Uruguay Temporary Residence (no dedicated nomad visa): Tax Implications

Uruguay's tax holiday was substantially restructured by Law 20.446, effective January 1, 2026 — this is a major, recent change, and a lot of older content still describes the pre-2026 rules. New tax residents from 2026 onward can elect an 11-year exemption (the year residency is granted plus 10 more) on foreign-source capital income specifically — dividends, interest, capital gains, and rental income, not all foreign income broadly. The old lower-cost path to this (roughly $590,000 in real estate plus just 60 days of physical presence) was eliminated; qualifying now requires either straightforward 183+ day physical presence (no investment needed), or a much higher investment bar around $2 million in real estate or $100,000/year into a government innovation fund. Residents who don't hold the holiday now face a real 12% tax on foreign-source capital income, a genuine change from Uruguay's previous broadly territorial approach. There's also a prior-residency exclusion (you can't have been a Uruguayan tax resident recently) — sources cite either a 2-year or 5-year lookback, so confirm the current figure directly rather than trust either number here.