Golden visa allows a person to invest in another country without the need of local sponsorship. It permits a person to stay indefinitely on foreign land by keeping their partner and dependent children in their application.
New Zealand has recently made significant changes in their Investor Visa program. These changes will be applicable from April 1st. The English language requirement will be removed to attract wealthy investors and boost the country’s economy.
The Active Investor Plus visa program will be streamlined into two categories, while the range of acceptable investments will be broadened, immigration minister Erica Stanford said Sunday in Auckland. Along with scrapping the language test, other changes include adjusting the required time investors must spend in the country.
“Capital is highly mobile and in an increasingly complex world, people are looking for a safe and stable country to do business,” Stanford said. “We are now making our investor visa simpler and more flexible to incentivise investors to choose New Zealand as a destination.”
Post 2024 recession, interest rates had fallen. Government is planning to take advantage of the falling interest rates and create capital growth opportunities in New Zealand. It is working on foreign investment regulation, establishing a single agency to act as a central contact for foreign fund managers and loosening rules to lure professionals to work remotely and settle in the country permanently.
Earlier, the Active Investor Visa program was able to bring on average NZ$1 billion ($570 million) a year. In 2022, after stricting the rules, this visa program was heavily impacted. Only 43 applications were approved since then, bringing NZ$545 million in the nominated category.
The two new categories are:
- Growth or Higher Risk: Requires a minimum investment of NZ$5 million over three years directly in business or through managed funds. Visa holders have to spend 21 days in New Zealand.
- Balanced or Mixed Risk: Requires a minimum investment of NZ$10 million over five years into bonds, stocks, new property developments, or existing commercial and industrial property. Visa holders have to spend 105 days in the country. This period can be reduced further by investing more in the country.
Investors will have six months to show their Principal investment with the option to extend further for six months.
This visa will allow a person to live, study and work indefinitely in NZ. Partner and dependent children under 24 years old can be included in the application. Participants can apply for Permanent Residence after 4 years by keeping their funds within NZ.
At the time, when all countries were tightening their golden visa rules or withdrawing this visa program, New Zealand came with eased visa rules. Spain is ending its golden visa from April 3. However, the UK, Ireland, the Netherlands, Greece, Australia and Malta have either discontinued or made their schemes more restrictive.
