Bermuda expat tax: no income tax but payroll tax on your pay

Bermuda has no income tax. You don't file a personal tax return, and your investment income, capital gains and foreign pension aren't taxed at all. But if you work in Bermuda, you'll pay payroll tax on your salary, and that's the number to plan around.

This guide covers Bermuda's personal tax position for people moving to or living in Bermuda in 2026, including payroll tax for the 2026/27 year, social insurance, compulsory health insurance, estate duty and the routes to live there now that Work From Bermuda has closed. The Bermuda dollar is fixed at par with the US dollar, so the figures read the same in either currency.

The key question is simple. Is your income a salary or business income earned in Bermuda, or investment and foreign income? The first carries payroll tax. The second is untaxed.

What's changed: new employee payroll tax bands took effect on 1 April 2026. The first band fell from 0.5% to 0.25% and the second from 9.25% to 7.75%, while the third rose from 10% to 10.75%. On a $100,000 salary, the employee portion falls from $5,080 to $4,270. The standard health insurance premium rose from $400.31 to $439.55 a month from 1 April 2026, and the dividend allowance for people working for local companies rose to $20,000 a year. The Work From Bermuda certificate closed to new applications on 28 February 2025.

📋 Bermuda tax at a glance for 2026/27

Payroll tax: Bermuda's tax on work

Why do people say Bermuda isn't really tax free? Because of payroll tax. It's charged on pay for work done in Bermuda, and part of it usually comes out of your salary.

Image 1 — no income tax, but payroll tax on your salary

Payroll tax has two parts. The employer portion is charged at a rate that depends on the size of the employer's payroll, up to 9.5% for payrolls over $1,000,000 and 9.75% for exempted companies. The employee portion is charged on your own pay in bands. Your employer is liable for both, but it can deduct the employee portion from your salary, and most do.

Payroll tax covers more than basic salary. Bonuses, commission, allowances, housing provided by your employer and share option gains all count. Social insurance, health insurance and approved pension contributions don't.

Pay above $1,000,000 a year is ignored for both portions. Employers file and pay quarterly, with payment due on 15 January, 15 April, 15 July and 15 October.

👉 Government of Bermuda: payroll tax, who pays and when

👉 Payroll Tax Act 1995: what counts as pay, and the $1,000,000 cap

Tax residence in Bermuda

Bermuda has no income tax, so it has no tax residence test to pass or fail. Payroll tax depends on where you work, not where you live. If you work wholly or mainly in Bermuda, your pay is taxed, wherever it's paid.

Getting in is about immigration, not tax. You need a work permit, permission to reside, a residential certificate or another form of permission from the Department of Immigration to live there.

Leaving is a clean break. Bermuda has no exit tax, and no tax return to close off. The rules that matter when you move are your home country's.

👉 Government of Bermuda: types of taxes, and no personal income tax

Payroll tax rates for 2026/27

The employee portion is worked out on your annual rate of pay. Each band is taxed at its own rate, like a progressive income tax.

Bermuda employee payroll tax rates for 2026/27

Source: Payroll Tax Rates Act 1995, as amended from 1 April 2026. Rates apply from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027.

Worked example

• You move to Bermuda on a work permit and earn $100,000 (US$100,000) a year in 2026/27.

• Your employee payroll tax is $120 on the first $48,000, $3,720 on the next $48,000 and $430 on the last $4,000: $4,270.

• Social insurance is $39.25 a week, or $2,041 a year.

• Your employer can deduct up to $200.16 a month from your pay for health insurance, or $2,402 a year. That cap in the regulations hasn't yet been raised in line with the new premium.

Your all-in bill is about $8,710, or 9% of your salary. If you're Bermudian or married to a Bermudian, a 5% occupational pension contribution adds $5,000 and takes the total to about 14%. Some employers pay the employee portion of payroll tax for you, which brings it down further.

