Scandinavian Working Papers in Economics

Discussion Papers,
Norwegian School of Economics, Department of Business and Management Science

No 2023/12: Citizenship/Residence by Investment and Digital Nomad Visas: The Golden Era of Individual Tax Evasion and Avoidance?

Elisa Casi (), Mohammed Mardan () and Barbara M. B. Stage ()
Additional contact information
Elisa Casi: Dept. of Business and Management Science, Norwegian School of Economics, Postal: NHH , Department of Business and Management Science, Helleveien 30, N-5045 Bergen, Norway
Mohammed Mardan: Dept. of Business and Management Science, Norwegian School of Economics, Postal: NHH , Department of Business and Management Science, Helleveien 30, N-5045 Bergen, Norway
Barbara M. B. Stage: WHU - Otto Beisheim School of Management, Postal: WHU - Otto Beisheim School of Management, Burgplatz 2, D-56179 Vallendar, Germany

Abstract: In recent decades, increased mobility of capital and labor improved individuals’ opportunities to avoid or evade tax. This chapter explores two programs commonly provided by tax havens that facilitate individuals in dodging taxation in their home country. We first focus on longer-existing initiatives targeting wealthy individuals by offering citizenship and residence-by-investment (CBI/RBI) programs and discuss how they allow individuals to evade taxes. We then delve into the recently launched digital nomad visa (DNV) programs, which grant individuals temporary residence in a country while working exclusively remotely. We provide a comprehensive overview of the key features of existing programs based on a novel, hand-collected dataset. Currently, more than 40 countries offer a DNV program, and half of them are tax havens. Although DNV programs mainly create concerns about tax avoidance, they can also provide tax evasion opportunities similar to those documented in the literature for CBI and RBI programs.

Keywords: Digital Nomadism; Citizenship- and Residence by-investment Programs; Digital Nomad Visa; Tax Residency; Tax Havens; Offshore Tax Avoidance and Evasion

JEL-codes: F42; G21; H26

Language: English

26 pages, August 31, 2023

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