Mauritius Smart City: the 18 Approved Projects and What Foreigners Can Buy

A Mauritius smart city is a mixed-use district – homes, offices, shops and leisure – approved by the Economic Development Board (EDB) under the Smart City Scheme, a regime created in 2015. Foreigners can buy smart city property in Mauritius with no minimum price: a villa, a house, a townhouse, an apartment or a duplex, completed or off-plan. A purchase of USD 375,000 or more makes the buyer eligible for a residence permit. Serviced plots for building your own home, on the other hand, are reserved for Mauritians and registered members of the diaspora under the EDB guidelines of August 2026.

The EDB lists 18 projects holding a Smart City certificate, from Cap Tamarin in the west to Azuri in the north-east. The registration duty paid by the buyer remains 5%: the increase to 10% planned for non-citizens from 1 July 2026 was repealed by the Finance Act 2026, promulgated on 12 August 2026. Rules and list checked on 17 September 2026.

The Smart City Scheme: definition and legal framework

The Smart City Scheme falls under the Economic Development Board Act. Its rules are set out in the Economic Development Board (Smart City Scheme) Regulations 2015, as amended since, and in the EDB guidelines, most recently updated in August 2026. The idea is to live, work and play in the same place, under a single master plan. To obtain a certificate, a project must, among other things:

• cover at least 21.105 hectares (50 arpents), unless it is a technopole or a public transport station;
• combine offices (including a mandatory innovation hub), shops, leisure, public spaces and housing, including affordable housing, with housing taking up no more than half of the land;
• sell at least 25% of its homes to Mauritians or registered members of the diaspora: foreign buyers can therefore account for at most 75% of the homes in a smart city.

The Non-Citizens (Property Restriction) Act exempts a non-citizen from the ministerial certificate when buying a home from a company holding a Smart City certificate (section 3(3)(c)(iii)). The purchase still requires an application filed with the EDB. Outside the routes provided for by this Act, the purchase is void and the property is sold by the Curator (section 5).

The scheme’s tax incentives are aimed at developers, not at buyers: an 8-year income tax exemption, VAT recovery and customs duty exemptions. For smart cities whose letter of comfort is issued on or after 5 June 2025, the Finance Act 2025 cut them back to a VAT refund on roads open to the public, excluding public transport station projects, and made certificates issued since that date subject to a levy on subdivided land.

Smart City or PDS: what changes for the buyer

The Property Development Scheme (PDS) is the closest regime: it too allows new homes to be sold to foreigners, whereas the IRS and RES now only cover existing projects. The two schemes share most of their purchase rules; they differ in the size and nature of the project.

A smart city is therefore built around year-round neighbourhood life, with at least a quarter of its homes sold to Mauritians or the diaspora; a PDS is an upmarket residential estate designed for an international clientele. All the schemes, including IRS, RES and G+2, are compared in our guide to the new-build purchase schemes.

The 18 smart cities approved by the EDB

The EDB publishes the list of projects holding a Smart City certificate: 18 companies as at 17 September 2026. The table matches each one to its project, location and developer, based on the EDB’s summary of projects and the developers’ own websites.

A certificate does not mean the city has been built. At the end of 2023, the EDB counted some forty developers active in smart cities, most of them still at the construction stage. Timelines can slip: in February 2022, Omnicane told its shareholders it had suspended residential development at Mon Trésor, which was sold the same year to the Mauritius Investment Corporation, set up by the Bank of Mauritius (Lexpress Property). Some projects, such as the Côte d’Or technopole, are first and foremost business parks.

Westimmo presents developments for sale in Tamarin, including at Cap Tamarin, and on the Azuri estate, where Smart City and PDS properties sit side by side.

What a foreigner can buy in a smart city

• A completed or off-plan home: villa, house, townhouse, apartment or duplex. Off-plan sales follow the VEFA regime (vente en l’état futur d’achèvement, sale of a property yet to be completed) set out in the Mauritian Civil Code.
• No minimum price: the amount only matters for the residence permit.
• In your own name or through a company, a limited partnership, a foundation or a trust administered by a licensed trustee.
• Commercial premises or offices, with an authorisation under the Non-Citizens (Property Restriction) Act.
• For retirees, a lifetime right of occupation (life right) in a senior residence: you live in the home rent-free, but you do not become its owner and can neither sell nor bequeath that right.

