third movement: transparency is spreading

The automatic exchange of information now covers almost all the jurisdictions discussed on this site, including those that were once the most discreet.

A European framework has also been adopted to extend this exchange to crypto-asset service providers, a sector that had until now largely escaped these mechanisms.

Vanuatu lost its visa exemption for the European Union, and its passport has fallen to about 95¹⁰ destinations — proof that access acquired through investment can be revoked.

In response, the Caribbean programmes raised their thresholds in a convergent way and tightened their due diligence, ending the price competition that used to characterise them.

None of these developments is reversible in the short term: they stem from international agreements and lasting institutional pressure.

It is worth measuring how definitive this movement is. Reporting obligations and automatic exchanges rely on technical infrastructure that has already been built and on multilateral agreements signed by dozens of states.

Going back would mean denouncing them one by one, which no jurisdiction has an interest in doing alone. Transparency is therefore the only one of the three movements that can be said to be settled.

What to take from it

A special regime can be closed overnight; a rate under the ordinary rules does not lapse.
Territoriality structures a tax system; a temporary exemption expires.
An advantage that requires no presence no longer has any effect.
Access acquired through investment depends on third countries, and it can be revoked.
Discretion has disappeared: what remains is low and transparent taxation.

For someone considering leaving, the methodological consequence is simple. In each destination, you must distinguish what falls under the ordinary rules — Romania's 10%¹¹, Bulgaria's 10%¹², Panama's territoriality — from what falls under an incentive scheme. The former is stable, the latter is not, and this distinction is worth more than any rate comparison.

Please note

General information, as of the date shown. A draft reform is not a rule in force: check the conditions with the authorities or a professional before deciding. Terms of use and disclaimers

Sources and verification dates

1.
Portugal, IFICI: special IRS rate on category A and B income : 20%
« Taxa especial de 20%, desde que cumpridos os requisitos do regime »
info.portaldasfinancas.gov.ptVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
2.
Portugal, IFICI: duration of the benefit, in consecutive years : 10 years
« O período é de 10 anos consecutivos, podendo ser retomado, em caso de interrupção, pelos anos remanescentes »
info.portaldasfinancas.gov.ptVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
3.
Italy, new residents: annual flat tax, moves from 1 January 2026 : €300,000
« la legge di bilancio 2026 ha elevato a 300.000 euro l'importo dell'imposta sostitutiva sui redditi prodotti all'estero da chi si trasferisce in Italia »
agenziaentrate.gov.itVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
4.
Italy, new residents: annual flat tax, moves up to 10 August 2024 : €100,000
« per i trasferimenti di residenza avvenuti fino al 10 agosto 2024 l'imposta è stabilita nella misura di 100.000 euro per ciascun periodo d'imposta »
agenziaentrate.gov.itHistorical value, applicable until August 10, 2024
5.
Greece, Golden Visa: real estate investment threshold in Attica, Thessaloniki, Mykonos, Santorini and populous islands : €800,000
« αυξάνεται το όριο ελάχιστης επένδυσης σε ακίνητα... από 500.000€ σε 800.000€ »
stegasi.gov.grVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
6.
United Arab Emirates: corporate tax rate above the threshold : 9%
« CT Rate — As per Ministry of Finance, CT rates are: 0 per cent for taxable income up to AED 375,000 ; 9 per cent for taxable income above AED 375,000 […] The Federal Decree-Law applies to financial years beginning on or after 1 June 2023. — Portail officiel du Gouvernement des Émirats arabes unis (u.ae), « Corporate tax » (Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022). »
u.aeVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
7.
United Arab Emirates: taxable profit below which corporate tax is zero : AED 375,000
« As per Ministry of Finance, CT rates are: 0 per cent for taxable income up to AED 375,000 »
u.aeVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
8.
Cyprus: corporate income tax rate resulting from the tax reform : 15%
« Φόρος πραγματικών μερισμάτων από 17% σε 5% · Κατάργηση λογιζόμενης διανομής μερισμάτων · Εταιρικός φόρος από 12,5% σε 15% · Κατάργηση τελών χαρτοσήμων · Stock Options: ειδικός συντελεστής 8% έως €1εκ./10ετία · Κρυπτοστοιχεία: αυτοτελής φορολόγηση 8% στο καθαρό κέρδος — Portail officiel de la Réforme fiscale 2026 (gov.cy/taxreform), « Avantages fiscaux pour les entreprises » (lois publiées au Journal officiel le 31 décembre 2025, en vigueur au 1er janvier 2026). »
gov.cyVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
9.
Cyprus: former corporate income tax rate, before the tax reform : 12.5%
« Φόρος πραγματικών μερισμάτων από 17% σε 5% · Κατάργηση λογιζόμενης διανομής μερισμάτων · Εταιρικός φόρος από 12,5% σε 15% · Κατάργηση τελών χαρτοσήμων · Stock Options: ειδικός συντελεστής 8% έως €1εκ./10ετία · Κρυπτοστοιχεία: αυτοτελής φορολόγηση 8% στο καθαρό κέρδος — Portail officiel de la Réforme fiscale 2026 (gov.cy/taxreform), « Avantages fiscaux pour les entreprises » (lois publiées au Journal officiel le 31 décembre 2025, en vigueur au 1er janvier 2026). »
gov.cyHistorical value, applicable until January 1, 2026
10.
Vanuatu passport: visa-free destinations : 95
« Henley Passport Index — classement des passeports par nombre de destinations accessibles sans visa préalable (données IATA), consulté à la date indiquée. Valeur reprise de l’index de l’ancien site (barème à 227 destinations). »
henleyglobal.comVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
11.
Romania: flat income tax rate (art. 64 of the Tax Code) : 10%
« ART. 64 - Cotele de impozitare (1) Cota de impozit este de 10% și se aplică asupra venitului impozabil corespunzător fiecărei surse din fiecare categorie pentru determinarea impozitului pe veniturile din: a) activități independente; a1) drepturi de proprietate intelectuală; b) salarii și asimilate salariilor; c) cedarea folosinței bunurilor; d) investiții; e) pensii; f) activități agricole, silvicultură și piscicultură; g) premii; h) alte surse. »
static.anaf.roVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
12.
Bulgaria: tax rate on the general annual tax base (art. 48) : 10%
« Размерът на данъка върху общата годишна данъчна основа се определя, като общата годишна данъчна основа по чл. 17 се умножи по данъчна ставка 10 на сто. »
lex.bgVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source