Britain's Wealth Creators Are Looking Abroad: New Zealand's AIP Opportunity—and an Election Warning

By Mathew Collins, Managing Partner, New Zealand Life Investment Partners — 29 October 2026

Britain's growing debate about wealth, taxation and relocation presents an incredible and timely opportunity for New Zealand to attract suitable high-net-worth individuals and their families through the Active Investor Plus Visa. Our ability to benefit depends on the confidence we give investors about their future here.

"I see this as an incredible and timely opportunity for New Zealand to actively target high-net-worth individuals and their families in the UK who are considering their future overseas."

That is my assessment after working extensively in investment and business immigration in Britain and internationally.

New Zealand has an established investor residence pathway, opportunities for investment and a lifestyle proposition that deserves serious consideration by internationally mobile families.

We should be making that case directly.

New Zealand Life Investment Partners will be focusing its marketing on the UK market to target this opportunity under the Active Investor Plus Visa.

At the same time, we are seeing growing interest from New Zealand businesses and entrepreneurs who recognise the programme's potential to help attract international capital, commercial experience and skills to support their growth.

However, as New Zealand approaches its general election on 7 November, we also need to consider an uncomfortable parallel: could some of the tax policies being proposed here weaken the investor confidence we are seeking to attract? elections.nz

What does the research say about wealthy people considering leaving Britain?

The September 2026 Saltus Wealth Index found that 30% of respondents were open to leaving the UK:

• 8% were actively exploring a permanent departure within the next 12 months.

• 22% might consider leaving in the future.

• 70% had no plans to leave.

Censuswide surveyed 2,001 UK adults with at least £250,000 in investible assets between 4 and 17 August 2026.

That qualification matters. The survey covers a broader affluent population than the people able to commit NZ$5 million or more to New Zealand's investor visa.

However, among respondents with net worth of at least £5 million, 15% were actively considering leaving within a year, with another 29% considering it more broadly.

These are intentions rather than confirmed departures. Nevertheless, they identify an audience seriously reassessing its future. www.saltus.co.uk

For New Zealand, that is a reason to act.

We need to reach suitable investors whose financial capacity, family priorities and longer-term objectives align with what New Zealand offers.

The opportunity is already being discussed in the UK press

This discussion extends beyond social media commentary.

MoneyAge, reporting on 14 October 2026, quoted Saltus partner Mike Stimpson describing:

"a marked change in the way people are thinking".

The same report quoted chartered financial planner Henrietta Grimston:

"I have seen a substantial increase in clients querying the viability of a move abroad".

Families researching alternatives are beginning to make comparisons, consult advisers and consider practical steps. That is an important stage at which to introduce New Zealand. www.moneyage.co.uk

The Financial Times covered the issue under the headline:

"Nearly 6,000 entrepreneurs quit UK in past two years, say wealth managers". www.ft.com

The underlying Rathbones-commissioned Beauhurst analysis examined changes in declared residence in Companies House records. It identified 5,940 high-growth business owners moving out between January 2024 and January 2026, against 3,182 moving in — a net outflow of 2,758.

Michelle White, Head of Private Office at Rathbones Group, said:

"International mobility among business owners and wealth creators continues to accelerate".

An owner changing their declared residence does not establish that their business, workforce or investment capital has also left Britain. But it provides a different form of evidence from a survey of future intentions. www.rathbones.com

The Sunday Times has also examined the issue in its Rich List analysis, under the headline:

"Billionaires are abandoning Britain — this is what it means". www.thetimes.com

Its published introduction highlighted that a third of those on the list no longer lived on the mainland. That describes the list's composition; it does not mean all those people recently emigrated.

Together, these reports show that the location of wealth creators, investors and their families has become a serious economic discussion in Britain.

New Zealand should be participating in the resulting international conversation.

Business confidence matters alongside tax rates

Writing in City A.M. on 4 September 2026, entrepreneur John Caudwell identified the conditions he had wanted from government:

"predictability, fair taxation and a system that rewarded hard work".

That is a useful lesson for New Zealand. Investors consider the direction of policy, the reliability of commitments and whether they can plan with confidence. www.cityam.com

From my experience, investment migration decisions rarely arise from a single announcement.

They develop as families assess their businesses, wealth, children's futures and confidence in the country where they live.

Tax can be an important trigger. The broader decision concerns where they want to build the next stage of their lives.

