Macao is one of the few places where the headline tax rate overstates what you pay. Salaries are taxed at 7% to 12%, but a quarter of your pay is deducted first, the next MOP 144,000 is tax free and, for 2026, the final bill is cut by 30%. On a US$100k salary that leaves about 4.3%.
This guide covers Macao personal tax for people moving to or working in Macao in 2026: Professional Tax, the business tax for freelancers and traders, what isn't taxed at all, the new tax residence rule, social security and the routes to a long stay.
The key question is simple. Is your income earned by working in Macao? If it is, Professional Tax applies. If it's a foreign pension, dividends, interest or gains, Macao doesn't tax it.
What's changed: the 2026 Budget Law (Law 13/2025) keeps the Professional Tax exempt amount at MOP 144,000 (MOP 198,000 for employees over 65 or with a disability of 60% or more) and the 30% cut in the tax bill. Residents also get back 60% of the Professional Tax they paid for 2024, up to MOP 14,000. The tax on rented property stays at 8% for 2026. Macao's new Tax Code (Law 24/2024) now sets a formal tax residence test of 183 days in a calendar year. In April 2024, Macao scrapped the extra stamp duties on property that applied to non-residents, companies and quick resales.
π Macao tax at a glance for 2026
Topic | Details |
|---|---|
Tax system | Territorial in practice: Professional Tax on work done in Macao and Complementary Tax on business income earned in Macao |
Top Professional Tax rate | 12% on taxable income above MOP 424,000, cut by 30% in 2026. That's 6.3% of each extra pataca of salary |
All-in on a US$100k salary | About 4.3% (MOP 808,000 at MOP 8.08 to US$1, single, 2026 rules) |
Foreign income | Not taxed for individuals, including foreign pensions |
Dividends, interest, capital gains | Not taxed for individuals unless they're part of a business |
Crypto gains | No specific tax and no capital gains tax; trading as a business could be taxed |
Social security | MOP 30 a month for resident employees (employer MOP 60). Non-resident workers aren't covered |
Inheritance tax | None since 2001. Stamp duty can apply to gifts of Macao property |
Residence at a glance | Getting in: moderate (183 days in a calendar year, or a home kept in Macao on 31 December). Leaving: a clean break |
Double tax treaties | 7 in force, including mainland China, Hong Kong and Portugal |
Professional Tax: how 12% becomes 4%
Why is Macao's salary tax so much lower than its rate table suggests? Because three reliefs stack up before you pay a pataca.
Image 1 β a 12% top rate that works out at 6.3% or less
Professional Tax (Imposto Profissional, called Salaries Tax in Financial Services Bureau guidance) is charged on pay for work you do in Macao, whether you're an employee or a professional working for yourself. It covers salary, bonuses, commissions and most allowances. It doesn't matter where your pay is paid or deposited.
The 25% deduction: a fixed 25% of your work income is taken out of the charge every year. You don't need receipts.
The exempt amount: the first MOP 144,000 of what's left is tax free in 2026, or MOP 198,000 if you're an employee over 65 or have a permanent disability of 60% or more.
The 30% cut: for 2026, your tax bill is reduced by 30%. Employers already apply it when they withhold tax.
The exempt amount and the 30% cut are set in each year's Budget Law, so they can change. Both have been renewed regularly, including for 2025 and 2026.
Employers withhold the tax each quarter and pay it by 15 January, April, July and October. Withholding only starts once monthly pay goes above MOP 16,000. Non-local artists, lecturers, scientists and specialist technicians hired for short jobs have at least 5% withheld, even below the exempt amount.
π Macao Financial Services Bureau: 2026 tax relief measures
π Law 13/2025: the 2026 Budget Law, articles 18 to 25 (in Portuguese)
π Macao Government Portal: Salaries Tax withholding and payment
When you become tax resident in Macao, and how you stop
For most people, Macao tax residence matters less than in other countries. Professional Tax applies to anyone working in Macao, and Complementary Tax to business income earned there, whatever your residence. Becoming resident doesn't switch on tax on your worldwide income.
Residence still matters for tax treaties. Under Macao's Tax Code, you're a Macao tax resident for a calendar year if:
you spend 183 days or more in Macao in that year, counting any part of a day as a full day, or
you spend less time there but, on 31 December, have a home in Macao that you clearly intend to keep and live in as your habitual residence.
If you meet either test, you can ask the Financial Services Bureau for a declaration of Macao tax residence, which you'll need to claim treaty benefits.
Leaving is a clean break. Residence is tested each calendar year, there's no exit tax, and once you stop working in Macao, Professional Tax stops too. Your employer reports your departure on form M/2A by the end of the following month.
π Law 24/2024: Macao Tax Code, article 24 on tax residents (in Portuguese)
Professional Tax rates for 2026
The tax year is the calendar year. The bands below apply to your income after the 25% deduction. The same scale applies to employees and self-employed professionals.
