For Investors

Overview

If you have the money, and can afford to have it tied up for a number of years, then applying under the Investor Category is probably the easiest way to gain New Zealand residence.

Investor 1 or Investor 2

There are two sub-categories to the Investor Visa category, and they are called 'Investor 1' (sometimes referred to as 'Investor Plus Visa') and 'Investor 2' (sometimes referred to as just 'Investor Visa').

You will need either minimum NZ$10 million (about US$6 million) or NZ$3 million (about US$1.85 million) to invest in New Zealand, depending on which one you choose to apply under. The first one has less strings attached than the other.

The usual process is to lodge an investor visa application to Immigration NZ, and if you meet the criteria, will be granted an 'approval in principle'. Once you have placed your funds into 'acceptable investments', Immigration New Zealand will grant a conditional resident visa.

Compare

Let's take a quick look at the pro's and con's of these Investor Visa categories:

Pros

Pretty much hands free - no need to work, or run a business
Relatively quicker processing time, conditional residence visa will usually issue within 6 months
No restriction as to where you can reside
If you have children their school fees will be the same as locals
No capital gains tax or gift tax
Might even end up getting a good return on investment

Cons

Money tied up for 3-4 years
Need to spend minimum time in New Zealand (although not such a bad thing!)

Sounds like you? Read about it in more detail from here.