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People from around the world flocked to New Zealand in the 19th century in search of gold. Two hundred years later, they are coming back, this time in search of golden visas.
In April, New Zealand relaxed the rules around its golden visa — formally known as the “active investor plus” visa — which allows foreigners to gain permanent residency status by investing in the country’s economy. It still, however, requires a lot of cash: Applicants must invest at least 5 million New Zealand dollars, about $3 million, over three years or $10 million New Zealand dollars over five years, depending on the type of investment.
A surge of Americans has attempted to take advantage of the new rules. Since the April 1 rule changes, New Zealand has received 267 golden visa applications as of August 8, compared to 115 between September 2022 and March 31, 2025, according to New Zealand’s immigration site. Of the new applications, 44% are from Americans.
“The vast majority of ultra high net worth individuals globally have always sought a tax haven,” Stuart Nash, a former member of parliament and cabinet minister, who cofounded relocation concierge Nash Kelly Global, told Business Insider. Now, “more are seeking a safe haven.”
Nash Kelly Global helps high-net-worth individuals apply for New Zealand’s golden visa and start their lives in New Zealand. This typically involves walking them through the process — it can take about a month to apply, and from there, the approval process may happen within weeks. It can also include on-the-ground work like scoping out real estate, introducing clients to business networks, or finding them a doctor, school, or golf club.
Nash broke down three reasons his American clients are taking the 6,000-plus-mile leap:
1. Donald Trump is good for New Zealand’s business
For some who have long considered a move to New Zealand, recent political developments have triggered action.
“Within maybe the first three sentences, the word Trump does come up as a reason why they do want to move,” Nash said about the Americans looking to relocate or purchase a second (or third or fourth) home halfway around the world.
“You’ve got the National Guard in Washington; you’ve got troops on the ground in LA — that’s not the America that a lot of Americans remember or think their country is,” he said.
He touted the country’s democracy — it’s consistently ranked in the world’s top 10, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit — and overall friendliness, in contrast to the divisiveness in the States.
Following Trump’s election, the number of Americans who registered for the “Live and Work New Zealand” visa program increased 6,500%, the New Zealand Herald reported. A similar bump occurred in 2016, when there was a spike in Americans registering their interest in immigrating to the country, the Herald reported.
A doomsday prepper’s paradise
There’s also the fact that New Zealand is far away from it all, literally. That makes it an ideal place for the wealthy doomsday preppers to have a home.
“You’ve got New Zealand at the bottom of the world, and it does take a while to get here,” Nash said.
Billionaire Peter Thiel began investing in New Zealand more than a decade ago and now owns two properties there. In 2016, Sam Altman told The New Yorker that Thiel’s house is where he and Thiel would go in case of any sort of pandemic. (When the pandemic came, Altman did not hole up in New Zealand, but many wealthy Americans did, Bloomberg reported.)
A year later, Reid Hoffman, the cofounder of LinkedIn, told the same magazine that New Zealand was basically “apocalypse insurance.”
Whether it’s a climate, health, or political crisis, it doesn’t hurt that it’s “a million miles away from the global ills,” Nash said, and has more sheep than people.
3. The golf is good
Then, there’s the golf.
“There’s a disproportionate number of very good golfers” who show interest in New Zealand, Nash said.
Two of the country’s top courses — Kauri Cliffs and Cape Kidnappers— were built by one of the original wealthy transplants, hedge fund billionaire Julian Robertson. Nash Kelly offers a 12-day “try before you buy” trip that visits three courses (and costs more than $120,000 per person).
Others who move for the lifestyle are avid hikers and bikers. Many are particularly interested in Queenstown, the “adventure capital of the world,” Nash said.
“You can play golf in the morning, you can ski in the afternoon, and you can be drinking fine wine at one of the best wineries in the evening,” he said.
The post A consultant who helps wealthy Americans move to New Zealand shares 3 top reasons people are relocating appeared first on Business Insider.
