Egypt offers renewable residence permits linked to property ownership, with the permit length scaling to the value invested, plus long-stay options for older applicants; the property-based permit typically renews annually.
A few things to line up early:
Visa rules change often — treat this as a starting point and confirm the latest official requirements before you plan.
Remember: buying a home and gaining the right to live there are usually separate steps. See how ownership works in Egypt, and what it costs to live there in our cost-of-retiring guide.
Egypt taxes residents on worldwide income in principle, but pensions are specifically exempt from income tax, so a foreign pension is generally not taxed. Confirm your own position, as rules and enforcement can change.
Expats use private hospitals in Cairo, such as the JCI-accredited As-Salam in Maadi and the Saudi German Hospital, and in Red Sea resorts like El Gouna, Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh, where English is spoken and care is good value, with serious cases gravitating to Cairo. Most foreigners pay out of pocket or hold private insurance. Tourist and expat areas are generally safe and used to foreigners, English is widely spoken there, and driving is on the right; traffic is chaotic and some regions are best avoided, so retirees stick to established areas.
Cairo's leafy Maadi for a long-established expat community, purpose-built El Gouna for a polished Red Sea resort town, Hurghada for affordable seaside living, and Sharm el-Sheikh for diving and sun.
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