Authorities in New Zealand are planning to apply new changes to the country’s Golden Visa Program in a bid to attract a more significant number of wealthy foreigners.
The Golden Visa Program of New Zealand, also known as the Active Investor Visa, has been introduced to attract wealthy persons from other countries, VisaGuide.World reports.
The scheme allows them to acquire residency, provided they make a financial contribution to New Zealand and meet the needed conditions.
The program made a significant contribution to the economy of New Zealand, or, about NZ$1 billion (roughly $580 million) yearly.
However, following the new changes applied to the scheme in 2022, there was a significant decline in the number of applications filed under this program.
We are conscious that the last government changed those settings, and we saw a marked decline in the number of investors. You can expect to see announcements from us on that in the coming weeks.
The New Zealand Finance Minister said that the centre-right government has already progressed reforms to accelerate investment applications for foreign nationals. Willis also unfolded plans to change legislation next year to emphasize that the nation requires foreign capital in order to achieve its economic objectives.
According to the minister, investors from other countries bring much more than just money to New Zealand.
It’s also the networks, the expertise, the experience, the ideas that they bring with them. There are many examples throughout the country where investor migrants, while they may make initial investments, then go on to make other investments and become more engaged in the economy in a range of ways which are helpful.
Current Rules for Obtaining a Golden Visa in New Zealand
At present, those interested in benefiting from the Golden Visa Program of New Zealand are required to invest at least NZ$5 million in direct investment or a total of NZ$15 million in passive investment.
The current regulations consist of significantly higher investment criteria compared to the previous criteria, where the threshold for direct investment was just NZ$3 million.
Besides, some of the investments that were previously famous, such as bonds and property, are no longer eligible for this program.
When asked if the new changes mean the abolishment of the English-language test, Finance Minister Nicola Willis said that a report on the matter would come from the Immigration Minister, Erica Stanford.