Macao Professional Tax rates for 2026
Taxable income after the 25% deduction | Rate |
|---|---|
Up to MOP 144,000 | 0% |
MOP 144,001 to MOP 164,000 | 7% |
MOP 164,001 to MOP 184,000 | 8% |
MOP 184,001 to MOP 224,000 | 9% |
MOP 224,001 to MOP 304,000 | 10% |
MOP 304,001 to MOP 424,000 | 11% |
Over MOP 424,000 | 12% |
Source: Professional Tax Regulation, article 7, with the MOP 144,000 exempt amount and the 30% cut in the bill set by the 2026 Budget Law. The tax worked out on this scale is then reduced by 30%.
Worked example
You're single and work in Macao for all of 2026, earning MOP 808,000 (about US$100k).
The 25% deduction takes off MOP 202,000, leaving MOP 606,000. The first MOP 144,000 is exempt, so MOP 462,000 is taxed on the scale.
Tax on the scale is MOP 49,640. The 30% cut takes off MOP 14,892.
Your bill is MOP 34,748, or 4.3% of your salary. If you're a Macao resident employee, add MOP 360 a year of social security.
π Macao Financial Services Bureau: Salaries Tax guide and calculator
Freelancing in Macao
How you're taxed as a freelancer depends on what you do. Professionals working for themselves pay Professional Tax as "group 2" taxpayers. The official table of liberal and technical professions names architects, engineers, doctors, lawyers, accountants, economists, translators and teachers, and ends with a catch-all for liberal or technical professions it doesn't list.
You register with the Financial Services Bureau on form M/1 before you start, and issue receipts for what you're paid.
You're taxed on your receipts less business expenses such as office rent, staff, insurance, travel and equipment, on the same 7% to 12% scale, with the MOP 144,000 exempt amount and the 30% cut for 2026.
On MOP 808,000 (about US$100k) of net income, the bill is at most about MOP 51,700, or 6.4%.
If you trade rather than practise a profession, your profit pays Complementary Tax instead. For 2025 profits, the first MOP 600,000 is exempt and the rest is taxed at 12%. The 2027 Budget Law is expected to set the figure for 2026 profits. Small businesses with no organised accounts are taxed on presumed profits. The separate Business Tax (contribuição industrial) isn't collected in 2026.
One practical point: you need permission to live and work in Macao before you can freelance there. There's no compulsory social security for non-residents, and resident self-employed people can join voluntarily.
π Complementary Tax Regulation (Law 21/78/M): who pays and what's taxed (in Portuguese)
Crypto, investments and pensions
Does Macao tax your investments? For individuals, no. Complementary Tax only reaches an individual's income from a commercial or industrial activity. Dividends, bank interest and gains on shares, funds and bonds you hold privately fall outside it, wherever they come from.
Crypto: there's no crypto tax and no capital gains tax. There's also no official guidance, so if you trade so often that it looks like a business, the gains could be taxed as business profit.
Pensions: retirement, survivors' and invalidity pensions are expressly outside Professional Tax, and a foreign pension isn't work done in Macao anyway.
Macao property: rent from Macao property pays Urban Property Tax, cut to 8% for 2026. Buying a home costs 1% to 3% stamp duty, and adult residents who haven't used the exemption before can be exempt on the first MOP 6m in 2026.
Macao has no inheritance tax and no wealth tax. Its inheritance and gift tax was abolished in 2001. Stamp duty of 5% applies when Macao property is given away during your lifetime, so check before you gift property there.
π Law 5/2024: property stamp duty rates after the April 2024 changes (in Portuguese)
π Law 8/2001: repeal of the inheritance and gift tax code (in Portuguese)
Social security
Macao's Social Security Fund charges a flat amount, not a percentage of pay. Resident employees pay MOP 30 a month and their employers MOP 60, collected quarterly. That's MOP 360 a year for you, however much you earn.
The compulsory system covers Macao residents only. If you come to Macao as a non-resident worker, you aren't enrolled, and your employer pays an employment fee to the Fund instead. Residents can also save in the Central Provident Fund, which is voluntary.
π Macao Social Security Fund: contributions of the obligatory system
π Talent Development Committee: social security and the Central Provident Fund
Double tax treaties
Does Macao have double tax treaties? Yes, but only a few. Seven agreements are in force: mainland China, Hong Kong, Portugal, Mozambique, Cape Verde, Vietnam and Cambodia. An agreement with Belgium was signed in 2006 but isn't in force. There's no treaty with the UK or the US.
Because Macao taxes so little, treaties matter less than usual.
