NZ Investor Visa Reform “an Embarrassment” That Shows “Gross Negligence From the Govt.”: IM People in the News This Week

Image credit: Queen City Law

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Investment migration people and companies in the news this week included:

• Marcus Beveridge of Queen City Law
• Inês Azevedo of Azevedo Ascenso
• David Regueiro of RIF Trust (in his capacity as an IMC representative)
• Jeremy Savory of Savory & Partners
• Henley & Partners
• Lynnette Sacchetto of IE Real Estate Institute

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The Straits Times – Rich foreigners spurn New Zealand after visa rule changes

The dearth of applicants for the new visa suggests the country may have gone too far, said Mr Marcus Beveridge, managing director of Auckland law firm Queen City Law, which advises people looking to immigrate to New Zealand.

[…]

“It’s an embarrassment, the whole thing,” Mr Beveridge said. “I call it gross negligence from the government to allow this to happen to something that was really important to the economy.”

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Observador – Is there life beyond the PowerPoint?

Inês Azevedo, Partner at Azevedo Ascenso, pens an op-ed for Observador in which she laments the Portuguese Government’s handling of the Golden Visa question: 

“The Portuguese citizen is starting to get uncomfortable with the decisions of the Council of Ministers translated into PowerPoint, font 50, to define complex issues that must be dealt with in time, supported by statistics, academic studies and multidisciplinary teams. This simplistic and careless modus operandi erodes the trust of the electorate and sets a bad example for younger generations.

The golden visa is dead. However, there are several ways to terminate a program. This slow waltz has an impact on international “non-golden visa” investors who, faced with these signs of insanity, withdraw and cancel or postpone investments.

I conclude by answering the question with the certainty that there is no life in the Council of Ministers beyond the mediocrity of PowerPoints.

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DW – Middle East trend for ‘golden visa’ schemes accelerating

“While there is no definitive data on the exact nationalities of Middle Eastern investors participating in these programs, there are a few patterns,” David Regueiro, a regional representative for the Investment Migration Council, told DW.

For one thing, Middle Eastern investors “are some of the most active consumers of these programs in the world,” he said, with some countries getting over three-quarters of all their applicants for CBI schemes from the region.

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“You have a lot of people who can’t afford traditional CBI programs,” said Jeremy Savory, head of the Dubai-based immigration consultancy Savory & Partners. “Maybe there’s a gap in the market for some that start at $50,000, with relevant benefits,” he speculated.

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Finews – Obtaining Dual Citizenship

On the top end of the scale is Henley & Partners, the indisputable global market leader. According to research by finews.com, it has roughly half the entire market for citizenships and residence by investment in countries like Malta and Montenegro. It is a British-based firm with a global presence, which includes offices in both Zurich and Geneva.

Companies like Henley, which are also accredited by the respective governments involved, first establish whether the applicant even qualifies for the program they are considering. About 80 percent of applicants involved citizens from China, the US, the Middle East, India and Latin America. In Malta’s case, for example, it no longer accepts applications from Russian citizens.

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Arabian Business – UAE Golden Visa demand skyrockets as Dubai real estate market continues boom

“The fact that you can get a Golden Visa now when purchasing a secondary or off-plan property for AED2million which can be mortgaged pretty much covers all common scenarios for not only investors but also for UAE residents who own property,” Lynnette Sacchetto, a UAE-based real estate industry consultant previously told Arabian Business.

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Economic Times – Staying ahead of the July 1 tax increase on outbound money transfers can ease the path to EB-5

Goldi Chawla of CanAm Enterprises contributes an article to one of India’s largest dailies in which she warns that planned tax increases in India will make investing in EB-5 (or any investment migration program, for that matter) far more costly for Indians:

But an upcoming tax increase could influence the timing and momentum of India’s EB-5 opportunities. The central government proposed during the budget session an increase in the Tax Collected at Source (TCS), from 5% to 20%. The increase, which would take effect July 1, 2023, would add significant upfront costs on outbound cash wire transfers. For example, the proposed rule states that to enable a net wire of $800,000, one will have to make available an amount almost the equivalent of $1,000,000.