The Real Cost of Moving to Andorra in 2026: Full Breakdown After Omnibus 2
What it actually costs to relocate to Andorra in 2026 under Omnibus 2: AFA fees, property thresholds, notary, rent, and three real scenarios with full numbers.
The Real Cost of Moving to Andorra in 2026: Full Breakdown After Omnibus 2
Andorra has not raised its tax rates. The 10% income tax cap, 10% corporate tax, 4.5% IGI, and zero wealth tax are unchanged for 2026 and 2027. What has changed — dramatically — is what it costs to get in.
The Omnibus 2 Law, in force since 13 February 2026, raised passive residency investment from €600,000 to €1,000,000, converted the €50,000 AFA “deposit” into a non-refundable payment, and doubled the foreign real estate investment tax. Add advisory, notary, company setup, housing, insurance, and the first 12 months of living expenses, and the realistic floor for a family of four landing in Andorra today sits north of €1.2 million.
This guide breaks down every line. Real numbers, no marketing rounding. It assumes you’re moving from abroad and want a complete picture before signing anything.
Two paths, two cost profiles
Every relocation cost calculation begins with the same fork: are you moving on active residency (you’ll run a business or work in Andorra) or passive residency (you’ll live from passive income without working locally)?
The choice drives roughly 80% of your total relocation cost. Active residency keeps the upfront capital requirement low but requires you to genuinely build and run an Andorran company. Passive residency is a pure-capital play: park €1M in qualifying assets, pay a non-refundable €50,000 to the state, and you’re in.
If you’re a working entrepreneur with EBITDA-generating activity, active residency is almost always cheaper and more aligned with your tax planning. If you’re a retiree, an investor with most of your wealth already in liquid assets, or someone whose income comes from foreign operations you can’t relocate, passive is the route — and it is now significantly more expensive than it was 18 months ago.
Path A: Active residency (self-employed / company owner)
This is the most common route for relocating entrepreneurs. You set up an Andorran company (typically an SLU — single-member limited liability), become its administrator, and obtain residency tied to that activity. Minimum stay: 183 days per year.
Government fees and mandatory contributions
| Item | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| AFA non-refundable payment | €50,000 | Replaces the old refundable deposit. Exemption available for digital economy, innovation, or entrepreneurship projects approved by the government. |
| Company minimum share capital | €3,000 | Stays in your company’s bank account as working capital. Not a “cost” in the strict sense — you still own it. |
| Foreign investment authorisation fee | ~€250 | Mandatory if you’re a foreign national setting up the company. |
| Annual government registry fee | €850–€957 | Recurring annual cost. |
The €50,000 AFA payment is the single biggest line, and it is the change most relocation guides have not yet fully absorbed. Before Omnibus 2, this money came back to you when you left Andorra. Now it does not. Treat it as a sunk cost.
The exemption matters: if your project qualifies as digital economy, innovation, or entrepreneurship under government criteria, the €50,000 can be waived. In practice this requires a credible business plan, demonstrable economic substance, and alignment with Andorra’s strategic sectors (tech, finance, quality tourism, health). It is worth pursuing if you genuinely fit.
Professional fees
| Item | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Lawyer / fiscal advisor fees (full setup) | €3,000–€4,000 | Company formation, residency application, foreign investment authorisation, opening commercial activity. |
| Notary fees | €500–€800 | Public deed of incorporation, signatures. |
| Bank onboarding (compliance / KYC) | €200–€400 | One-off compliance charges from the chosen Andorran bank. |
| First-year accounting and tax services | €1,500–€3,000 | Quarterly filings, annual corporate tax, IGI returns. |
Total Path A government + professional fees: approximately €56,000–€60,000, of which the €50,000 AFA payment dominates and is potentially exempt for qualifying projects.
Path B: Passive residency (investor route)
This is the route now known internationally as the “Andorra Golden Visa” — although in Andorra it’s officially called residència sense activitat lucrativa or simply residència passiva. The minimum stay is 90 days per year for the residency permit; reaching 183 days converts it to tax residency.
The €1,000,000 investment threshold
Since Omnibus 2, the minimum qualifying investment in Andorran assets is €1,000,000, allocated across any combination of:
- Andorran real estate (each property must be valued above €800,000)
- Shares in Andorran companies
- Andorran public debt or bank deposits
- Andorran investment funds (capped at 36 months — must be redirected to other eligible assets after that)
- Life insurance from authorised Andorran entities
- Alternative route: €400,000 contribution to the Housing Fund (Fons d’Habitatge), which replaces the €1M requirement
Crucially, the €50,000 AFA payment counts toward the €1,000,000 total. So if you’re moving alone with €50,000 to the AFA, you have €950,000 left to invest in other qualifying assets.
