Technical article
Countries That Charge Nothing When You Leave Money to Your Children
They look for places where the law charges nothing on an inheritance or a gift.
Picture a couple with two daughters who would like to leave their savings and a flat without a tax bill. They look for places where the law charges nothing on an inheritance or a gift. Which places do the sources name, and is "nothing" the whole story?
Thirteen places in the files have no inheritance, estate or gift tax. The table lists them with what some charge in its place.
| Place | Inheritance and gift tax | Charged instead or alongside |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | None | Special capital gains and retirement-fund death rules; land taxes and foreign-owner surcharges on property |
| Austria | None | Land-transfer tax on free property acquisitions: 0.5%, 2% and 3.5% by band |
| Canada | None | Death counts as a sale, so the deceased's gains are taxed; provinces charge probate fees |
| Cyprus | None on inheritance since 1 January 2000 | Gifts to unrelated people are reported differently by two sources |
| Hong Kong | None | None listed |
| Malaysia | None | Stamp duty on the transfer paper, paid by the receiver |
| New Zealand | None; gift duty ended 1 October 2011 | None listed |
| Norway | None since 1 January 2014 | Exit tax on unrealised share gains over 3 million Norwegian kroner (approximately US$285,000) when a resident leaves |
| Panama | None | None listed |
| Costa Rica | None | None listed |
| Singapore | None; estate duty ended 15 February 2008 | No gift or wealth tax either |
| Sweden | None | Yearly property fee on Swedish real estate only |
| United Arab Emirates | None | Local registration fees when real property changes hands |
Where "nothing" has a catch. Canada and Australia charge no tax at the heir's door, but a death can still trigger tax on the person who died. Canada treats the death as a sale of capital property at market value. Australia triggers capital gains tax for the deceased if an asset passes to someone living abroad. Malta, which is not in the table, charges no inheritance tax but has stamp duty of 5% on property and 2% on shares, with a relief of EUR 250,000 (approximately US$275,000) on a parent's gift of a home to a child.
The sources differ on one point. For Cyprus, the quick chart from PwC lists gift tax as nil up to a third-degree relative. A law firm says there is no gift tax at all. Both agree on the inheritance side.
Strength of the sources. Most lines come from PwC's worldwide tax summaries at tier B. New Zealand's gift duty end comes from Inland Revenue, tier A. Costa Rica and Panama are at tier B with medium confidence, and Malaysia's line is one PwC line.
You might say: "If the country charges nothing, my children pay nothing." That depends on where the children live and where the person who died lived. The United States taxes its citizens on assets everywhere, at up to 40% above US$15 million per person for 2026. Germany taxes the receiver if the receiver is a German resident. Neither rule cares that the money sat in Singapore. A place with no inheritance tax removes one layer, and the countries of the people involved may add their own.
You could read the table as a list of places where the local layer is empty. Then you could look at the second and third layers: the country of the person who died, and the country where each heir lives.
If your family has used one of these places to hold or pass on assets, what did you find the catch to be? Share it here, because someone weighing the same door may benefit from your story.
Figures are estimates for planning, based on public data. Date read: October 2026.
Sources
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries 2026 for Australia, Austria, Canada, Cyprus, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Malta, Norway, Panama, Costa Rica, Singapore, Sweden and the United Arab Emirates (B)
- Inland Revenue New Zealand on gift duty (A)
- IRS estate and gift tax pages (A)
- Mondaq on Cyprus (B)
Tell us in the comments