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Cape Town – Over 8 000 millionaires have left SA since 2000 and, during this time, they have preferred to move to Australia, the UK, Cyprus, Mauritius, the US and Canada, according to a report released on Thursday.
New World Wealth, in association with LIO Global, has just completed its annual review of the migration patterns of worldwide millionaires.
The term millionaires - otherwise known as high net worth individuals (HNWIs) - refers to individuals with net assets of $1m (R12.5m) or more, excluding their primary residences.
South Africa had the seventh biggest outflow of HNWIs over the past 14 years, the report showed.
New World Wealth analyst Andrew Amoils said that in year 2000, South Africa had 20 000 HNWIs.
During the course of 14 years the figure increased to 46 800, taking into account the 8 000 that left.
That means that if those HNWIs had remained in South Africa, the country would now have had 54 800 millionaires.
In search of a second citizenship
Since the turn of the century large numbers of global HNWIs have sought out second citizenship, the report said.
According to LIO Global’s Nadia Read, “the main reason people apply for a second residence or citizenship is to ensure freedom of global mobility and access, as well as security and wealth protection for their families”.
Said Read: “The majority of investors are typically looking towards the EU. Cyprus and Malta, in particular, are very popular as they offer direct citizenship without long waiting or residence periods.
“Portugal’s Golden Residence Visa, as well as the Hungarian Residence Bond program, have also seen significant interest, as they offer investors residence in exchange for a smaller investment (in comparison to Malta or Cyprus).
“The Caribbean has also recently seen strong demand as countries such as Antigua and Barbuda or Grenada offer direct citizenship in under six months.”
A new home
Along with the rise in second citizenship applications, the number of people immigrating has increased dramatically since the turn of the century, the report said.
Major reasons for this include turmoil in the home country, security concerns and optimising education of children.
GRAPH: Countries with biggest inflows of HNWIs:
The table lists countries that have had the biggest inflows of HNWIs from abroad over the past 14 years. Note: This survey was conducted by comparing the domicile of a sample of approximately 60 000 global HNWIs in 2000 with the same sample in 2014. HNWI numbers rounded to nearest 100. Source: NW-Wealth.com
The UK and in particular London has become a hub for moving millionaires due to a number of factors including:
- The language.
- The international nature of the city.
- Ease of travel - EU has open border policy.
- Ease of moving money into the country.
- Ease of buying property in the country.
- Quality of schooling and universities.
GRAPH: Countries with biggest outflows of HNWIs
The following table lists countries that have had the biggest outflows of HNWIs over the past 14 years. Note: HNWI numbers rounded to nearest 100. Source: NW-Wealth.com
GRAPH: Top countries for worldwide millionaires
The following table lists the top 10 countries for millionaires at the end of 2014. The USA tops the list followed by Japan, the UK, Germany and then China. HNWI numbers rounded to nearest 100. Source: NW-Wealth.com
