Latest news with #nonDoms
Telegraph
26-06-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Tories designing investment visa to attract ‘golden geese' to UK
The Conservatives have announced plans for an investment visa to woo back 'golden geese' non-doms who have left the country under Labour. Andrew Griffith, the shadow business secretary, said he was working on plans for a 'genuinely world-beating offer for wealth creators', which would include exemptions from Labour's inheritance tax on global assets. It comes after Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, said he would introduce a £250,000 ' Britannia card ' to lure the wealthy back to Britain. Research suggests that 16,500 high-net-worth individuals are expected to leave the UK in 2025, after Rachel Reeves scrapped the non-doms regime and changed inheritance tax rules to apply to foreign holdings. Mr Griffith said in a speech at the Prosperity Institute on Thursday that the Tories were working on their own proposals to attract the wealthy to London. 'Instead of increasing wealth, [Labour has] attacked those who create it, shooing away the golden geese, the entrepreneurs, investors, and the top talent that our country was famed for, the world over,' he said. 'Too many of our best and brightest young people, the future wealth creators, are exchanging Docklands for Dubai, Manchester for Miami or Leeds for Lisbon.' Death tax 'out of kilter' Asked by The Telegraph how the Conservatives' plan would work, Mr Griffith said he was exploring a new investment visa for wealthy foreigners, which would give high-net-worth individuals the right to live in the UK in exchange for a multimillion-pound investment in British companies. 'The UK does not currently have an investment visa at all,' he said. 'There's no route to come and get a visa to this country simply by virtue of your desire to invest in productive or risk-taking assets that contribute to the economy.' He also said that the Tory scheme would fix the Labour system of taxing global wealth at death that is 'out of kilter with other global jurisdictions'. The Telegraph understands that the plan may involve giving non-dom status to those with investment visas, reviving the system that Ms Reeves has abolished. The UK's ' golden visa ' scheme was scrapped by the Conservative government in February 2022, after the invasion of Ukraine, amid concerns it was mostly used by Russians. First introduced in 2008, Dame Priti Patel, the home secretary at the time, said it would be suspended as part of a 'renewed crackdown on illicit finance and fraud'. Mr Farage said on Monday he would create a 'Britannia card', which would allow wealthy foreigners to live in the UK without a global tax on their assets, for a fee of £250,000. He said the money would be used to fund social security payments, but critics said the scheme would actually cost £34 billion in lost tax revenue. Separately, Mr Griffith said he would like to see London Underground trains upgraded to be autonomous and to run 24 hours a day. 'The Government's industrial strategy talks about autonomous driving in cars one day, but there are no plans that I'm aware of to deploy autonomous driving on our Tube network,' he said. 'Many cities around the world do use autonomous driving on their trains, including Paris, but the lock grip that transport unions have on this Government's mind means that this is a forbidden conversation.'
Telegraph
23-06-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
The flat tax regimes that inspired Farage's plan to lure back rich non-doms
Nigel Farage is hoping an Italian-style flat tax regime will lure wealthy foreigners to Britain's shores. The leader of the Reform UK party has promised to impose a Robin Hood-style levy on rich non-doms, with the proceeds then redistributed among the lowest-paid workers. At first glance the policy may seem Left-wing, but in practice it is the wealthiest non-doms who would benefit the most from this generous scheme. The one-off payment would grant them a 'Britannia Card' which comes with an indefinite tax-free exemption on their offshore income and gains. It could potentially save a high-income worker tens of thousands in tax over the years. Reform said the tax status could be renewed every decade at no extra cost. The proposal comes amid fears that Rachel Reeves's decision to abolish the non-dom regime last August has triggered an exodus of high-income workers and entrepreneurs. Estate agent Knight Frank has estimated that the Treasury faces a £401m loss in stamp duty receipts thanks to a drop in sales of multimillion-pound homes since the reforms were first announced. The non-dom regime was replaced in April 2025 by the Chancellor's foreign income and gains regime, which allows new arrivals to avoid tax on offshore earnings for only their first four years of residence. Controversially, it also applies inheritance tax to the worldwide assets of individuals who have been in the country for over 10 years. By comparison, Mr Farage's proposal would shield eligible individuals from inheritance tax for 20 years. Writing in The Telegraph, Mr Farage said the policy would 'actively encourage the return of wealth and talent to the United Kingdom'. However, experts questioned how successful it would be in practice. The think tank Tax Policy Associates warned it could cost the UK £34bn in lost Government revenue. Miles Dean, of tax adviser Andersen, said: 'I fear that the damage has already been done and I doubt that this alone is enough to entice wealthy non-doms back, especially given that implementation is at least four years away.' David Denton, of wealth manager Quilter, said: 'Offering wealthy non-doms the chance to effectively buy their way out of UK tax may provide a short-term revenue boost, but risks creating a two-tier tax system that undermines public confidence.' Mr Denton also said there was no guarantee the regime would attract enough wealthy individuals to build a sizable pot for low-income workers. 