Curaçao introduces 10% flat tax on foreign pensions for retirees, tied to costly residency rules

The Dutch Caribbean island of Curaçao has launched the "Penshonado" scheme, offering a flat 10 % tax rate on foreign pension and retirement income for people over 50 who relocate permanently. Applicants must have lived abroad uninterrupted for at least 60 months, register with the population register, and submit a tax‑office application within two months. The low rate applies only to qualifying foreign income; other earnings and local employment are largely excluded. The program also requires a substantial investment in the island and subjects retirees to currency risk, as the Caribbean guilder is pegged to the US dollar. Curaçao, which is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands but outside the EU, hopes to attract affluent retirees from the United States, Canada and Europe, boosting real‑estate demand and tax revenues. Similar pension‑tax reforms are being considered in Portugal and Thailand.