"Governments need to recognise that internationally mobile investors have choices. Their decisions about where to live, invest and establish long-term relationships depend on the overall confidence a country inspires."

Understanding the evidence without exaggerating it

The scale and fiscal consequences of wealthy departures remain contested.

In Parliament on 21 May 2026, Treasury minister Lord Livermore acknowledged:

"The Government do not hold comprehensive data on the number of individuals leaving the UK by income level". hansard.parliament.uk

HMRC's provisional figures for the tax year ending April 2025 show the combined non-domiciled and deemed-domiciled taxpayer population falling from 83,100 to 81,900. Their combined tax and National Insurance liabilities nevertheless increased by 9% to £13.6 billion.

Those figures cover the period before the replacement non-dom rules took effect. They do not establish the full consequences of the subsequent changes. www.gov.uk

My conclusion is specific:

New Zealand does not need a proven mass exodus from Britain for this to be a significant AIP opportunity.

A relatively small number of suitable investors can represent substantial capital, commercial experience and international relationships.

We should focus on identifying and earning the confidence of those people.

Why my international investor immigration experience informs this view

My background includes more than 20 years in international migration and relocation, including as a founder and Managing Partner of London-based Ambler Collins.

I worked extensively with business owners, investors and internationally mobile clients, including work with investor immigration and business migration programmes offered by the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and the United States, as well as other countries.

That experience gave me a practical understanding of how countries compete to attract investors, entrepreneurs and internationally mobile families.

It also taught me how closely investment decisions are connected with family decisions.

An investor considering New Zealand may also be asking:

• Can I continue managing my international business?

• What would moving mean for my partner and children?

• Which investments suit my objectives and appetite for risk?

• How will UK and New Zealand tax rules interact?

• Who will coordinate the work and represent my interests locally?

• Can we explore the country before deciding how much time to spend here?

A successful investor proposition needs to address those questions.

"The countries that attract lasting relationships with investors are the ones that make the opportunity credible, the process understandable and the practical arrangements manageable."

How the Active Investor Plus Visa creates a pathway

The Active Investor Plus Visa, commonly called AIP, provides a residence pathway for eligible investors who meet investment, lawful-funds, health, character and other requirements.

A qualifying partner and dependent children aged 24 or younger can be included. www.immigration.govt.nz

Requirement	Growth category	Balanced category
Minimum qualifying investment	NZ$5 million	NZ$10 million
Minimum investment period	Three years	Five years
Principal applicant's minimum presence during the investment period	21 days	105 days, potentially reduced through additional qualifying investment

Growth includes acceptable direct investments and managed funds, with qualifying philanthropy subject to limits. Balanced permits a wider range, including eligible bonds, listed equities and property developments. www.immigration.govt.nz

These settings give suitable families a framework around which to assess New Zealand.

Investment acceptability and commercial suitability require separate consideration. Growth investments can be illiquid, carry higher risk and involve commitments extending beyond the minimum visa investment period. Government acceptability does not guarantee investment performance. www.immigration.govt.nz

Growing demand from New Zealand businesses seeking investment

The opportunity is also becoming clearer on the New Zealand side.

NZLIP has recently entered discussions and begun establishing agreements to work with New Zealand businesses and entrepreneurs who recognise the potential of the Active Investor Plus programme to help attract inward investment.

They are interested in more than funding alone.

They see the potential to connect with international investors who may also bring commercial experience, specialist skills, international relationships and access to new markets to help their businesses grow.

"We have been surprised by the level of demand from New Zealand businesses and entrepreneurs wanting to explore this opportunity. As more businesses become aware of how AIP-related inward investment could support their growth, we expect interest in this market to increase."

That expectation reflects the enquiries and discussions coming to NZLIP. We see it as an encouraging early indication of the opportunity.

For a business owner with a credible growth plan, the conversation can extend beyond raising capital to finding an investor whose background and objectives fit the business.

An experienced international investor may bring useful knowledge of scaling a company, entering overseas markets, developing distribution relationships or strengthening governance.

Those contributions depend on the individual investor, the business and the relationship they agree to build. Skills and commercial involvement do not replace the programme's qualifying capital investment requirements.

Connecting international investors with New Zealand growth opportunities

A business seeking capital does not automatically qualify as an acceptable AIP investment.