'The idea of redirecting funds to support lower earners has populist appeal, yet it assumes significant and sustained uptake from globally mobile individuals – something far from guaranteed, particularly if future governments reverse course.' But the flat tax regime is far from a new concept. Other countries including Italy and Switzerland have also tried to entice wealthy expats through similar tax breaks. Italy Reform's offer to non-doms appears to be considerably more generous than Italy's, which first unveiled a flat tax regime for wealthy foreigners in 2017. Costing €200,000 (£171,390) per year, the scheme is renewable for 15 years and exempts non-doms from tax on foreign assets, with the option to add additional family members for €25,000 (£21,423) per person per year. It has proven to be a runaway success. While just 98 people used the scheme in 2017, by 2023 more than 2,000 taxpayers were enroled, according to citizenship by investment firm Relocate&Save. Mr Farage will give high-net-worth individuals a 20-year reprieve from UK tax, including inheritance tax, on worldwide assets and income for a one-off cost of £250,000. By comparison, to use the Italian scheme for 15 years would cost €3m in flat tax fees, making Reform's plan extremely competitive. Dominic Lawrence, partner at law Charles Russell Speechlys, said: 'The Reform proposal does appear to be more generous than the Italian lump sum tax regime, which requires payment of an annual levy of €200,000. If the proposed £250,000 payment really is one-off and there is no additional annual charge to access the remittance-style regime… then on the face of it this is remarkably generous.' Switzerland Mr Farage's proposals also go further than tax reliefs available to non-doms in Switzerland, which pioneered tax breaks to lure wealthy foreigners. Don-doms in Switzerland do not pay a flat fee to take advantage of favourable tax rules. Instead, taxes are based on the living costs incurred whilst in the country, which includes costs for housing, food, transport and leisure. The minimum these costs must be to qualify for the scheme is CHF 434,700 (£396,844) a year. The sum is then subject to tax rates that vary by region in the Alpine country, typically resulting in a tax burden between CHF 150,000 (£136,937) and CHF 350,000 (£319,520). In return, foreign income and assets of non-tax-residents are exempt from taxes and Switzerland imposes no federal inheritance or gift tax. Different minimum tax bases apply for EU and non-EU applicants depending on the region of Switzerland in which they reside. Greece Greece has been tipped as one of the countries set to benefit from the abolition of the UK's non-dom regime. Since 2019, it has offered a favourable tax regime which requires high-net-worth individuals to pay a lump sum of €100,000 per year on foreign-sourced income. They can claim the tax break for up to 15 years. For an additional €20,000 a year, they can also extend the tax benefit to members of their family. To use the scheme, the high-net-worth individual must invest at least €500,000 in Greece within three years, for example by purchasing a property or buying shares. Gibraltar The British Overseas Territory, located on the southern coast of Spain, offers an attractive tax regime for individuals worth more than £2m. Under the so-called 'Category 2' rules, qualifying individuals only pay tax on the first £118,000 of their worldwide income. This means a maximum tax charge of about £45,000 per year. To qualify, individuals must either own or rent a property in Gibraltar.
Bloomberg
23-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
London's Luxury Property Downturn Looks Set to Get Even Worse
When two Chinese investors bought a majority stake in a development dubbed 'Mayfair's most exclusive address' in 2015, London's housing market was booming. Almost 10 years and an insolvency later, half the apartments have yet to be sold. The travails of 60 Curzon are emblematic of what's been a miserable period for the city's prime property market, with prices down more than 20% from their peak. The downtrend is now being supercharged by the recent removal of a tax perk for so-called non-doms and an exodus of wealthy. For realtors, that's further thinning out the rolodexes of deep-pocketed clients on whom the luxury market has long depended.
Daily Mail
22-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Nigel Farage unveils plans to charge non-doms a one-off £250,000 fee in exchange for tax breaks... with the money distributed to Britain's lowest earning 10 per cent of workers
Nigel Farage will today unveil a plan to charge non-doms £250,000 in return for avoiding a raft of taxes, with the proceeds going to the lowest-paid workers. In his latest lurch to the Left, the Reform UK leader will use a speech this morning to pledge to 'restore the social contract between rich and poor' in Britain. Under the plan, non-doms would be offered the chance to pay a £250,000 one-off 'Entry Contribution' in return for not being taxed on any offshore income or gains. They would also not be liable to pay inheritance tax, the Mail understands. The 'contribution' would then be distributed to Britain's lowest earning 10 per cent of full-time workers, delivered automatically by HMRC as a cash dividend. It is designed to make the UK a more attractive place to wealthy individuals, as it would reinstate the non-dom regime which Labour abolished in April. Non-domiciled status allows people who live in the UK, but who have a permanent home elsewhere, to only pay tax on the money they earn in the UK. It can be used to shield any overseas income and profits from UK taxes, unless they are transferred into the country. Chancellor Rachel Reeves is reportedly seeking to soften the changes, however, after fears that it is leading to an exodus of wealth creators. It comes after three of Britain's richest men – including a top investment banker -became the latest to join an exodus of the super-rich amid a government crackdown on wealthy non-doms. In April, Ian and Richard Livingstone, brothers who own a £9bn property empire in the UK and abroad, an online casino and plush Monte Carlo hotel, were revealed as having quit the UK for Monaco, according to corporate documents. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs' top banker, Richard Gnodde, worth over £130m, is understood to have ditched London for Milan. Mr Gnodde is believed to be is the first senior banker leaving the UK for a different country, leading to fears the exodus of wealthy talent is spreading among the City's higher echelons. Leslie Macleod-Miller, chief executive of the non-dom lobby group, Foreign Investors for Britain, called for action to 'stem the flow of highly desired – and highly mobile – individuals such as Gnodde'. He told the City AM newspaper: 'We are calling on the government to create an internationally competitive environment that attracts and retains top global talent and investment.' In her budget last October, Rachel Reeves scrapped centuries-old tax privileges for non-doms – under which they were only taxed on income and gains brought into Britain. Now all UK residents will be taxed in Britain on their worldwide income and gains.
Bloomberg
22-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Farage Promises Non-Doms Protection From Tax on Overseas Assets
Nigel Farage's Reform UK party is offering non-doms full exemption from tax on their overseas assets for a fee of £250,000 ($335,000) every 10 years with the revenue redistributed to lower income workers, drawing a new battle line with Britain's traditional parties. Farage's proposal pits him against both the Conservatives, which last year abolished non-dom status for those who live in Britain but have their permanent home abroad, and the Labour government, which went one step further after winning the election last July by imposing inheritance tax on their global wealth.
