World Immigration News

Government announces investor immigration policy changes to support NZ economic growth

Release Date: 2025-02-10
Media: Pathways
Summary: The New Zealand government has announced significant revisions to the Active Investor Plus (AIP) policy, set to take effect from April 1, 2025. These changes come in response to the failure of the current AIP system, introduced in 2022, which has attracted only 50 approved applications and NZ$70 million in investments. In contrast, the previous investor immigration policies (before 2022) successfully brought in over 3,000 families and NZ$14 billion over 12 years. The complexity and high investment risk of the current system have made it unattractive to migrant investors, leading the government to simplify and improve the policy.

The new AIP framework introduces two investment categories: Growth and Balanced. Under the Growth Category, applicants must invest NZ$5 million for three years and spend three weeks in New Zealand. Eligible investments include direct investment in New Zealand businesses or targeted managed funds. The Balanced Category requires NZ$10 million investment for five years and a seven-week stay, though this requirement can be reduced with additional Growth investments. This category allows for a broader range of investments, including bonds, listed equities, new property developments, commercial/industrial projects, philanthropy, and Growth investments.

A key change is the requirement to complete the full investment within six months of initial approval (with a one-time extension of six months), replacing the current system that allows staged investments over 12 months. Additionally, the English language requirement is removed, though applicants must still meet health, character, and legal funding source requirements and transfer funds through the banking system to New Zealand.

Final policy details will be announced in early March 2025, and there is already strong interest from potential investors, particularly from the USA, Europe, Asia, and the UK. Until the new policy takes effect, applications under the existing AIP rules will still be accepted.
Tags: NEW ZEALAND

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