Kiribati
Profiled in Tarawa · Oceania and the Pacific
Thirty-three atolls scattered across three and a half million square kilometres of Pacific, straddling the equator and the date line, and among the most exposed nations on earth to sea-level rise.
Cost of living
What a month costs
The Australian dollar is legal tender. Everything is shipped in, which makes South Tarawa expensive despite very low local incomes.
The scores
How it rates for a moving family
See and do
Top 10 in Tarawa
- Battle of Tarawa sitesJapanese gun emplacements and wrecks at Betio.
- KiritimatiVast atoll with saltwater flats and seabird colonies.
- Te UmanibongThe Kiribati cultural centre and museum on Tarawa.
- Phoenix Islands Protected AreaOne of the world's largest marine reserves, a UNESCO site.
- Betio CausewayRoad link along the South Tarawa atoll chain.
- AmboVillage and parliament complex on Tarawa.
- BuarikiNorthern end of Tarawa atoll.
- Equator and date line crossingKiribati is the first country to see each new day.
Where to go
Weekend escapes
- Christmas Island (Kiritimati)The world's largest coral atoll, a bonefishing destination.
- AbaiangTraditional atoll north of Tarawa.
- BetioSite of the 1943 Battle of Tarawa.
- North TarawaQuieter villages reached by causeway and boat.
- ButaritariGreen northern atoll with wartime remains.
Residency
Residence follows work permits, and there is no investor route. Kiribati faces existential sea-level risk and has purchased land in Fiji as a contingency.
Tax
Personal rates reach 35% and the corporate rate is 30%. The Australian dollar is legal tender. Fishing licence revenue and the Revenue Equalisation Reserve Fund dominate public finances.
Curious what you would actually pay? See the Kiribati tax profile: income, corporate, VAT and exit rules →
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