How to Move to Puerto Rico in 2026

PUERTO RICO · EXPATS & NOMADS

US citizens need no visa or immigration permit to move to Puerto Rico, because the island is a US territory, and foreign nationals follow the same US immigration rules as on the mainland. The tax picture is changing: Act 60 tax decrees (signed tax deals for new resident investors) filed by Thursday, 31 December 2026 keep a 0% island income tax rate on investment income, while applications from Friday, 1 January 2027 face a flat 4%.

This guide, current on Monday, 9 November 2026, explains who can move, how residency is proven for tax, and what to arrange in your first weeks.

Who Can Move Without a Visa

Puerto Rico is part of the United States for immigration purposes, so there is no separate Puerto Rican visa or residence permit. A US citizen can move from the mainland as freely as from Ohio to Florida, and flies on a US domestic ticket with valid identification, such as a Real ID driving licence (the federally compliant version) or a passport.

Foreign nationals follow US immigration law. A green card holder (permanent resident) can settle on the island as in any US state, while a visa holder stays within the terms of that visa, which a Puerto Rico address does not change.

Visitors from Visa Waiver Program countries, the scheme that lets citizens of eligible nations visit without a visa, may stay up to 90 days for tourism or business without a visa, according to US Customs and Border Protection, the federal border agency. That is a visit, not a way to settle.

What It Means for US Readers

For a mainland reader the move is a domestic one, with the same dollar and the same federal law. The big difference is tax: a bona fide resident can exclude Puerto Rico-source income from the US federal return but files and pays island income tax to Hacienda, Puerto Rico’s Treasury, instead.

Check how your income is sourced before you move, because the exclusion covers only Puerto Rico-source income. Wages paid by the US government for work in Puerto Rico, for example, stay subject to federal tax, the IRS says.

Budget for the whole move, not only tax. Our Puerto Rico cost of living guide sets out rent, power and food, and our security and crime explainer covers safety by region.

How Act 60 Investor Decrees Work

Act 60 is Puerto Rico’s Incentives Code, the 2019 law that offers tax decrees to new residents, investors and businesses. The individual resident investor decree, granted by the island’s Department of Economic Development and Commerce (DDEC), has exempted dividends, interest and post-move capital gains from island income tax.

Act 38-2026, signed by Governor Jenniffer González-Colón in March 2026, moves the programme’s end date for new applicants from 2035 to 2055. It also replaces the 0% rate with a flat 4% for applications filed after 31 December 2026, according to legal analyses of the act.

Those analyses say a new applicant must not have lived in Puerto Rico during the six years before moving. Existing decree holders keep the terms they signed, with exemptions running to 31 December 2035, or may ask to modify their decree to the new regime.

Decrees typically run 15 years, with a possible 15-year extension, according to the same analyses. Terms such as a home purchase or a donation can apply, so read the current terms at DDEC before you apply.

Proving You Are a Bona Fide Resident

A decree alone does not remove federal tax, because the IRS decides that under its bona fide resident rules. You must meet three tests for the tax year.

The presence test is met by spending at least 183 days in Puerto Rico in the year, or 549 days over three years with at least 60 days in each year. These are two of the ways to meet it in IRS Publication 570, the agency’s guide for residents of US territories.

The tax home test says your main place of work or business cannot be outside Puerto Rico. The closer connection test says you cannot have closer ties to the US mainland or another country than to Puerto Rico.

Factors the IRS can weigh include where your permanent home, family, belongings, driver’s licence and voter registration are. That is why a local licence and a local address are part of the tax case, not only paperwork.

What the IRS Still Taxes

US tax law lets bona fide residents exclude Puerto Rico-source income from their US return. You must still report income from worldwide sources on your Puerto Rico return, and income that is not Puerto Rico-source falls outside the exclusion.

The IRS opened a compliance campaign aimed at individuals claiming benefits under Puerto Rico’s Act 22 individual investors law in January 2021. Keep leases, utility bills and travel records from the first day, because those are what an auditor asks for.

Island income tax is progressive. Rates and brackets can change, so check the current table at Hacienda.

Driving Licence, Health Cover and First Steps

Puerto Rico’s Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTOP) issues driving licences through its CESCO driver service centres. Book an appointment through Turnos PR, the island’s government booking system, at cesco.turnospr.com, and check the booking site for the current phone number.

Real ID, the federally compliant licence needed for domestic flights, has its own requirements page at dtop.pr.gov/real-id. Confirm the current document list and fees with CESCO before you go.

Medicare, the US public health insurance for people 65 and over and some disabled people, covers eligible residents of Puerto Rico, and private health plans are sold on the island for everyone else. Ask for written quotes before you commit, and read our history explainer and power structure explainer to understand who runs the services you will rely on.

What Is Not Known

Law firms reported in March 2026 that Act 38 still needed final endorsement from the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico, the federal panel that oversees the island’s finances, and we could not confirm that it has been given. The decree fees, any donation or home-purchase terms and the licence deadline for new residents also stay unconfirmed here.

Health insurance premiums and the current income tax brackets are not confirmed either. Check each at the agency named above before you act.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do US citizens need a visa to move to Puerto Rico?

No. Puerto Rico is a US territory, so US citizens move there as they would to another state, though air travellers need a Real ID-compliant licence or a passport.

Can foreigners move to Puerto Rico?

Only under US immigration status, such as a green card or a work visa, because there is no separate Puerto Rican visa. Visitors from Visa Waiver Program countries, the scheme that lets citizens of eligible nations visit without a visa, may stay up to 90 days.

Is Act 60 still available in 2026?

Yes for applications filed by 31 December 2026, which keep the 0% rate on investment income. Applications from 1 January 2027 face a flat 4%, so ask a tax professional.

How many days must I live in Puerto Rico to count as a resident?

The IRS presence test can be met in several ways, for example 183 days in the year, or 549 days over three years with at least 60 in each. You must also pass the tax home and closer connection tests.

Do I need a Puerto Rico driving licence?

The IRS counts your driver’s licence as evidence of where your closest ties are. The deadline for new residents is not confirmed here, so ask a CESCO centre.

Sources: US Internal Revenue Service, Publication 570, Tax Guide for Individuals With Income From US Territories (irs.gov/publications/p570), read 9 November 2026; US Customs and Border Protection, Visa Waiver Program (cbp.gov/travel/international-visitors/visa-waiver-program), read 9 November 2026; Puerto Rico Department of Transportation and Public Works and CESCO (dtop.pr.gov, cesco.turnospr.com), read 9 November 2026; IRS Large Business and International compliance campaigns, 27 January 2021 (irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/irs-lbi-compliance-campaigns-january-27-2021); Puerto Rico Incentives Code, Act 60-2019, as amended by Act 38-2026 (Puerto Rico Department of Economic Development and Commerce, ddec.pr.gov).