Andorra residency categories and the latest changes
2026 A summary of the recent Residency Requirement changes
- The minimum threshold for passive residency investment is now 1M EUR (and not the predicted 800K).
- The minimum value for property to count for passive residency investment rises to 800K
- The initial purchase taxes in all categories is doubled from the 3% current rate for one property to 6% for non residents (which definition include residents of less than 3 years "service");
- For all new applications in all categories the bond of 50K is now non refundable.
- For passive residents the initial issue cost of the card rises to 3K for the principal applicant and 1K for all dependents.
- For new applicants in all categories ex EU passport holder must have a stamp out of Spain /France at the Andorran border (see below)
- For passive resident renewals the cost of issue of each card rises to 500 EUR.
- For existing residents with card in hand before the changes there is no effect whatsoever, except the new cost of card issue of the renewals, the bonds paid remain refundable less the 0.2% annual "handling fee".
All active and passive residency ex EU applicants must be stamped out of Spain or France.
As part of the Spanish appeasement process under way all active and passive residents who are not part of the Schengen area and therefore subject to the 90 day Schengen visa and who are applying for residency for the first time (not existing residents) MUST stop at the Andorra border on the way out of Spain or France (if coming via France) and insist on a passport stamp for exit from Spain or France. This applies to all new non EU nationals/ resident applicants only, whether work permits, seasonal permits, passive applicants and company formation applications (Compte Propi).
For Compte Propi (company formation ) you do need the stamp out if you are ex EU for the "reserva" part of the process, so this now rules out being able to apply on the applicant`s behalf on the strength of a notarised or original passport, a stamp is also required for the second part after company formation is completed.
Let me reiterate that there is no requirement for existing residents to stop at the border for the stamp, and the above changes for new applicants does not extend to any person who has legal status in the EU, and that includes for example foreign nationals who have the French or Spanish residency permits.
An overview of common requirements
The first point to note that on this page there is no reference to categories of digital nomad / entrepreneur, simply because I do not offer assistance in these new categories as the complications outweigh any benefit !
For all categories, you must be here in person with any dependent over 16 years old at the time of application. For children under 16 we can get around that requirement
Also now required, not by law but by Immigration demands, is for all RE-APPLICATIONS (This is where the residency is cancelled or unable to be renewed necessitating a reset or re-application) for passive residency to obtain an Andorran police certificate. This is NOT a new requirement for new applications or for the usual renewals of residency.
All applications must be 100% complete for all certificates and documents. IF any certificate is incorrect you will have 10 days to produce a correct one otherwise the application is cancelled and you will need a new and complete set of application papers.
Police certificates from any third country are now required to be completely free of any record. Immigration seems to think it is easy to get removed spent convictions, unfortunately if you are from the UK and many other countries that simply is not so easy. However under this new diktat, if you have any conviction you should not apply for residency.
Time spent here or not spent here is not monitored (except with the possibility of category D at first renewal). This means in reality you can spend as much or as little time here as you wish BUT be aware of the new tax rulings for passive residents.
It is advisable now to also familiarise yourself with the renewal requirements which for passive residents need to be fully understood. Please have a look in your own time at the renewal requirements page.
Categories can be inter-changeable once approved, but strictly in compliance with the bureaucracy of Immigration. A change from active to passive and vice versa is now regarded as a new application and the clock ( years of residency under your belt) is reset from the year of your original application to the current application.
Let me summarise the different categories available. Once you have decided which category may be appropriate for you, then please click on the appropriate category link to read in detail the requirements and how to go about starting the procedure.
Have a read of shenanigans Andorra style, a collection of cynical matters that did happen, did not happen, should have happened or should not have happened, you can make up your own mind !!
Category A Passive Residency
You may continue to have an existing company or employment outside Andorra.
The non refundable payment to the government on application is € 50,000 for the head of household and € 12,000 for each dependent. Within six months of approval the applicant must then show that he has invested a total amount of €1,000,000 in Andorra, please note that this government deposit does NOT form part of this investment This investment may be in property or financial investments in Andorra or a combination, and these are outlined in detail on the permissible investments section on the detailed page for Category A.
On approval of the residency, the card will then cost 3,000 EUR for the principal applicant and 1,000 EUR for each dependent and these fees are non refundable.
