Gibraltar · Tax regime
High Executive Possessing Specialist Skills (HEPSS)
Open
Last verified July 2026
Open. Assessable income capped at GBP 160,000 with an annual tax liability of GBP 39,940 under the Gross Income Based System. Not affected by the June 2026 Category 2 changes.
HEPSS is the working counterpart to Category 2: no net-worth test, but you must genuinely hold a senior Gibraltar role paying above GBP 160,000 in skills the local economy lacks. For a fund principal or gaming/insurance executive relocating the business, it is cheaper and less scrutinised than Category 2 — and it was untouched by the June 2026 repricing.
Qualifying routes
£39.9k
HEPSS certificate
Gross assessable income capped at GBP 160,000; taxed under the Gross Income Based System only; annual liability GBP 39,940
The facts
- Qualifying figure
- £39.9k
- Total landed cost
- GBP 39,940 a year in tax plus high-standard approved residential accommodation in Gibraltar
- Timeline
- 1–4 months — requires an employment offer in Gibraltar plus certificate application
- Physical presence
- must occupy approved high-standard residential accommodation in Gibraltar and hold a genuine Gibraltar executive role
- Family
- spouse and dependent children accompany the principal
- Permanent residency
- tied to continued employment and status
- Citizenship
- no direct route
- Language test
- not applicable
- Dual citizenship
- Permitted
- Requirements
- employment in Gibraltar in a role requiring specialist skills not available in Gibraltar and of value to the economyannual earnings above GBP 160,000approved high-standard residential accommodation in Gibraltargenerally not resident in Gibraltar in the previous 3 yearscertificate from the Finance Centre Director
What can go wrong
- The skills must genuinely not be available in Gibraltar and must be of value to the economy — the Finance Centre assesses this substantively and refuses applications that look like Category 2 by another name.
- It is contingent on employment. Lose the role and you lose the status and, with it, the residence basis.
- The GBP 160,000 salary floor must be real and paid.
- It caps assessable income at GBP 160,000 but does not shelter you from taxation elsewhere; and unlike Category 2 the tax is a fixed GBP 39,940 with no banding relief.
- Approved high-standard residential accommodation is required and Gibraltar's supply is tight and expensive.
- The same cross-border risk as Category 2: living in Spain while claiming Gibraltar tax status is the classic and now easier error under the post-15-July-2026 open border.