The formalities relating to the conditions for issuing a residence certificate in the Principality were recently amended by Sovereign Order no. 8.372 of November 26^th, 2020 (amending Sovereign Order no. 8.566 of March 28^th, 1986 relating to the certificate of residence). This one now distinguishes between the purpose of the application and adds notions of tax residence.

The issuing for administrative purposes:

The residence certificate is issued to residents of the Principality who have been living there for 6 months. Individuals who have been living in the Principality for less than 6 months will be qualified for a certificate only if they produce documents justifying an exemption.

Persons of Monegasque nationality must provide a document proving their identity and place of residence in the Principality.

Persons of foreign nationality, as for them, must:

• hold a valid residence permit;
• certify on their honour that they have been living in the Principality for more than six months, a year or that they have their centre of their interests;
• produce any document which may serve as proof of residence.

The issuing for tax purposes:

Since the introduction of the Common Reporting Standard (CRS), standard developed by the OECD in 2014 for the automatic exchange of information between partner countries to fight against tax evasion, foreign financial institutions and tax authorities can request a certificate for their clients who live in Monaco.

The residence certificate is part of a specific document (features of which are set by ministerial order).

Persons of Monegasque nationality must provide a document proving their identity and residence in the Principality.

Persons of foreign nationality, as for them, must :

• prove they hold a valid residence permit;
• declare on their honour that they have their principal place of residence or home (“foyer”), or that they have the main centre of their interests there, subject to bilateral agreements and conventions;
• justify occupying accommodation in Monaco by producing a title deed, a rental lease or an accommodation certificate;
• produce water, electricity and telephone bills relating to the past year together with any document proving residence;
• provide any other documents which may be requested by the Administration in relation to their enquiries.

The principal place of residence is defined as a stay of at least 183 days per year in the Principality or a stay of less than 183 days if the applicant is physically present in Monaco for a longer period than stays in any other countries.

If the applicant's principal place of residence cannot be determined, the place of the applicant's home (“foyer”) will then be taken into consideration. “Foyer" is usually the place where the applicant and/or his/her family habitually live(s), where the family interests are based.  

If the applicant does not meet the criteria of principal place of residence or “foyer” and wishes to rely on the "centre of intrerests" option, he/she must demonstrate that Monaco is "the place where the applicant has made his/her principal investments; where his/her business activities have their head office or place of effective management; from where he/she administers his/her assets.

Whether for administrative or tax purposes, each application must be made to the Police Department (“Direction de la Sûreté Publique”), which will then issue a certificate, valid, from the date of issue, 6 months in the first case or one year in the second.

Valeri Agency regularly helps new residents finding accomodation in the Principality and has privileged partnerships with various consultancy firms dealing with these formalities, in order to make your installation easier.