Farage says non-dom policy ‘very attractive' despite tax expert cost warning

Independent

5 days ago

Nigel Farage has insisted Reform UK's proposed change to non-dom tax rules was 'very attractive' despite an expert warning the policy could cost the UK £34 billion.
The party leader said he was 'not clever enough' to answer questions about the suggested hit to Britain's economy but dismissed criticism as 'off-the-wall nonsense' as he held a press conference on Monday.
Mr Farage also batted away suggestions that his plan for a so-called Britannia Card was a 'profoundly left-wing concept' as he was asked whether the announcement was a bid to win votes from low-income workers.
Reform has said it would reinstate non-dom status for wealthy individuals in exchange for a £250,000 one-off fee which would be given to Britain's poorest workers.
Under the 'Britannia Card', non-doms would be offered a 10-year renewable residence permit and a return to the controversial arrangement whereby overseas income can be shielded from UK tax.
They would also avoid inheritance tax, with the one-off payment then being distributed to Britain's bottom 10% of earners.
Announcing the policy in central London on Monday, Mr Farage said: 'Many talented people are leaving, and we want as a party as many entrepreneurs, as many risk-takers, as many job creators, as many people paying lots of tax, as many people investing huge sums of money – we want as many of them as possible to be in our country.'
Reform chairman Zia Yusuf added: 'The reality is that even the term non-dom has become, you know, these people have been made to feel persona non grata… there's a narrative that has been created that these people contribute nothing.
'So we have to set right that, too.'
It comes as Dan Neidle, founder of Tax Policy Associates, claimed the policy would cost the UK £34 billion, warning that some highly skilled and highly paid professionals would not be able to afford the £250,000.
The Office for Budget Responsibility has assessed that recent Labour and Conservative reforms to the non-dom status raise a net £33.9 billion from 2026/27 to 2029/30.
This sum is generated from a small number of very wealthy people who Mr Neidle said would opt to buy a Britannia Card and pay no tax, meaning the revenue would be lost.
Because the £250,000 one-off payment would be redistributed, none of the money raised would reduce the impact on the public finances, he said.
The Labour Government abolished the non-dom tax status in April, which is where UK residents whose permanent home or domicile for tax purposes is outside Britain.
Mr Farage was asked about the analysis on Monday and was also pressed on whether he had an overall costing for the policy.
'Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. I'm not clever enough to answer any of that,' he said.
'That just sounds completely off-the-wall nonsense. I'm really sorry, but I think what we've got here is a very attractive offer.
' People are fleeing this country in droves. Our economy is in trouble. There are fears of wealth taxes coming in. All the mood music is bad.'
The party leader said he believed 'tens of thousands of people' would come to the UK 'on this ticket' if Reform is successful.
'Even if after lots have come, we're going to get a trickle, not a flood, provided they're still paying their average £120,000-a-year income tax, provided they're still investing the billions that they do in business, in job creation, in risk – I tell you what, we'll be in a much better place than we are right now,' he said.
Asked if he was attempting to give low-income workers free money to win over their votes, the Reform UK leader told reporters: 'Nice try, but the idea that I'm somehow putting forward a profoundly left-wing concept today could not be further from the truth.
'We're saying we want people who make loads of money to come in to Britain in huge numbers and pay lots and lots of tax and buy lots of houses and spend lots of money.'
Rachel Reeves said Reform's announcement amounted to 'a tax cut for foreign billionaires'.
Speaking during a visit to the West Midlands, the Chancellor said: 'That would mean either taxes on ordinary working people would have to go up to compensate for those lack of revenues, or Reform would have to cut public services, including the NHS.
'So, this is a tax cut by Nigel Farage and the Reform Party for foreign-born billionaires. Labour's priority is easing the pressure on ordinary working families and investing in our public services, including the NHS.'