π Macao Financial Services Bureau: agreements for the elimination of double taxation
Long stays: visitors and the talent programmes
Macao has no digital nomad visa. How long you can stay as a visitor depends on your passport: up to six months for British citizens, 90 days for most EU nationals, and 30 days for many other passports, including US ones. Working in Macao needs separate authorisation, and there's no official guidance allowing visitors to work remotely.
For a longer stay, the main routes are a job with a Macao employer or the talent programmes under Law 7/2023. There are three: High-end Talents, Outstanding Talents and Advanced Professionals. Outstanding Talents don't need a local job. Advanced Professionals need a job offer in a shortage profession and a set salary level. Each application is assessed against set criteria.
π Macao Government Portal: immigration and limits of stay on arrival
π Talent Development Committee: the talent recruitment system
Who is Macao good for?
How does Macao compare for different kinds of mover? Ratings are relative to the 150+ countries TaxPilot covers, based on 2026 rules and the all-in cost including compulsory social security.
βοΈ Who is Macao good for? Tax ratings for expats in 2026
Expat profile | Macao rating | Why |
|---|---|---|
Employees | Excellent | About 4.3% all-in on a US$100k salary (MOP 808,000) in 2026. The 25% deduction, the MOP 144,000 exempt slice and the 30% cut in the tax bill bring a 12% top rate down to 6.3% at the margin. Resident employees add MOP 30 a month to social security. |
Freelancers (self-employed) | Excellent | At most about 6.4% on US$100k of net professional income, with no compulsory contributions for non-residents. You need the right to live and work in Macao first, which a visitor stay doesn't give you. |
Retirees | Excellent | 0% on a US$40k foreign pension plus US$20k of investment income. Pensions are outside Professional Tax, investment income isn't taxed for individuals, and there's no inheritance or wealth tax. |
Crypto gains | Good | No capital gains tax for individuals, and no specific crypto tax. There's no official guidance, so frequent trading run as a business could be taxed as business profit. |
Investment income | Excellent | No tax on dividends, interest or capital gains for individuals. Complementary Tax only reaches individuals' income from a commercial or industrial activity. |
Digital nomad visa | Poor | There's no digital nomad visa. Visitors get 30 days to six months depending on their passport, and the talent programmes are selective routes with set criteria. |
Filing and deadlines
The tax year is the calendar year. If you have one employer, you don't need to file a return: your employer withholds the tax and reports your pay on forms M3/M4 in January and February. If you have more than one employer, or you're a group 2 professional without organised accounts, you file form M/5 in January or February 2027 for 2026.
Group 2 professionals with organised accounts file by 15 April. Complementary Tax returns are due from January to March for smaller businesses taxed on presumed profits (group B), and from April to July for those with audited accounts (group A).
If your employer withheld too little, it pays the difference in January of the following year. The Financial Services Bureau then works out your final bill, applying the exempt amount and the 30% cut for you, and refunds anything overpaid.
π Macao Financial Services Bureau: Salaries Tax forms and deadlines
Frequently asked questions
What is the income tax rate in Macao in 2026?
Salaries pay Professional Tax at 7% to 12%. A fixed 25% of your pay is deducted first, the next MOP 144,000 is tax free, and for 2026 the bill is cut by 30%. On a MOP 808,000 salary (about US$100k), that's about 4.3%.
Does Macao tax foreign income?
Not for individuals. Professional Tax covers pay for work done in Macao, and Complementary Tax covers an individual's business income earned in Macao. Foreign pensions, dividends, interest and capital gains aren't taxed.
When do I become tax resident in Macao?
Under the Tax Code, when you spend 183 days or more in Macao in a calendar year, with part days counted, or when you have a home there on 31 December that you intend to keep as your habitual residence. Professional Tax applies to work in Macao whether you're resident or not.
Do foreigners pay social security in Macao?
Not as non-resident workers. The compulsory Social Security Fund system covers Macao residents, who pay MOP 30 a month while their employer pays MOP 60. Employers of non-resident workers pay an employment fee instead.
Is crypto taxed in Macao?
There's no crypto tax and no capital gains tax for individuals. There's also no official guidance, so frequent trading that amounts to a business could be taxed as business profit.
Does Macao have a double tax treaty with the UK?
No. Macao has seven agreements in force: mainland China, Hong Kong, Portugal, Mozambique, Cape Verde, Vietnam and Cambodia. One with Belgium is signed but not in force.
Where to go next
π Lowest-tax countries for employees
π Best countries for freelancers
π Best countries for retirees
π Best countries for investors
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Important information
This article is general information and does not constitute tax, legal, immigration or financial advice, and does not create a client relationship. Tax outcomes depend on travel history, income sources, treaty status and the law applying to the relevant year. Rates, thresholds and regimes change, and some measures described may be proposed rather than enacted; this article reflects our understanding as at the date of publication. Obtain advice from a suitably qualified professional before acting or refraining from action.