Proposed direct investments need the required Invest New Zealand assessment, alongside commercial due diligence and appropriate professional advice. www.immigration.govt.nz

NZLIP's role is to coordinate discussions, information and the relevant specialists so potential opportunities can be investigated properly.

"The opportunity has two connected sides: international investors looking for a future in New Zealand, and New Zealand businesses looking for capital and expertise to grow. We see considerable potential in helping bring those interests together where there is a sound commercial fit."

Our UK marketing focus will therefore sit alongside our developing relationships with New Zealand businesses and entrepreneurs.

We want prospective investors to understand both the AIP residence pathway and the business opportunities that may warrant investigation here.

"As awareness grows, I expect more New Zealand business owners to ask whether this international investor market could help them fund expansion, strengthen their capabilities and pursue opportunities they might otherwise struggle to finance."

The opportunity extends beyond the initial investment

I believe the potential value of attracting experienced investors extends to international customer relationships, governance capability, business development and connections with overseas markets.

Those benefits require deliberate relationship-building. They do not arise automatically from granting a visa.

For scale, 20 investors each committing the NZ$5 million Growth minimum would represent NZ$100 million in qualifying investment.

That is an illustration, rather than a forecast.

The important question is what that capital can support — and how New Zealand can build productive relationships with the people providing it.

The announced Build to Rent extension offers another potential connection between investor capital and domestic needs. Eligible Growth investment is scheduled to become available through approved managed funds in December 2026. It should not be presented as an already operational route or as permission to buy a personal rental property. www.immigration.govt.nz

Announcing the policy, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford said:

"Active Investor Plus is designed to attract experienced investors who can make a meaningful contribution to New Zealand's economy". www.beehive.govt.nz

That should remain the objective.

New Zealand's election: are we learning from Britain?

The UK debate should prompt careful examination of New Zealand's own election proposals.

The British and New Zealand policies are different. We cannot assume that different taxes, thresholds and exemptions will produce identical results.

The parallel is the potential effect on investor confidence and behaviour.

"When people can choose where to live and invest, governments need to consider how they will respond. My concern is that New Zealand could reproduce some of the pressures we are observing in Britain: investors delaying commitments, choosing another country or deciding against establishing a long-term home here."

The issue concerns both prospective AIP investors and existing New Zealand business owners deciding where to deploy their capital.

What are the parties proposing?

Labour proposes a 28% tax on qualifying gains made after 1 July 2027 when residential investment or commercial property is sold. Its published exclusions include the family home, farms, KiwiSaver, shares, businesses and inheritances. Labour says the proceeds would fund healthcare.

This is a targeted property capital gains proposal, rather than an annual tax on all wealth. www.labour.org.nz

The Greens propose a 2.5% tax on net assets above NZ$10 million, with an exemption for family homes. They also propose a capital acquisitions tax on gifts and inheritances received above NZ$1 million, with family homes and farms exempted.

Their wider package includes a higher income-tax rate above NZ$160,000 and a 33% corporate rate for the largest corporations, while retaining 28% for small and medium enterprises. www.greens.org.nz

National has committed to no new taxes if re-elected. ACT's fiscal plan also commits to balancing the books without new taxes.

These are campaign commitments. The final settings would depend on the government formed and the policies enacted. www.national.org.nz

The parties proposing higher taxes argue that the revenue would support services, fairness and reductions elsewhere. Those objectives need to be assessed alongside the effect on investment and the future tax base.

An investor visa cannot operate separately from the wider investment environment

AIP asks families to make substantial, multi-year commitments to New Zealand.

Those families may have businesses, trusts, investments and succession plans across several countries. They will assess the full consequences of establishing residence here.

An annual wealth tax raises different questions from a tax on realised property gains. Residence rules, asset scope, thresholds, exemptions and transitional arrangements all matter.

We should not assume that an AIP investor's entire worldwide wealth would automatically become subject to a future proposal. That would require enacted legislation and individual analysis.

Nevertheless, uncertainty can influence whether an investor proceeds.

A visa may remain available while the overall proposition becomes less attractive.

"My concern is that taxing an existing pool of wealth more heavily can look attractive in a fiscal forecast while underestimating the investment that may never arrive. The family that chooses another jurisdiction does not appear in an emigration statistic. Its capital simply never comes here."

KPMG's election tax commentary identifies policy churn as a business concern, highlighting the value of:

"predictable rules that foster investment over a longer-term horizon". kpmg.com

Investors need enough confidence to make decisions whose consequences extend beyond one parliamentary term.