A foreigner cannot, however, buy a serviced plot to build a house. The EDB guidelines of August 2026 reserve these plots, of no more than 2,100 m² and to be built on within 10 years, for Mauritians and for members of the diaspora registered under the Mauritian Diaspora Scheme. An opening to resident foreigners (residence permit, Occupation Permit or Permanent Residence Permit) did exist, but the EDB residency portal limits it to purchases completed no later than 30 June 2022, and the August 2026 guidelines still refer, in the residence permit section, to a non-citizen owning a plot. Before reserving a plot, a foreigner must therefore obtain written confirmation of eligibility from the EDB.

Residence permit: from USD 375,000

Under section 8(1)(d) of the Immigration Act 2022, a non-citizen who buys a property under the Smart City Scheme for at least USD 375,000, or the equivalent in another hard currency converted at the selling rate on the day the deed is signed, is eligible for a residence permit. Where several people buy together, each of them must contribute at least USD 375,000 (section 8(1)(e)).

The permit extends to the spouse and dependants, including children under 24 according to the EDB guidelines. It remains valid for as long as the property is held. The steps are explained on our page on the residence permit through property.

Costs and payment in 2026

• Registration duty: 5% of the price, paid by the buyer in US dollars or another hard currency. The increase to 10% planned for non-citizens from 1 July 2026 was repealed by the Finance Act 2026 (Act No. 14 of 2026, sections 9 and 16).
• Land transfer tax: 5%, paid by the seller. The additional 10% duty introduced in 2026 only applies to residential property on State land or the Pas Géométriques sold to a non-citizen under the G+2 route: it does not concern smart cities.
• EDB processing fee: Rs 25,000, non-refundable, paid by the smart city company or by the developer.
• Registered members of the diaspora: exempt from registration duty.
• Notary’s fees come on top: see our guide to registration duty and notary fees.

A purchase from the developer is funded with money transferred from abroad. Since 13 December 2024, the notary pays 85% of the price to the developer in Mauritian rupees and the remaining 15% in foreign currency or in rupees. A loan from a Mauritian bank is only possible for the part of the price above USD 750,000, repaid in foreign currency. A foreigner already settled in Mauritius with an Occupation Permit or a residence permit can fund the purchase with money held locally. The 85% rule and the loan rule apply only to the first sale, not to resales. See also borrowing in Mauritius as a foreign buyer.

Worked example: an off-plan apartment at USD 400,000

The price is above USD 375,000, so the buyer is eligible for a residence permit. The buyer pays USD 20,000 in registration duty; the USD 20,000 of land transfer tax is borne by the developer. Below USD 750,000, the whole price comes from the buyer’s own funds transferred from abroad: USD 340,000 is paid to the developer in rupees and USD 60,000 may be paid in foreign currency. Off-plan, article 1601-30 of the Mauritian Civil Code caps the sums paid as construction progresses, and a late-payment penalty cannot exceed 1% per month.

Which buyers a smart city suits

A smart city is meant to let most of its residents live and work in the same place, and the projects filed with the EDB often include schools, medical facilities, shops and offices. The model mainly suits:

• families and working people settling year-round who want to keep commuting to a minimum;
• retirees who want services close by: the Mont Choisy project filed with the EDB includes a retirement village of 383 homes;
• buyers who want to enter the market without aiming for the residence permit, since there is no minimum price;
• long-term investors, as letting and reselling are unrestricted, subject to the resale formalities.

The buyers are mainly Mauritian. According to the EDB report of June 2024, about 2,800 homes were put on the market in smart cities between 2018 and 2023; 52% had been sold, only 7% of them to non-citizens. In the centre of the island (Moka and Plaines Wilhems), where sales under EDB schemes are mostly G+2 and Smart City apartments, the average price has levelled off at around Rs 10 million, give or take Rs 2 million. An investor should therefore assess rents and resale against the local market first.

The model is less suited to buyers looking for an upmarket residential estate designed for an international clientele: that is what the PDS is for. On tax, personal income tax follows a progressive scale from 0 to 35% since the income year that began on 1 July 2026. To compare with other investments, see our page on investing in Mauritius.