Government fees, non-refundable
| Item | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| AFA payment (main applicant) | €50,000 | Non-refundable since Omnibus 2. Counts toward the €1M investment total. |
| AFA payment per dependent | €12,000 | Each. Family of 4 = €50,000 + €36,000 = €86,000. |
| Foreign real estate investment tax | 6% (single dwelling) | Doubled from 3% under Omnibus 2. On the full property value. |
| Foreign real estate investment tax | 10% | For a third or subsequent property, or for developers. Unchanged. |
The doubled foreign investment tax is where many passive residency budgets break. On an €800,000 apartment (the minimum qualifying property), the 6% tax is €48,000 — payable upfront, on top of the property price.
Property purchase costs
| Item | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Notary fees | 0.5%–1% of property value | Regulated. |
| Property registry | ~0.5% | Inscription in the Registre de la Propietat. |
| Andorran transmission tax (ITP) | 4% | Standard, paid by buyer. |
| Real estate agency fees | 5% (typically paid by seller) | Verify in your contract. |
Total transaction costs for a property purchase typically run 4.5%–5% of the price for residents and approximately 10.5%–11% for foreign first-time buyers once the 6% foreign investment tax is added.
Professional fees
| Item | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Lawyer / advisor for residency + property | €5,000–€8,000 | More complex than active residency due to investment due diligence. |
| Bank onboarding | €200–€400 | Higher KYC scrutiny for passive residency given investment size. |
What it actually costs: three realistic scenarios
Headline numbers are misleading without context. Here are three scenarios with full line items.
Scenario 1: Solo entrepreneur on active residency
Profile: 38-year-old, sells SaaS to international clients, no Andorra-specific exemption, rents an apartment for the first year.
| Line | Cost |
|---|---|
| AFA payment (no exemption) | €50,000 |
| Company minimum capital (recoverable) | €3,000 |
| Lawyer + advisor fees | €3,500 |
| Notary, registry, bank onboarding | €1,200 |
| First-year accounting | €2,000 |
| 12 months rent (2-bed, Escaldes-Engordany) | €18,000 |
| Rental deposit (2 months) | €3,000 |
| Health insurance (private, year 1 before CASS) | €1,200 |
| Moving and logistics | €4,000 |
| Total first-year outlay | €85,900 |
If the AFA exemption applies (digital economy / innovation project), this drops to roughly €35,900.
Scenario 2: Family of four on passive residency, buying property
Profile: HNW couple, two children, buying an €800,000 apartment, investing the remainder in Andorran fund holdings.
| Line | Cost |
|---|---|
| AFA payment (main applicant) | €50,000 |
| AFA payments (3 dependents) | €36,000 |
| Property purchase | €800,000 |
| Foreign real estate investment tax (6%) | €48,000 |
| Property notary, registry, ITP | ~€44,000 |
| Remaining qualifying investment (to reach €1M total) | €114,000 |
| Lawyer + advisor fees (full package) | €7,000 |
| Health insurance for family (year 1) | €4,800 |
| Moving and logistics (international, family) | €15,000 |
| Total first-year outlay | €1,118,800 |
Note: of this, €914,000 remains your asset (the property and the investment portfolio). The genuine sunk cost — money that leaves your balance sheet — is approximately €204,800.
Scenario 3: Retiree couple, passive residency via Housing Fund
Profile: Retired couple, choose the €400,000 Housing Fund alternative, rent rather than buy.
| Line | Cost |
|---|---|
| Housing Fund contribution | €400,000 |
| AFA payment (main applicant) | €50,000 |
| AFA payment (spouse) | €12,000 |
| Lawyer + advisor fees | €5,000 |
| 12 months rent (2-bed, central) | €18,000 |
| Rental deposit | €3,000 |
| Health insurance (couple, year 1) | €3,000 |
| Moving and logistics | €8,000 |
| Total first-year outlay | €499,000 |
The Housing Fund contribution is structured as a long-term contribution to Andorra’s affordable housing infrastructure. It is not invested for personal return — treat it as a relocation cost, not an asset.
Hidden costs most guides miss
A few line items consistently get omitted from relocation budgets and surface only after you’ve committed.
