BRAIN DRAIN

Rich Americans Fleeing Trump Scramble for Overseas ‘Golden Visa’ Scheme

U.S. investors accounted for nearly 40 percent of applicants seeking New Zealand residency.

Americans are seizing upon on a program offering New Zealand residency to wealthy foreigners, with President Donald Trump often cited as a reason for the planned exodus.

A “golden visa” scheme that lowered the residency threshold for New Zealand in exchange for a promise of millions of dollars in investment came into effect in April 2025.

According to the latest government figures, 1,833 people have applied for the visa program, of which nearly 40 percent (617) are wealthy Americans. The number is more than double that of China (309), with Hong Kong in third place (249), according to The Guardian.

While there are many reasons why wealthy people might want to obtain residency in the picturesque country, Robbie Paul, chief executive of the Icehouse Ventures venture capital firm based in Auckland, said the chance to escape Trump’s administration is often cited.

“I’ll put it this way: never in my time in New Zealand did I have an applicant reference Biden or Obama … and then, absolutely, a lot of references to people’s feelings towards MAGA and Trump,” Paul told The Guardian.

The wealthy foreign investor visa offers two categories. The most popular option requires a minimum NZ$5 million ($3 million) investment over three years, while the second requires at least $10 million over five years. Anyone hoping to purchase a home in New Zealand under the program can buy only property valued at more than $5 million.

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There have been similar trends linking interest in moving to New Zealand with Trump.

Visits to the country’s immigration website rose almost 2,500 percent in the immediate aftermath of his first election victory in 2016. Visits also quadrupled to 77,000 soon after the Supreme Court voted to overturn Roe v. Wade in June 2022.

The number of Americans applying for second passports has also spiked amid apparent fears about Trump’s return to office.

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The Irish Department of Foreign Affairs reported a 50 percent increase in U.S. applicants for Irish passports, from 7,726 in 2023 to 11,601 in 2024. The biggest spike occurred in November 2024, coinciding with Trump’s election victory, when there were 3,692 submissions, the highest single-month total in a decade.

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Trump himself is trying to entice wealthy foreigners to come to the U.S. via the president’s “gold card” visa scheme.

The program allows wealthy foreigners who have passed a background check to apply for EB-1 or EB-2 visas—usually reserved for those with “extraordinary ability”—after paying $1 million, on top of a $15,000 processing fee, to the Department of Homeland Security.

The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.

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