$5 Million and Stay in New Zealand for Just 21 Days to Receive the ‘Golden’ Visa

An international arrivals sign at Wellington Airport in New Zealand on March 16, 2020. Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images

Wealthy people will now be able to gain New Zealand residency by investing as little as $5 million (US$2.83 million) for a minimum of three years under changes announced by the government.

And they will need to be in the country for only 21 days during that time.

That deal is offered under the “Growth” category visa, focusing on higher-risk investments, including direct buying into New Zealand businesses.

A second category, the “Balanced” visa, will allow mixed investments, including ones viewed as lower risk. The minimum in that case will be $10 million over five years.

Other changes include expanding the scope of acceptable investments and removing potential barriers, such as the English language requirement, which Immigration Minister Erica Stanford said deterred investors from Korea, Japan, and Germany, who found it “insulting.”

For the first time, the visa allows investments in commercial property and developments.

“Foreign investment has the potential to provide jobs for Kiwis, lift incomes by delivering new businesses and investing in existing ones. We should be rolling out the welcome mat and encouraging investor migrants to choose New Zealand as a destination for their capital,” Willis said in a release announcing the changes.

Stanford added that “in an increasingly complex world, people are looking for a safe and stable country to do business. We are now making our investor visa simpler and more flexible to incentivise investors to choose New Zealand as a destination not just for their capital, skills and international connections, but to build a life for themselves and their family here.”

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Regarding the short time frame, Willis told RNZ that the “biggest barrier is saying to them, you’ve got to spend 10 weeks a year here, or whatever it is ... Why would you force them to be somewhere they don’t want to be for the first couple of years?”

Stanford said once investors see the reduced requirement, “they’re more interested in coming. We get them in the door,” after which “we keep them here because they fall in love with the place.”

Under the current “Active Investor Plus” visa, holders must spend at least 117 days in New Zealand during a four-year investment period, and demonstrate English language ability. It also requires a $15 million investment.

That visa was introduced in 2022, which means it’s too new for Immigration New Zealand to have much data.

Most applicants are still in the process of applying or have recently received their visas. As of Feb. 5, 2025, the department had received 101 applications involving 318 people, and 43 applications have been approved. Those people brought investment funds worth $545 million into the country.

The visa will run against long-standing policy of Winston Peters, the leader of one of the three coalition parties and the deputy prime minister.

His New Zealand First party has been opposed to what it sees as low-value foreign investment since its establishment in 1993. Much of its base support comes from people concerned about the sale of land and assets offshore and about migration levels.

As recently as three days ago, Peters appeared to be aware that changes were in the wind, but told Newstalk ZB that “If someone has come to this country like they do to other countries and brings $50 million to invest in a huge industry and to ensure that we’ve got employment where there’s no employment now, potential exports where there are no exports in this area now—then we will look at it, and that’s always been our view.

“Because that means you’ve got a serious investor committed to the New Zealand economy and [it’s] not just a bolt hole in case they want to come here one day.”

With the current scheme having a threshold of one-tenth of that figure and a three-weeks-in-three-years residency requirement, the government’s new visas are a long way from New Zealand First’s bottom lines.

At this stage the ban on foreign residential property ownership remains in place, though Standford did say it may be changed in future. The ban was introduced at the behest of New Zealand First.

Economic commentator Bernard Hickey says he doubts the new “golden visas” will boost New Zealand’s GDP, pointing out that most of the Active Investor Plus cash went into government bonds rather than businesses.

“A surge is unlikely while residential land-buying is still banned,” he said.