Lesotho
Profiled in Maseru · Southern Africa
The Mountain Kingdom, entirely above a thousand metres and landlocked inside South Africa, with basalt highlands, blanket-wrapped horsemen and serious winter snow.
Cost of living
What a month costs
The loti is pegged to the rand and most retail comes from South Africa, so prices follow Bloemfontein rather than local incomes.
The scores
How it rates for a moving family
See and do
Top 10 in Maseru
- Maletsunyane FallsA single two-hundred-metre drop near Semonkong.
- Thaba-BosiuSandstone mesa and the burial place of King Moshoeshoe I.
- Katse Dam wallThe engineering centrepiece of Lesotho's water exports.
- AfriskiSouthern Africa's only ski resort, in the Maloti mountains.
- Morija MuseumNational museum and dinosaur footprints south of Maseru.
- Ha Kome Cave HousesInhabited dwellings built into a rock overhang.
- Sehlabathebe National ParkRemote Drakensberg wilderness and UNESCO site.
- Basotho HatLandmark craft shop in central Maseru.
Where to go
Weekend escapes
- SemonkongFalls, pony trekking and the world's longest commercial abseil.
- Sani PassSwitchback road to the Drakensberg escarpment and the highest pub in Africa.
- Katse DamVast arch dam at the heart of the Highlands Water Project.
- Thaba-BosiuPlateau fortress where the Basotho nation was founded.
- MalealeaMountain lodge village and a base for pony trekking.
Residency
Residence follows work or business permits. Lesotho does not offer an investor route, land cannot be owned outright by foreigners, and the border with South Africa dominates practical logistics.
Tax
A two-band personal system reaches 30%, and the corporate rate is 25%, with a reduced 10% rate on manufacturing income. VAT is 15%. There is no wealth or inheritance tax.
Curious what you would actually pay? See the Lesotho tax profile: income, corporate, VAT and exit rules →
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