A group of UK lawmakers has asked Prime Minister Keir Starmer to introduce a new investor visa aimed at attracting wealthy foreigners, responding to a continued outflow of high-net-worth individuals following recent tax changes.
According to Bloomberg, the lawmakers outlined the proposal in a letter sent to Starmer and copied to Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood. The peers argue that a new visa route could increase investment and help offset the effects of recent departures.
Call for a £2.5 Million Investor Visa
The letter, signed by about a dozen members of the House of Lords, proposes a visa requiring a minimum investment of £2.5 million. The funds would support public services and national infrastructure.
The authors, including Nosheena Mobarik, Richard Spring, and former Downing Street Chief of Staff Edward Lister, state that the visa could help reverse current trends. “Unless the government seizes this opportunity, the UK’s future looks bleak,” they wrote.
Lawmakers argue that the proposal would offer a direct channel for attracting global investors at a time when other countries are launching or expanding similar programs.
Wealthy residents leaving after tax changes
Recent policy changes have contributed to the departure of several high-profile foreign residents. Reports inform that billionaires including Guillaume Pousaz, Nik Storonsky, and Nassef Sawiris have moved away as the UK phases out its long-standing non-dom tax regime.
Labour’s reforms, introduced in April, expose overseas assets to inheritance tax and end exemptions on foreign income. The government expects the changes to generate £33 billion in new tax revenue over the coming years. Several economic research groups have questioned these projections and warned of possible effects on employment and local investment.
Reeves is set to announce further levies in the upcoming budget, with the government indicating that individuals with the “broadest shoulders” will face additional tax measures.
Competing International Programs
Other countries are seeking to attract wealthy global residents through their own incentives. Italy and Greece have introduced tax regimes designed partly on the UK’s former model. The United States has implemented expedited immigrant visas for individuals who donate $1 million.
Reform UK has also proposed a domestic alternative that would exempt wealthy foreigners from tax on overseas assets in exchange for a once-per-decade payment of £250,000.
The UK previously ended its golden-visa program in 2022, and the government has been reviewing potential replacement options. A fast-track pathway for high-income applicants was introduced this month, but departures among wealthy residents continue.
Signs of Capital Outflow
Research commissioned by Foreign Investors for Britain found that non-doms have already withdrawn £840 million from UK assets in anticipation of the reforms. Business Secretary Peter Kyle stated this week that tax measures in Reeves’ first budget contributed to some wealthy individuals leaving the country.
“The UK is being significantly damaged by the loss of capital and talent flowing out of the UK due to the abolition of the non-dom regime,” the peers wrote. “Foreign investors are continuing to leave, taking their investments, philanthropy, spending and job creation with them.”
The proposed visa is presented as a possible tool to slow or reverse these trends as the government continues to revise migration and tax policies.