Limits and points to watch

• Check the scheme of the unit, not the name of the district: a single estate can combine several schemes, as at Azuri. Ask the seller for its Smart City certificate or its registration as a developer within the project (smart city developer).
• Check what will actually be delivered: the schools, shops and access roads announced may belong to a later phase. See our comparison of completed versus off-plan developments.
• Plan for the exchange rate: 85% of the price is paid in rupees, at the rate applied by the bank on the day of the transfer.
• Prepare for resale: the owner notifies the EDB in writing 30 days before the sale, and the next buyer files their own application, with Rs 25,000 in fees.
• Budget for shared services: property management, security and upkeep of public spaces are handled by the smart city’s management company. See our guide to condominium charges.
• Do not confuse it with the AI City Scheme, created by Act No. 13 of 2026 for artificial intelligence companies: its property acquisition rules are left to implementing regulations.

How to secure a smart city purchase

1. Check that the seller is on the EDB list or is registered as a developer within the project.
2. Sign a reservation contract or a preliminary sale agreement: the company’s bank verifies the buyer’s identity (KYC) and opens an escrow account in the buyer’s name.
3. File the application with the EDB: a certified copy of the passport and the bank’s KYC certificate, or the documents of the company, trust or foundation making the purchase.
4. Off-plan, ask for a copy of the completion guarantee: before any sale, the developer must send the EDB the bank guarantee template required by article 1601-34 of the Mauritian Civil Code.
5. Sign the deed before the notary, who has it registered within 8 days and pays the registration duty in foreign currency.
6. On handover, obtain the certificate of compliance from the independent quality controller and the defects insurance: 1 year from the builder, 2 years for non-structural elements, 10 years for the structure.
7. If the price reaches USD 375,000, apply for the residence permit with the notary’s certificate, a medical certificate and a certificate of character.

The purchase process for each scheme is set out in our guide PDS, IRS, RES, R+2, Smart City: how to buy. Available properties are presented in our new developments in Mauritius and in our selection of properties open to foreign buyers.

This page gives a general framework: it does not replace a notary’s advice or the EDB’s confirmation for a specific case.

Sources and verification

• Economic Development Board (EDB) — Real Estate & Hospitality, list of projects holding a Smart City certificate, accessed 17 September 2026
• EDB — Smart City Scheme Guidelines, August 2026 edition, accessed 17 September 2026
• EDB — Property Development Scheme Guidelines, accessed 17 September 2026
• EDB, Residency in Mauritius portal — Smart City Scheme, accessed 17 September 2026
• EDB — Summary of Smart City Projects (projects, developers, locations), accessed 17 September 2026
• EDB — Amendments to IRS/RES/IHS/PDS and SCS Regulations, 20 December 2024, accessed 17 September 2026
• EDB — FAQs, new mandatory requirements for non-citizens, February 2025, accessed 17 September 2026
• EDB — EDB Insights, Property Market Highlights, June 2024, accessed 17 September 2026
• Passport and Immigration Office — Immigration Act 2022 (Act No. 14 of 2022), accessed 17 September 2026
• Attorney General’s Office — Non-Citizens (Property Restriction) Act, accessed 17 September 2026
• Attorney General’s Office — Mauritian Civil Code (Code civil mauricien), articles 1601-30 and 1601-34, accessed 17 September 2026
• National Assembly of Mauritius — Finance Act 2025 (Act No. 18 of 2025), accessed 17 September 2026
• National Assembly of Mauritius — Finance Act 2026 (Act No. 14 of 2026), accessed 17 September 2026
• National Assembly of Mauritius — Economic and Financial Measures (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2026 (Act No. 13 of 2026), accessed 17 September 2026
• Lexpress Property — The MIC acquires Mon Trésor Smart City, 25 February 2022, accessed 17 September 2026
• Mauritius Investment Corporation Ltd — official website, accessed 17 September 2026
• Mon Trésor — official project website, accessed 17 September 2026
• Landscope Mauritius — launch of the Côte d’Or Technopole, accessed 17 September 2026
• ER Property — Savannah, The Smart City Scheme, accessed 17 September 2026
• CIEL Properties — Ferney, Farm-side Residences, accessed 17 September 2026
• Curzon Mauritius — Le Bouchon Smart City, location, accessed 17 September 2026

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