On paper the minimum required stay is 90 days per year. The minimum required stay to become a fiscal resident is 183 days per year. So, a passive resident who stays in Andorra for less than 183 days per year can maintain his residency and not necessarily become a fiscal resident. For those passive residents who need to become a fiscal resident but who cannot in practise stay for 183 days per year can simply opt to declare tax (or by stating that Andorra is their principal base of economic activity regardless of the number of days spent here), but again be aware of recent (October 2025) rulings from the tax office especially if you own property or you require a fiscal certificate for foreign institutions.
It is now our advice that ALL passive residents should file a tax return even in many cases that is a zero return. We can assist with this on request.
Residents under category A are also allowed to form an Andorran holding company which can be useful to receive dividends (under most circumstances) tax free from companies based elsewhere.
Category A is a paper exercise and remains the most straightforward category of residency in spite of the increase in investment requirements and to apply for. It takes 2-4 weeks for the card to be issued. If the investment requirement is not a concern for you then this category can be the most straightforward and quickest route.
Category B Passive Residency
Residency dependent on the viability of a business plan, a passive category that allows a company, residency and flexibility of living in Andorra.
Please note that this category is complicated and renewals in this category especially have become quite onerous and in general I only recommend this category as an extreme last resort, in all cases, category D active residency should be considered. Immigration have been trying to cancel this category for many years !
The non refundable deposit payable to the government is € 50,000 for the head of household and € 12,000 for each dependent. In this category you are not required to prove any extra investment as in Category A. However, you must within seven months of approval have formed an Andorran company. This category is subjective, and approval is granted on the basis of a viable business plan at the residency application stage. I have guides on this to assist you.
On approval of the residency, the card will then cost 3,000 EUR for the principal applicant and 1,000 EUR for each dependent and these fees are non refundable.
As with Category A, the minimum required stay is 90 days per year. Of course, the company itself will be liable to Company tax in Andorra at 10% on profits but for the individual shareholders unless they stay here for more than 183 days will not necessarily become a fiscal resident. In effect category B allows residency, an Andorran company, and flexibility of living and working in Andorra as a principal base. One point of the tax law is that dividend distribution from an Andorran company is exempt from personal income tax in Andorra (once the company tax is declared).
Category B provides that a minimum of 85% of business activity must be conducted outside of Andorra, and there is a provision for the company to be able to exercise an option to employ a maximum of one employee in Andorra.
Category B can take longer to approve, maybe 2 to 5 months, as the business plan has to be studied by various government departments. Once approval is granted the residency card is issued within 3 to 6 weeks and the formation of the Andorran company can commence. Family dependants can be included in the application at the same time as the main applicant (but NOT always in Category D, please see below) or can be added at any time after approval of the head of household.
At renewal you have to prove sufficient business income to support yourself and family and this is causing problems given the requirement also for 300% (400% etc) for yourself and dependents.
Category B does NOT allow you to contribute to the local social security system (CASS) and you will require private medical insurance.
There is now a new Category B (Digital Entrepreneur) however for reasons stated on that web page, there are too many complications, especially at renewal that I cannot recommend it, nor am I agreeing to process any applications. Instead, I recommend Category D active residency below with the bond exemption.
Category C Passive Residency
This passive residence Category is designed to attract the professional sportsmen, writers, entertainers, and famous people to Andorra.
In essence this is exactly the same as category A but the applicant is required to show that he is a professional and famous sportsman, scientist, sculptor, author, or famous person in his own right. If this can be proven by means of a professional contract, CV and proof of achievements then the applicant will be required to pay the non refundable € 50,000 deposit to the government plus € 12,000 for each family dependent but will be exempt from having to invest a further amount up to € 1,000,000 as in Category A.
On approval of the residency, the card will then cost 3,000 EUR for the principal applicant and 1,000 EUR for each dependent and these fees are non refundable.
Again, the minimum required stay is 90 days per year and therefore the resident is not necessarily a fiscal resident as in Categories A and B above. Be aware of the new fiscal and tax interpretations in 2025 which affects all passive residents and which you should read carefully.
As in Category B there is a subjective element in determining whether the applicant is of sufficient fame or standing to be approved under this category but approval does come through a lot quicker than Category B and generally the paperwork is not too complicated to put together in most circumstances.
