Legal frame
The public phrase "residence by investment" is imprecise for Andorra. The official category is residence without work, in Catalan residència sense treball, and the investor profile is residence without gainful activity, residència sense activitat lucrativa. It authorises residence in Andorra during the validity of the permit; it is not citizenship, it does not authorise work in Andorra, and it is not a right to live in Spain, France or another European state.
The Andorran Government's official e-services portal states that a non-gainful residence applicant must establish principal and effective residence in Andorra for at least 90 days per calendar year and must not carry out labour or professional activity there. The 90-day rule is therefore an immigration condition for this permit type, not a tax residence rule and not a generic mobility promise.
The initial residence-without-work authorisation is granted for two years; the first renewal is also for two years, the second for three years and subsequent renewals for ten years, subject to the special regime for nationals of states that have signed and ratified a relevant agreement with Andorra. This renewal structure is more legally important than a marketing timeline for receiving a card.
Investment in Andorran assets
Under the current framework, the principal applicant must invest permanently and effectively at least EUR 600,000 in Andorran assets. Law 2/2026 lists the eligible classes: immovable property in Andorra; shares or own funds of Andorran resident companies; debt or financial instruments issued by resident entities, including Andorran collective investment funds for a maximum of 36 months; debt instruments issued by Andorran public administrations; life-insurance products contracted with Andorran resident entities; and non-remunerated deposits with the Andorran Financial Authority (Autoritat Financera Andorrana, AFA).
If the investment is made directly or indirectly in the Housing Fund, Fons d'Habitatge, the threshold is reduced to EUR 400,000. But for real estate, Law 2/2026 adds a separate constraint: where the investment in Andorran assets is made wholly or partly through immovable property, an amount above EUR 800,000 must be allocated to each real-estate unit acquired. This is no longer the old simplified story in which any EUR 600,000 apartment could be presented as the general route.
The applicant may undertake to make the investment within six months. Law 2/2026 allows a further six-month extension where the investment could not be formalised because of force majeure or a third party's fault. Failure to provide the required investment evidence, or evidence of the new allocation for assets subject to reallocation, results in annulment of the non-gainful residence permit.
AFA payment after the 2026 reform
Older materials referring to a refundable EUR 47,500 deposit should not be used as current law without a caveat. Law 2/2026 changes the regime for non-gainful residence: the principal applicant must make a EUR 50,000 payment to AFA and an additional EUR 12,000 payment for each dependant who acquires non-gainful resident status. These payments are final and non-refundable unless the initial immigration authorisation is refused. Once the Immigration Service communicates the grant of the authorisation, AFA transfers the amounts to the state.
This is why a public cost calculation should separate the investment in assets, the non-refundable public payment, immigration fees, housing, insurance, legalisation, translation and professional costs. The old expression "security deposit" no longer captures the 2026 position for this route.
Schengen boundary
Andorra is not a member state of the European Union and is not a Schengen member state. In November 2025, the Government of Andorra explained a regulatory amendment requiring applicants for residence without work who are not EU or EEA nationals to prove that they are in a regular situation to enter and circulate legally through Schengen states and to re-enter from Schengen territory into Andorra.
That rule matters because Andorra is reached through neighbouring Schengen states in practice. An Andorran residence permit does not itself create EU citizenship, free movement or a right to reside in another state; the Schengen leg must be legally covered by a visa, visa-free entitlement or other valid entry basis.
Tax boundary
Andorra's tax profile should not be described as absence of tax. The Government's IRPF guidance states that the personal income tax rate is 10%. A separate Government explanation describes the effective brackets for the general base: net income below EUR 24,000 is not taxed; EUR 24,001 to EUR 40,000 bears an equivalent 5% rate through a 50% relief against the 10% general rate; income above EUR 40,000 bears 10%; and for savings income, the first EUR 3,000 is not taxed and 10% applies thereafter.
Tax residence is not automatic merely because a person holds a residence-without-work card. For international clients, the result depends on actual presence, centre of vital interests, treaty rules and the exit country's domestic tests. If family, management, business and habitual life remain in Spain, France, Russia or another jurisdiction, the Andorran card alone does not prove that the tax centre has moved.
Corporate and investment taxation must be analysed separately. The immigration permit should not be used as shorthand for every company, fund, holding, real-estate or portfolio income item.
Family members and evidence
The official forms and portal require evidence of civil status, housing, health cover, absence of criminal record, medical review, financial capacity and investment commitment. Documents must be legalised and presented in a form accepted by the Andorran authority. Public writing should not state that all relatives are automatically included: dependence, age, family relationship and status are evidenced separately.
Public text should also avoid saying that the investment guarantees status. Andorran immigration law involves quotas, document review, medical and police checks, housing review, regular Schengen-status evidence for non-European applicants and later proof that the investment has been made. Investment is a necessary element for this authorisation type, not a substitute for the administrative decision.