Tuvalu capital gains tax: none, dealing profits are income
Tuvalu has no capital gains tax, so the tax on your investment gain is zero. The Income Tax Act excludes amounts of a capital nature from gross income and taxes residents only on Tuvalu-source income. Only dealing, buying assets to resell, is taxed, as income on the individual scale.
Verified as of 2026-09-30 against the Income Tax Act (Cap. 26.16).
Current rules
Taxes on selling shares, crypto and property in Tuvalu
What you pay when you sell
| Asset | Tax on the gain |
|---|---|
| Shares (personal investment) | Nothing. Amounts of a capital nature are outside gross income |
| Crypto | Nothing on the gain |
| Property (personal investment) | Nothing on the gain |
| Assets bought to resell (dealing) | Income tax on the profit: 0% to $10,000, 15% to $14,000, 30% above |
Questions
Tuvalu capital gains tax questions
Does Tuvalu have a capital gains tax?
No. The Income Tax Act defines gross income as income, revenue, profits or gains not being amounts of a capital nature, and a capital asset as one not acquired or used with the principal purpose of disposal. Whether you sell shares after a week or a building after twenty years, the gain itself is not taxed.
Is crypto taxed in Tuvalu?
Not as a capital gain. Crypto held as an investment is a capital asset like any other, and the Income Tax Act has no capital gains charge for a crypto rule to sit in. Residents are also taxed only on Tuvalu-source income.
When would tax touch my sale?
When you are dealing. Section 9 of the Income Tax Act makes the proceeds of disposal of revenue assets gross income, so habitual buying and selling for profit is taxed at the individual scale: 0% up to $10,000, 15% up to $14,000 and 30% above. That is income tax on trading profits, not a tax on capital gains.
Do dividends and interest count?
Yes. The Act lists a dividend and interest as gross income, so they are taxed as income. Selling the holding that paid them is not taxed.
Does Consumption Tax apply to my sale?
No, not as a tax on your gain. Consumption Tax is charged at 7% on supplies by registered enterprises, registration starts at $100,000 of taxable supplies in a 12-month period, and financial services are exempt.
What exactly does the Income Tax Act charge?
Tuvalu has no capital gains tax. The Income Tax Act (Cap. 26.16, 2022 Revised Edition) defines gross income in section 2 as all income, revenue, profits or gains "not being amounts of a capital nature", and section 2 defines a capital asset as any asset not acquired or used with the principal purpose of disposal. A gain on a capital asset is outside gross income at any holding period and any size.
Are gains on foreign assets taxed?
Tuvalu taxes residents only on Tuvalu-source income: section 7(1)(a) includes gross income in a resident's taxable income only if it is derived from a source within (or deemed within) Tuvalu, and section 8(2) treats no part of a dividend from a non-resident company as Tuvalu-source. A gain on shares in a foreign company is outside the charge on both grounds.
Can a disposal ever be taxed as income?
Dealing is the boundary: section 9(1)(l) makes the proceeds of disposal of revenue assets gross income, and a revenue asset is an asset that is not a capital asset. Shares, crypto or property bought with the principal purpose of resale are taxed as income at the Schedule 6 scale, not as capital gains.
How are dividends and interest treated?
Dividends and interest are charged as income, not as gains: section 9(1)(e) and (h) list a dividend and interest as gross income. Selling the holding that paid them is not.
How does Consumption Tax relate to a sale?
Consumption Tax applies to supplies made in an enterprise that is registered, which is required once taxable supplies reach $100,000 in a 12-month period (Consumption Tax Act 2008, section 7), and financial services are exempt (section 6(1)(c)). It is a tax on supplies, not on an investor's net capital gain.