Coming to Uganda for weeks, months or years? Know what Uganda taxes before you arrive
How long you stay, whether you keep a home here and where you do your work decide what Uganda taxes, and what it doesn't. A visitor, a remote worker, an expatriate on a work permit and an investor are each treated differently. We plan it with you before you land.
How Uganda decides what to tax you on
Uganda taxes its residents on their income from everywhere, and non-residents only on income from Uganda. You're resident for tax if you have a permanent home here, spend 183 days or more here in any 12 months, or average more than 122 days a year over three years. In the year you arrive you're resident only from your first day here, and in the year you leave only until your last.
There's an important exception for newcomers. A resident who isn't a Ugandan citizen, and whose time in Uganda adds up to no more than two years, pays no Ugandan tax on income from abroad, and neither does their immediate family. Income earned in Uganda is always taxed, and work you do while you're physically here counts as Ugandan income, even when it's paid abroad.
Visitors and expats in five facts
- 183 days: in any 12 months, not a calendar year, makes you resident. So does an average of more than 122 days a year over three years, or a permanent home here.
- Two years: a non-citizen resident's income from abroad is exempt while their total time in Uganda is two years or less, and their family's too. URA hasn't published how it counts the two years, so we plan on the cautious reading.
- Work done here: counts as Ugandan income wherever you're paid. A tax treaty can protect short stays.
- 99 years: non-citizens hold land on leasehold only, for up to 99 years.
- 90 days: stay 90 days or more on a permit or pass and you must register with NIRA for an Alien ID.
Sources: Income Tax Act ss.9, 21(1)(l), 78 and 79; Land Act s.40; NIRA alien registration (June 2026). Checked October 2026.
What changes as you stay longer
| Stay | Usually | What Uganda taxes |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 90 days | Not resident, unless you have a home here | Only income from Uganda, including work done while you're here |
| Under 183 days in any 12 months | Usually not resident, but repeat visits add up, and so does a home kept here | Income from Uganda |
| 183 days or more, up to 2 years in total | Resident from the day you arrive | Income from Uganda. Income from abroad is exempt while your total time here is two years or less |
| More than 2 years | Resident | Worldwide income, with credit for tax paid abroad. Foreign salary taxed abroad stays exempt |
Visitors, expats, investors and employers
Visitors and remote workers
A holiday, a long visit or a few months working remotely from Kampala. We check whether you stay non-resident and whether the work you do here is taxed.
Expatriates on work permits
Your salary, your family, your income from home, and the two-year window, planned from arrival to departure.
Investors and business owners
The company's tax, dividends to you, and how your own residence changes the tax on everything else you earn.
Employers bringing in staff
Residence status, PAYE, Local Service Tax and the NSSF position for each expatriate, set up right from the first payroll.
Common surprises
- Working remotely on a visit, assuming income paid abroad isn't Ugandan
- Renting a home that quietly makes you resident
- Letting the two-year window close with a bonus, dividend or sale just after it
- Short visits that add up to 183 days over 12 months
- An employer missing the NSSF special contribution for expatriates
- Buying land on a tenure non-citizens can't hold
We advise on tax only. We don't arrange visas, passes or work permits. You or your employer apply directly to the Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control. We explain the tax effect of each route so you choose with the full picture.
Planned before you land, handled until you leave
Before you arrive
Your residence position, the two-year window, each source of income, the treaty position and your home country's rules, in a written plan.
When you land
Tax registration where needed, payroll or business setup, and what to tell your bank about your tax residence.
While you're here, and when you leave
Your yearly return, a day and permit tracker, an alert before your two-year window ends, and the final-year position when you go.
Tell us about your stay
A few questions about how long you're staying and what you'll do here. You see your likely tax position and the consultation fee. Your plan is priced after the consultation, because every stay is different.
Licensed Tax Agent, registered with TARC under URA · Helping clients since 2012 · Rated 4.7 on Google
Questions, by situation
Jump to: Visiting Uganda · Staying longer · Work, business and family · Working with us
Visiting Uganda
Normally not, unless you earn income from Ugandan sources. On a visit of up to 90 days without a home here, you're not resident for tax, and Uganda taxes only income from Uganda.
Work you do while physically in Uganda counts as Ugandan income, even if your employer pays you abroad. A tax treaty can exempt the salary of residents of the UK, South Africa, India, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Italy, Mauritius and Zambia, but only if you stay within the treaty's 183-day limit, your employer isn't resident in Uganda, and no business in Uganda bears the cost. Freelance and self-employed income follows different treaty rules. Working also needs the right immigration status, which you arrange directly with immigration.
The 183 days are counted over any 12 months, and an average of more than 122 days a year over three years also makes you resident. Repeat visits add up, so we count them with you.
Staying longer
If you have a permanent home in Uganda, are here 183 days or more in any 12 months, or average more than 122 days a year over three years. In your first and last years you're resident only from the day you arrive, or until the day you leave.
Not while your total time in Uganda is two years or less. A resident who isn't a Ugandan citizen and has been here for periods adding up to no more than two years is exempt on all income from abroad, and so is their immediate family. After that, worldwide income counts, with credit for tax paid abroad, and foreign salary already taxed abroad stays exempt. URA hasn't published how it counts the two years, so we plan on the cautious reading.
Your income from abroad starts to count. Planning the timing of foreign income, like a bonus, a dividend or a sale, before the window ends can make a large difference.
Work, business and family
Your salary is taxed in Uganda through PAYE. Your employer also handles Local Service Tax and NSSF, where expatriates can be exempt from standard contributions but the employer pays a 10% special contribution.
The company pays corporate tax, and dividends paid to you are taxed at 15%. Your own residence then decides how your other income is treated. We plan both together.
Non-citizens can hold land on leasehold only, for up to 99 years. A home kept available to you can also make you resident for tax, so we plan the timing.
Yes, if you stay 90 days or more on a permit or pass. Since June 2026 foreigners register with NIRA for an Alien ID with a unique identification number.
Working with us
No. We advise on tax only. You or your employer apply directly to the Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control. We explain the tax effect of each route so you choose with the full picture.
Every stay is different, so we start with a paid consultation of about an hour, by video, WhatsApp or in person, followed by a written note of where you'll stand. It's UGX 1,000,000 for an individual or family, and UGX 2,000,000 for an investor or business owner. For employers bringing in foreign staff it's UGX 2,500,000 for 1–2 people, UGX 3,500,000 for 3–5, UGX 5,000,000 for 6–10, and from UGX 7,500,000 for more. Your written plan, setup and yearly support are then quoted in writing, and the consultation fee is credited against them if you go ahead.
The two-year exemption is for non-citizens only, so your income from abroad counts once you're resident. We plan the move with you before you arrive.
Planning a move to Uganda? Get the tax right before you land.
A paid consultation, from UGX 1,000,000 and credited against your plan, tells you where you'll stand, what will be taxed and what won't.