For New Zealand businesses seeking inward capital, that confidence also matters. Their ability to attract an international investor depends partly on how that investor assesses New Zealand as a place to commit capital and potentially establish a home.

"I want New Zealand to attract people willing to invest, build relationships and contribute over the long term. Our immigration welcome and wider investment environment need to reinforce each other."

Attracting investment should support the services New Zealand needs

Healthcare, education, infrastructure and housing require sustainable funding.

A credible investor strategy should explain how productive capital can help expand the economy that supports those services.

Investment can support expansion, innovation and development. Each proposition still needs scrutiny of its commercial merit, delivery capability and wider benefits.

"We should assess the full outcome: the capital attracted, what it finances, the businesses supported and the relationships built. The objective should be a stronger New Zealand economy with more capacity to fund the things New Zealanders need."

That also means creating conditions in which existing New Zealand entrepreneurs want to invest and grow.

What should UK investors consider before choosing New Zealand?

Investment migration requires coordinated planning across both countries.

New Zealand offers eligible transitional tax residents a temporary exemption on most foreign-source income for approximately four years. Important exclusions include overseas employment and personal-services income. Eligibility and timing require individual assessment. www.ird.govt.nz

UK residence, business structures, pensions, trusts and inheritance-tax exposure also need specialist advice.

Obtaining a New Zealand residence visa does not, by itself, resolve UK tax residence.

Families should also consider distance, time zones, schooling, international business commitments and the practical arrangements involved in establishing a home here.

"My experience is that the strongest outcomes come when investment, immigration, tax and family planning are considered together, before major commitments are made."

NZLIP will focus its marketing on the UK opportunity

NZLIP will be focusing its marketing on the UK market to reach suitable high-net-worth individuals and families considering New Zealand through the Active Investor Plus Visa.

Our focus will include entrepreneurs and business owners with the capacity to make the qualifying investment and a serious interest in establishing a connection with New Zealand.

We will explain the AIP pathway, the distinction between Growth and Balanced, the questions investors should investigate and the practical realities of coordinating investment, residence and family plans.

Alongside this, we will continue developing relationships with New Zealand businesses and entrepreneurs seeking to explore the programme as a source of inward investment.

"We want New Zealand to be part of the conversation while these families are considering their options. We also want New Zealand businesses with credible growth opportunities to understand how they may be able to participate in this market."

My UK and international experience gives this focus a personal dimension.

I understand that leaving Britain can involve considerable professional, family and emotional ties. Our marketing needs to address those decisions with practical information and a clear explanation of the support available.

An opportunity New Zealand should actively pursue

Britain's debate about wealth and relocation creates an opening for New Zealand.

The AIP pathway gives suitable investors a framework through which to establish residence and commit substantial capital.

New Zealand businesses are beginning to recognise how that capital — and the experience and relationships investors may bring — could support their ambitions.

NZLIP is seeing that interest first-hand.

"I see this as an incredible and timely opportunity for New Zealand. We should be actively making our case to UK investors and families reassessing their future, connecting suitable investors with credible opportunities here, and ensuring that our own policy choices strengthen the reasons to choose us."

Exploring New Zealand with NZLIP

New Zealand Life Investment Partners provides a bespoke Investor Project Management and Concierge Service for high-net-worth individuals and families.

We coordinate the relevant professionals and practical arrangements around an investor's priorities, from initial exploration through investment, residence and settlement support.

We also work with New Zealand businesses and entrepreneurs exploring how suitable investment opportunities might be presented and assessed under the AIP framework.

Appropriately qualified professionals provide immigration, investment, legal and tax advice. NZLIP manages the agreed coordination and practical detail.

If you are based in the UK and considering New Zealand — or you are a New Zealand business owner exploring the inward-investment opportunity — visit www.nzlip.com to arrange a confidential initial conversation.

About Mathew Collins

Mathew Collins is Managing Partner of New Zealand Life Investment Partners and a founder and former Managing Partner of London-based Ambler Collins. His background includes more than 20 years in international migration and relocation, including work with investor immigration and business migration programmes for the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, the United States and other countries.

This article provides general information and personal commentary, not immigration, investment, legal or tax advice. Investment eligibility does not guarantee suitability, returns or visa approval. Election proposals are distinguished from enacted policy. Information checked on 29 October 2026.