Annual investment redirection. Under Omnibus 2, investments in Andorran financial debt instruments and Andorran investment funds qualify for passive residency for a maximum of 36 months. After that, the capital must be redirected to other eligible asset classes. This is not a cost in itself, but it requires active portfolio management you may not have planned for.
Renewal substance checks. The law does not automatically cancel existing permits, but renewals can now impose tighter conditions: minimum investment updates, reinforced control of the 183-day effective presence, and verification of real economic contribution to Andorra. Budget for an annual compliance review with your advisor — €1,000–€2,000.
Spain exit tax (if applicable). If you’re moving from Spain and hold corporate participations valued above €4M or above 25% of a company valued above €1M, the Spanish exit tax (Article 95 bis LIRPF) applies. Latent capital gains are taxed at the moment of departure. Deferral options exist for moves to countries with both a DTT and information exchange — Andorra qualifies — but the procedural work is non-trivial. See our complete Spain exit tax guide.
Schooling. Andorra has three public school systems — Andorran, Spanish, and French — all free. International private schools exist (Agora, Vatel) with fees from €8,000 to €15,000 per year. If you’re moving with school-age children, this can dwarf many of the official setup costs.
Cost of living. Day-to-day costs in Andorra are roughly 20%–30% higher than Barcelona for groceries and restaurants, comparable for fuel and utilities, and significantly lower for taxes and healthcare. Budget €3,500–€5,000 per month for a family of four on a comfortable but not extravagant standard.
How Andorra compares to other European relocation programs
Cost is one variable. Time horizon, lifestyle, and tax destination matter more. Here’s how the post-Omnibus 2 numbers sit against the headline alternatives.
| Program | Minimum investment | Sunk fees | Min. stay | Income tax cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andorra passive (€1M route) | €1,000,000 | €50K + 6% real estate | 90 days | 10% |
| Andorra passive (Housing Fund) | €400,000 (not recoverable) | €50K AFA | 90 days | 10% |
| Andorra active | €3,000 share capital | €50K AFA (often exempt) | 183 days | 10% |
| Portugal Golden Visa | €500,000 (funds route) | ~€10K | 7–14 days | NHR closed; IFICI 20% |
| Greece Golden Visa | €250,000–€800,000 | ~€5K | 0 days | Up to 44% |
| UAE (Dubai) Golden Visa | €500K+ property | ~€3K | 0 days | 0% (9% corp from 2023) |
| Monaco | €500K bank deposit | ~€10K | 183 days | 0% |
Andorra is no longer the cheapest European route. It is, however, the only European jurisdiction combining a 10% tax cap, no wealth tax, no inheritance tax, an EU border, and a stable Catalan-Spanish-French cultural environment. The cost premium versus Greece or Portugal buys a meaningfully better tax outcome — particularly for entrepreneurs paying themselves dividends, for whom Andorra’s 0% on Andorran-company dividends is uniquely attractive.
For a detailed side-by-side, see our Andorra vs Spain tax comparison.
What this means for your decision
The post-Omnibus 2 framework has selected for a different kind of resident. The €1M floor, non-refundable fees, and doubled real estate taxes have priced out aspirational mid-tier relocators and concentrated incoming residents in two clear segments:
- Working entrepreneurs with real businesses (active residency, AFA exemption available, total setup under €60K plus living costs)
- High-net-worth investors with €1M+ in deployable capital (passive residency, where the €200K in genuine sunk costs is rational against the lifetime tax savings)
Anyone in between — particularly retirees with €500K–€800K in assets, or freelancers who can’t show economic substance — will find the new framework genuinely uncomfortable.
If you’re in either of the two viable segments, the numbers still work strongly in Andorra’s favour. The annual tax savings on an entrepreneur earning €300,000 in dividends through an Andorran company versus Spain are roughly €90,000–€110,000 per year. The setup cost amortises in a single year. Over a decade, the Omnibus 2 framework recovers in months for the right profile, even at its new thresholds.
For a precise calculation of what you’d save in your specific situation, use our free tax calculator. And if you’re ready to talk to a vetted Andorran advisor, our Advisor Match service connects you with one of our pre-screened firms — at no cost, with no obligation.
This article is informational and does not constitute legal or tax advice. The Omnibus 2 framework continues to evolve through implementing regulations. Always consult a qualified Andorran advisor before making relocation decisions. Andorra meets international standards on tax transparency and automatic exchange of information (CRS) — its appeal lies in legal low rates, not opacity.
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