New Zealand is amidst a significant shift in its composition. Citizens have voted with their feet, fleeing the country in search of better jobs and wages. From July 2024 to 2025, a record annual figure of 73,400 New Zealanders emigrated. By contrast, only 25,800 of them have since gone back to live in New Zealand. In counter to this upward trend, the New Zealand government has actually loosened the criteria for its “golden visa” program. This policy change was intended to spur economic development by luring in rich out-of-state investors.
The new rules have already generated a great deal of excitement among wealthy investors, especially those hailing from the United States, China, and Hong Kong. These destination countries are leaders in the golden visa race. The US is in the lead with 129 applications, followed by China with 45, and Hong Kong with 38. It’s hard to overstate how this tidal wave of applications is different from before. In return for all of that effort, we only saw 116 applications during two-and-a-half years.
To make the investment incentive even better, Immigration New Zealand created two new golden visa categories. The most competitive “growth” category has a minimum investment threshold of $5 million over three years and drew 241 applicants. At the same time, the “balanced” category requires a deeper commitment of $10 million over five years, attracting 67 applicants. Immigration New Zealand has had 308 applications approved under the new rules. This important decision will benefit about 1,000 people and represents a total investment of $248.8 million that’s expected to create 540 jobs and add $179.1 million to the New Zealand economy.
The latest scheme provides more good news for holders of the golden visa. Now, they are allowed to purchase residential properties exceeding $5 million! This amendment is applauded as one of the largest improvements to the attractiveness of the program to potential investors.
Marcus Beveridge is a specialist in immigration and investment trends. Here’s what he told us about how these changes will affect New Zealand’s economy.
“Clearly geopolitical issues for those in North America and Europe will be material.” – Marcus Beveridge
He noted that the current political climate in the US could inadvertently benefit New Zealand’s appeal to foreign investors.
“Trump is probably beneficial for New Zealand in some ways, in terms of there being more interest.” – Marcus Beveridge
Beveridge remained positive about the economic consequences of this immigration trend, forecasting significant financial gains for New Zealand.
“My prediction has always been that we will collect about $5 billion per annum from this business immigration, but those same investors will bring another $5 billion into our economy because now they can buy $5 million houses.” – Marcus Beveridge
The golden visa program’s expansion seems almost tailor-made for the moment as New Zealand faces record levels of emigration. This demographic transition adds new pressures to already-strained local labor markets and economic resilience. By luring the high-net-worth individuals willing to invest at least $800,000 into their jurisdictions, the government hopes to offset some of these effects.