👉 Office of the Tax Commissioner: calculating payroll tax from 1 April 2026

Freelancing in Bermuda

If you're self-employed, you pay payroll tax yourself. It's charged on what you take out of the business for your own use, not on your turnover, and the Payroll Tax Rates Act sets the self-employed rate at 9.75%. A few trades have lower rates, for example 1.75% for horticulturists and 0% for farmers and fishermen.

On top of that, you pay both halves of social insurance, $78.50 a week, and you have to insure yourself for at least the standard health benefit, at $439.55 a month. You also have to pay into a registered pension plan if you're aged 23 to 65 and earn more than $20,000 a year from self-employment, up to a maximum of $10,000 a year. The Pension Commission doesn't publish a self-employed rate, so we've assumed 5%. On US$100,000 drawn from your business, that works out at about 24% all-in.

The Office of the Tax Commissioner's guidance also refers to self-employed people paying an "employee portion", so check with it how your quarterly return is worked out before you budget.

👉 Payroll Tax Rates Act 1995: rates for employers and the self-employed

Crypto, investments and pensions

How is crypto taxed in Bermuda? It isn't, for individuals. There's no income tax and no capital gains tax, so selling, swapping or spending crypto doesn't create a tax bill. Bermuda's Digital Asset Business Act requires exchanges, custodians and other crypto businesses to be licensed by the Bermuda Monetary Authority, but it doesn't tax personal investors.

The same applies to the rest of your portfolio. Dividends, interest, rent from abroad and gains on shares are all untaxed. One exception: if you work for a local Bermuda company that isn't listed on a stock exchange or an exempted company, dividends it pays you over $20,000 a year are treated as pay for payroll tax.

Foreign pensions aren't taxed either, and if you're retired and not working, you pay no payroll tax or social insurance.

The one tax to plan for is stamp duty on a death. It's charged on the net value of your Bermuda assets, not your worldwide estate:

• first $100,000: exempt

• next $100,000: 5%

• next $800,000: 10%

• next $1,000,000: 15%

• above $2,000,000: 20%

Anything left to your spouse is deducted. A home designated as a primary family homestead is exempt too, but only for owners with Bermudian status, so most expats can't use it. Buying property carries stamp duty too, from 2.1% on the first $100,000 up to 7.35% above $1,500,000. Homeowners and long-term tenants also pay land tax twice a year.

👉 Government of Bermuda: probate and stamp duty on an estate

👉 Digital Asset Business Act 2018: licensing of crypto businesses

Social security, health insurance and pensions

Bermuda's social insurance is a fixed weekly contribution, not a percentage of pay. From 1 August 2026 it's $39.25 a week from you and $39.25 from your employer, or $78.50 if you're self-employed. If you're not ordinarily resident in Bermuda, you aren't insured until you've worked there for 26 consecutive weeks.

Health insurance is compulsory for workers. Your employer must insure you, and your non-working spouse, for at least the standard health benefit. It can deduct up to half the premium from your pay, capped in the regulations at $200.16 a month. The standard premium is $439.55 a month from 1 April 2026.

Occupational pensions are compulsory for Bermudians and spouses of Bermudians. You and your employer contribute equally, 5% each, on pensionable earnings of up to $200,000 a year. Non-Bermudians on work permits don't have to join, though employers can enrol them voluntarily, and extending pensions to non-Bermudians has been under review. Self-employed people aged 23 to 65 earning over $20,000 a year must join a registered plan, whatever their nationality.

👉 Government of Bermuda: social insurance contributions

👉 Contributory Pensions Act 1970: weekly social insurance rates

👉 Ministry of Health: standard health insurance premium from 1 April 2026

👉 National Pension Scheme (Occupational Pensions) Act 1998: who must join

👉 Pension Commission: pension rules for employers and the self-employed

Double tax treaties

Does Bermuda have double tax treaties? Not in the usual sense. With no income tax, Bermuda has nothing to relieve, so it hasn't signed comprehensive income tax treaties. Its tax agreements are about sharing information.

The Government of Bermuda has said it has bilateral tax information exchange agreements with 43 jurisdictions, and exchange relationships with more than 106 through the OECD Multilateral Convention. It also has a 1986 convention with the United States, but that covers insurance companies and mutual assistance, not individuals.

