“ RAPID ADVANCEMENTS IN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, ROBOTICS AND BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY HAVE PROVIDED NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR WEALTH CREATION AND ACCUMULATION.”
JUERG STEFFEN, CEO, HENLEY & PARTNERS
Over the past two years, the
UK, Ireland, Bulgaria and Latvia have all scrapped such schemes, primarily to prevent Russians taking advantage of them after the invasion of Ukraine and amid fears the visas could be used for money laundering. Fran Rance, a specialist in
immigration law at London law firm, Mishcon de Reya, commented: “While the UK remains one of the world’s top destinations, the available immigration pathways have shifted in recent years. Various changes in government policy have resulted in a more restrictive landscape and have enhanced the need for careful planning around all aspects of an individual’s move. “Following the closure of the Tier
1 Investor route (the UK’s golden visa) in February 2022, there has been a move towards routes which require active engagement with a UK business and, in many cases, endorsement (or pre-approval) by a third-party organisation. This has had an impact on high-net- worth migration to the UK, as well as developments in other areas of government policy.” In fact, the UK government
revealed in the spring that it was reviewing the nation’s options for attracting HNWs. It said in the Budget paper: “The government will legislate to reinstate the previous eligibility criteria to qualify as a high-net-worth or sophisticated investor and will also carry out further work to review the scope of the exemptions.” On the other hand, at the start
of 2024 Australia axed its golden visa – the Significant Investor Visa (SIV), which required a A$5 million investment and was overwhelmingly taken up by people from China – because it was “delivering poor economic outcomes”. In its stead, the government expanded its skilled worker visa scheme. Amid pressure from the
European Union, the Netherlands also abandoned its golden visa programme this year while, in May, Spain followed Portugal’s example
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and amended its scheme by removing real estate investments as a basis for golden visa applications because they were found to be destabilising local housing markets.
WHERE TO INVEST Nevertheless, Portugal and Spain remain top European choices for HNW individuals, along with the golden visas available in Greece, Cyprus and Italy, mainly because of the nations’ climates, scenery and stable political climates. Similar attractions, along
with the ease of visas available to wealthy newcomers, have increased the appeal of many Caribbean nations and the likes of Austria, Canada, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Monaco, Namibia, New Zealand, Panama, Singapore, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Hong Kong. Others are now eyeing their
own golden visa schemes in a bid to attract foreign investors, with Indonesia launching a programme last September that offers residency for a minimum $2.5 million investment in a local business, or $350,000 in local shares. Such initiatives, of course, reflect
ambitions to increase a country’s appeal for foreign direct investment (FDI) – an area where the US has reigned supreme for the past 12 years, according to the ‘2024 FDI Confidence Index’ published by Kearney, an American global management consulting firm with offices in more than 40 nations. “The strength of the US economy
– the fastest growing in the G7 – and rebounding consumer sentiment likely supported this score,” reported Kearney. “Canada also makes a strong showing, maintaining its second-place rank and forming part of the top five markets for the 12th consecutive year.” China, including Hong Kong,
jumped from seventh to third position in the index while the UK overtook Germany to occupy fourth place. Japan, meanwhile, dropped from third to seventh.
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