Immigration Alert - May 2017

Investor Category Visa changes to enhance economic benefits to New Zealand

Potential migration to New Zealand is clearly a global topic. In the wake of Brexit and the United States election, there have been numerous statistics and articles published about increased interest in relocating to New Zealand. As a country, therefore, we are in an enviable position as we can potentially take our pick from wealthy and experienced investors who may bring many benefits to the economy.

One of the key roles that our immigration system plays is to contribute to the economy by facilitating the entry of talent and capital. The challenge is to achieve this in a way that balances the interests of New Zealanders and honours our international obligations.

In terms of immigration policy, it is important that rules are reviewed regularly to ensure they meet the objectives they were designed to meet and that they continue to be fit-for-purpose in a world that is changing at an unprecedented rate. We have seen various changes over the last year aimed at both managing the strong demand for resident visas and ensuring talented individuals are given easier immigration routes including:

• temporary closure of the parent category
• increasing the points needed to get automatic selection as a skilled migrant
• introduction of the Global Impact Visa.

The announcement made on 7 December 2016 about changes to the Investor policy was not a surprise. The policy was implemented in 2009 and, given the strong ongoing demand for these types of visas, it is an opportune time to refine the requirements. With $2.9 billion invested since the Investor categories were launched in July 2009 and a further $2.1 billion in funds committed, Immigration Minister Hon. Michael Woodhouse has no doubt that these categories are performing well.

Generally, investor migrants may be granted a resident visa if they make qualifying investments in New Zealand for three or four years. There are two categories - Investor 1 applicants must invest at least $10m and Investor 2 applicants must invest at least $1.5m (plus have other funds available to live on).

View all changes to the Investor Category Visa by downloading our full alert.

Let’s talk

To discuss any of the above, please contact the PwC Immigration Team.