Mauritius adds USD 1 million Golden Visa permanent residence route

Mauritius now offers holders of its Golden Visa a route to permanent residence.

A law dated 13 August 2026 makes Golden Visa holders eligible once they have invested at least USD 1 million within 12 months of the visa’s issue, in business activity other than buying residential property under the Economic Development Board’s property schemes. The same law and a finance act of the same date changed the investor work permit and two duties on property sold to foreigners.

The Golden Visa route to permanent residence

The Economic and Financial Measures (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2026 added a Golden Visa item to the criteria for permanent residence in the Economic Development Board Act, in operation from 13 August 2026.

The holder must still hold the visa and must have invested an aggregate of not less than USD 1 million within 12 months of its issue, in any business activity other than the acquisition of residential property under the Board’s property schemes.

The visa itself predates the law. Cabinet decided on 10 April 2026 to introduce a Golden Visa scheme; the 2026 Act defines it as a visa issued under the Passports Act on the recommendation of the Economic Development Board, and adds the route to permanent residence.

Under the Immigration Act, a permanent residence permit granted on these criteria is valid for 20 years. The spouse, a parent or dependent child, and up to two other dependants can also be granted permits. The Golden Visa provisions reviewed specify no programme-wide numerical quota.

What the Board’s guidelines add

The Economic Development Board’s Golden Visa guidelines, labelled August 2026, describe a multiple-entry visa of up to two years, renewable, with no processing fee and a processing target of five working days from the date the application is deemed complete.

Applicants must show a balance of at least USD 1 million and undertake, within 12 months of the visa’s issue, both to transfer at least that amount into an account at a licensed bank in Mauritius and to invest the funds in qualifying sectors. Failure to meet the commitment may lead to cancellation, revocation or non-renewal of the visa.

The qualifying sectors the guidelines list include financial services, technology, tourism, manufacturing, healthcare and education. The Act itself refers to any business activity other than the acquisition of residential property under the Board’s property schemes; the sector list appears in the Board’s guidelines.

A holder may buy a home under the property schemes, but that purchase does not count towards the USD 1 million. Whether the Board is already accepting applications has not been established.

The investor work permit

The same Act changed the occupation permit for investors from 13 August 2026. Under the standard investor category, an investor makes an initial investment of USD 100,000 and undertakes to transfer it from abroad within 60 days of the permit’s issue.

The business must reach turnover of 5 million rupees from the third year of registration, and 8 million rupees from the fifth year of registration for renewal. Before the 13 August 2026 change, the criteria offered a USD 50,000 or a USD 100,000 option with turnover tests from the first year.

An investor occupation permit is valid for ten years, and the spouse of a holder may be granted an occupation permit; the separate family occupation permit was abolished.

An applicant for permanent residence who has held an investor occupation permit for at least five years must show turnover of at least 15 million rupees a year for the five years preceding the application, or 75 million rupees in total over the five consecutive years immediately preceding it. The 2026 Act left this turnover test unchanged.

Property: two 10% provisions repealed, an additional duty introduced

The Finance Act 2026, also dated 13 August 2026, repealed two provisions that the 2025 finance act had set for deeds from 1 July 2026: a 10% registration duty on certain transfers of residential property to non-citizens, and a 10% land transfer tax on certain resales of residential property by non-citizens to non-citizens.

The repeal of the two 10% charges does not abolish registration duty or land transfer tax generally. Whether either 10% charge was collected between 1 July and 12 August has not been established.

The Finance Act 2026 introduced a 10% additional duty, paid by the seller, on the transfer to a non-citizen of residential property on State land or Pas Géométriques under the provision for apartments in buildings of at least ground plus two floors priced at 6 million rupees or more.

The additional duty does not apply where a qualifying presale agreement was executed before 19 June 2026 and was drawn up and signed before a notary.

The residence route through property is unchanged in the Immigration Act: a purchase of not less than USD 375,000 under the approved property schemes qualifies for a residence permit. For purchases under the Integrated Resort, Real Estate and Property Development schemes, the Board’s buyer guidelines link the permit’s duration to continued ownership of the property.

For Vietnamese investors

The Passport and Immigration Office lists Vietnamese nationals as eligible for a 60-day visa on arrival, subject to immigration clearance. The 2026 Act also creates a digital travel authorisation for visitors, which is not yet in force.

Mauritius and Vietnam have no double taxation agreement in force; the Mauritius Revenue Authority lists Vietnam among 19 treaties being negotiated. No official figures on Golden Visa, permanent residence or investor permits by nationality were found.