Category D Active Residency
Category D (known locally as "Compte Propi").
This category is closed temporarily pending a review of the law and the issue of a new quota in which there will be new requirements for applicants in this category, stay tuned
There is a requirement for the non refundable deposit on application of €50,000 per shareholder/Director who must also hold a minimum of 34% of the share capital in order to apply for residency, unless the branch of Professional Liberal is taken ( see below).
For digital entrepreneurs there is an option to apply after company formation to the Ministry of the Economy for exemption from the €50,000 bond/deposit. This is explained later.
An active work permit in Andorra but is limited and only allows you to work for an Andorran company with which you must stay for the first 12 months. After 12 months it may be possible to form your own commerce, but it can be complicated, at least in the first part of that process.
If you wish to trade in Andorra, for example import goods, employ local people, have a shop or restaurant, manufacture here etc. then Category D is the only real option. Category D´s intention is for you to develop the business within Andorra as your principle economic base. Please note there is no restriction as to whether actual trade takes place in Andorra, there is no requirement to invoice locally, BUT at renewal now there is increasing scrutiny on sufficient business activity.
Category D does not require a business plan other than the application for foreign investment approval but there are two branches to this category (known as "Compte Propi"):-
- The most common is formation of an Andorran Company with the foreign investment approval first. This category is not applicable to those seeking employment from any other existing company, nor are you able to work for another company.
- "Professional Liberal" is a "comerç" (sole proprietorship not a limited company) for self-employment in certain professions such as architects, doctors and so on where the qualifications must be approved by the local relevant Institute or Department. These institutes will decide whether qualifications can be reciprocal and the qualifications held are applicable to Andorra. This route can be more difficult for approval and depends on qualifications and experience. The non refundable deposit of 50K is also now required for this category.
Please note that you can start along the lines of company formation, but when it comes to asking for the local trading license and after the residency is approved problems can arise. This is because the trading license is issued by the relevant Comú and as is happening more and more the Comú approval requires the recognition of "Professional Liberal" and that then in some cases can be denied resulting in problems and a revamping of the company objectives. For some reason this is not picked up on by Government in the foreign investment approval process and really should be! We can advise on this during the company formation process.
The minimum time required to be spent here is 183 days per year rather than the 90 days for passive residents. For this reason in Category D you will become a full fiscal resident but note that the personal income tax law means that dividend distributions from an Andorran company are exempt from personal taxation (once the corporation tax is declared).
In this process the Andorran company can take up to 6- 10 weeks to complete. Once the company documents are available an application can be then made to immigration for active residency. The processing time for active residency is a matter of days but does include an undertaking to prove to immigration that all of the company formation and local licensing procedure will be completed within 3 months of residency approval.
For a spouse to become a non-working dependent, Immigration require a 3 month wait (Specifically that is THREE FULL CASS contribution months, partial months do NOT count) between the main application and the family grouping (unlike Category B). However, if the spouse can be included as a joint minimum 34% shareholder then applications can then be at the same time. This will incur extra contributions though to CASS (Social security) as the spouse will be deemed to be working. Category D is the only category where you are obliged to contribute to CASS, the other categories require private health insurance.
Once you have an idea of what category you may be interested in please go back and click now on the appropriate Category heading and discover in more detail what is involved. I fully understand that each individual case is different and that very relevant questions arise. Please do email me if you have specific questions.
2026 Russian applications update...
There have been enquiries concerning the effect of sanctions and current policy for Russian and Belarusian applicants.
In summary for Russian and Belarusian nationals the Government policy, is that they are not processing the foreign investment applications for company formation, consequently Cat B of passive and Cat D of active are not possible.
Immigration say they themselves are not affected by any policy regarding Russian and Belarusian applications for Category A of passive residency. As before there are extra documentary requirements but in principle, applications will be processed and where the documents are correct the residencies will be approved subject to routine extra police checks.
The main problem is the banks here that are not processing new account applications for Russian or Belarusian nationals UNLESS there are very persuasive reasons, such as having left those countries many years ago, perhaps a new nationality, no funds coming from those countries OR any high risk country.
Each may be considered on a case by case business but it is not easy at all.
