Programme overview

Monaco’s Carte de Séjour is not a Golden Visa, and we say so on the file. There is no statutory investment threshold, no fund subscription, no real-estate floor written into Monégasque law. The test is older and quieter: that the applicant can support themselves comfortably in Monaco, has secured suitable accommodation, holds comprehensive health cover, and has a clean criminal record. The architecture is built on three documentary pillars — bank reference, accommodation lease or deed, character — and on the private-banking relationship that produces the first.

In practice, the decisive variable is the Monaco bank. No major Monégasque institution will issue the reference letter that supports a Carte de Séjour application below €500,000 of deposit, and most now require €1,000,000-€2,000,000 in private-banking AUM as a matter of policy. The leading houses — CFM Indosuez, J. Safra Sarasin, Edmond de Rothschild, Compagnie Monégasque de Banque, Société Générale Monaco — each maintain their own onboarding standards, and the bank-reference workstream typically runs 3-12 months before the Sûreté Publique file is even opened. This is the bottleneck on every Monaco file, and it is the one we plan around.

The card itself comes in three tiers. The Carte Temporaire is issued on first application, valid for one year, and renewable. After three years of continuous residence the principal becomes eligible for the Carte Ordinaire (3-year validity); after ten years, the Carte Privilégié (10-year validity). Naturalisation by Sovereign Ordinance is theoretically available after 10 years but is highly discretionary, rarely granted, and requires renunciation of all other citizenships — Monaco does not recognise dual nationality.

Investment routes

Bank deposit + accommodation (the working route). A deposit of €500K-€1M+ at a Monaco-licensed bank, supported by a formal bank reference letter. Plus proof of suitable accommodation — a 12+ month rental agreement (Monaco’s smallest market, with rents from €5K-€20K+/month) or property ownership. Plus comprehensive private health insurance covering Monaco and France. Plus clean criminal record and demonstrated character.

Property purchase + bank reference. Buying Monaco real estate is not legally required, but it removes the rental documentary requirement and, given Monaco’s pricing (€50,000-€100,000+/sqm; €4M+ for a small apartment), tends to satisfy the means test on its own. The bank reference is still required.

Director of a Monaco company. Director of a Monaco-domiciled company (typically a Société Civile or SAM) that holds qualifying corporate real estate or operating substance, with accommodation provided through the company. Used in family-office and SPF structures where the corporate vehicle is part of the broader plan.

Family reunification. Spouse-of-Monégasque (after 1 year of residence + marriage), spouse-of-resident, and dependent minor children of an existing resident. Parents, siblings and adult children file independently.

Tax architecture

Personal income tax: 0% — for non-French residents. Monaco imposes no personal income tax on its residents. The exception is French nationals, who remain subject to French tax under the 1963 Franco-Monégasque convention regardless of residence in Monaco. Every other nationality pays nothing on salaries, dividends, capital gains on personal investments, rental income, or foreign-source income.

Inheritance and gift tax — 0% on direct line. No inheritance tax between spouses, parents and children, or grandparents and grandchildren. 8% to siblings, 10% to uncles/aunts/nephews/nieces, 13% to other relatives, 16% to unrelated parties. Crucially, the rate applies to Monaco-situs assets only — foreign-situs assets pass under the law of the relevant jurisdiction.

Becoming a Monaco tax resident. The Carte de Séjour is the gateway document. Monaco issues a Certificat de Résidence on request to support tax-residency severance with the prior jurisdiction. The active workstream is convincing the prior jurisdiction’s tax authority — French, UK, Italian, Belgian — that the principal has genuinely uprooted. 183+ days of physical presence in Monaco, the family home in Monaco, schooling in Monaco, and absence of meaningful presence in the prior jurisdiction are the facts that close that file.

Corporate tax: situational. Monaco’s Impôt sur les Bénéfices applies at 33.33% to companies generating 25%+ of turnover outside Monaco. Most family-office, holding and personal-investment structures do not trigger it. Operating businesses with cross-border revenue flows do, and the structure must be designed accordingly.

What it gets you

  • Tier-1 European address with 0% personal income tax (non-French nationals).
  • Schengen-zone freedom of movement — Monaco is not in the EU but is functionally Schengen.
  • Direct-line inheritance and gift tax at 0%.
  • Access to the world’s most concentrated private-banking ecosystem.
  • 12-month progression: Temporaire (1 yr) → Ordinaire (3 yr) → Privilégié (10 yr).
  • World-class private healthcare (Princess Grace Hospital, plus French network) and a security environment with no comparable peer.
  • Schooling: Lycée Albert Ier, International School of Monaco, plus access to the French private network across the border.

Our role on a Monaco file

  1. Bank-reference strategy first. We map the principal to the right Monaco institution (Compagnie Monégasque de Banque, CFM Indosuez, J. Safra Sarasin, Edmond de Rothschild, SocGen Monaco) on the basis of AUM, source-of-wealth profile, and family-office fit — and open the relationship 6-12 months before the Sûreté file.
  2. Accommodation — rental search through Monégasque agents (Savills, Knight Frank, Dotta) or property acquisition with our Monaco notarial counsel.
  3. Health insurance placement (Monaco-and-France-coverage policies; CMU access where applicable).
  4. Sûreté Publique file preparation: criminal record certificates from every prior residence, full financial dossier, accommodation evidence, bank letter, photographs.
  5. Tax-severance from the prior jurisdiction, coordinated with the principal’s existing advisors. This is where most files actually live.
  6. Family file: spouse and minor children bundled into the principal’s application; adult children placed on parallel files; school placements (Lycée Albert Ier, ISM, French lycée network) coordinated.