👉 Government of Bermuda: tax information exchange agreements (2016 statement)

👉 U.S.A.-Bermuda Tax Convention Act 1986

Work From Bermuda has closed: long-stay routes

Can you still work remotely from Bermuda? The Work From Bermuda certificate, Bermuda's one-year digital nomad route, closed to new applications on 28 February 2025.

The government has gone back to granting permission to reside, for up to five years at a time. The Department of Immigration charges $275 for permission to reside for up to a year and $1,215 for up to five years. The fixed remote work rules of the old certificate no longer apply, so check the eligibility conditions and whether you can keep working for an employer abroad before you apply. You can't take a job with a Bermuda business without a work permit.

There's no income tax on an overseas salary. Payroll tax is charged on pay for work done wholly or mainly in Bermuda, whether or not it's paid there, so ask the Office of the Tax Commissioner if you'll be working in Bermuda for most of the year.

For a longer stay, the Economic Investment Residential Certificate lets you live in Bermuda indefinitely if you invest at least $2,500,000 there, for example in property, a Bermuda business or the government's debt-reduction Sinking Fund. You must keep the investment for at least five years and spend at least 90 days a year in Bermuda over that time. Homeowners can also apply for a residential certificate. Both certificates cost $2,755.

👉 Government of Bermuda: Work From Bermuda closes and multi-year residency resumes

👉 Department of Immigration: Economic Investment Residential Certificate policy

👉 Department of Immigration: all immigration fees

Who is Bermuda good for?

How does Bermuda compare for different kinds of mover? Ratings are relative to the 150+ countries TaxPilot covers, based on 2026/27 rules and the all-in cost including payroll tax, social insurance and health insurance.

☑️ Who is Bermuda good for? Tax ratings for expats in 2026

Filing and deadlines

There's no personal income tax return in Bermuda. If you're an employee, your employer files the payroll tax return and pays the tax each quarter.

If you're self-employed, you register with the Office of the Tax Commissioner and file and pay payroll tax yourself each quarter. The quarters start on 1 April, 1 July, 1 October and 1 January, and payment is due by 15 July, 15 October, 15 January and 15 April. Exempted companies and businesses paying more than $200,000 a year in remuneration must file online through the eTax portal.

👉 Government of Bermuda: payroll tax filing and payment dates

Frequently asked questions

Does Bermuda have income tax?

No. Individuals in Bermuda don't pay personal income tax and don't file a tax return. Instead, payroll tax is charged on pay for work done in Bermuda. Investment income, capital gains and foreign pensions aren't taxed.

How much payroll tax do employees pay in Bermuda?

For 2026/27 the employee portion is 0.25% on the first $48,000, 7.75% up to $96,000, 10.75% up to $200,000, 11.5% up to $500,000 and 12.5% up to $1,000,000. Pay above $1,000,000 isn't taxed. On a $100,000 salary it's $4,270.

Do self-employed people pay payroll tax in Bermuda?

Yes. Payroll tax is charged on what you take out of your business for your own use, and the Payroll Tax Rates Act sets the self-employed rate at 9.75%. You also pay both halves of social insurance, must hold health insurance and, if you earn over $20,000, must pay into a pension plan.

Is there inheritance tax in Bermuda?

There's no inheritance tax as such, but stamp duty of up to 20% is charged on the net value of Bermuda assets at death. The first $100,000 is exempt and anything left to a spouse is deducted. A designated family home is exempt only for owners with Bermudian status.

Can I still get the Work From Bermuda certificate?

No. The Work From Bermuda certificate closed to new applications on 28 February 2025. Bermuda now grants permission to reside for up to a year, or up to five years, for a fee of $275 or $1,215. There's no income tax on overseas pay.

Does Bermuda have double tax treaties?

Not comprehensive income tax treaties, because there's no income tax to relieve. Bermuda has tax information exchange agreements with more than 40 jurisdictions and a 1986 convention with the United States covering insurance companies.