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Investor Visas

AUSTRALIA

Business Innovation and Investment Program ​(subclass 188)

The Business Innovation and Investment Program is designed to increase entrepreneurial talent and diversify business expertise in Australia. It is positioned to target migrants that have a demonstrated history of success in innovation, investment and business and are able to make a significant contribution to the national innovation system and to the Australian economy.

AUSTRALIA PERMANENT RESIDENCE VISA STREAM

 A. Significant Business History Stream (subclass 132)

  1. Be under 55 years old
  2. Business and personal assets of at least AUD 1,500,000
  3. Main business should have an annual turnover of at least AUD 3,000,000

B. Venture Capital Entrepreneur Stream (subclass 132)

  1. Receive venture capital funding of AUD 1,000,000 for:
  • the early-phase start-up of a business in Australia; or
  • the commercialization of a product in Australia; or
  • the development of a business in Australia; or
  • the expansion of a business in Australia

AUSTRALIA PROVISIONAL VISA STREAM

A. Business Innovation Stream (subclass 188A)

  1. Be under 55 years old
  2. Net personal or business assets of at least AUD800,000 available for transfer to Australia
  3. Business turnover of at least AUD500,000 for two out of the last four years
This VISA is only available to applicants who are nominated by an Australian State or Territory government. To be nominated, the applicant must lodge an Expression of Interest (EOI) through the SkillSelect system.

This is a 4-year temporary visa, for people who want to own and manage a new or existing business in Australia. Once established an ownership interest in an Australian business, the applicant can apply for permanent residence through the Business Innovation & Investment (Residence) Subclass 888 visa. A 2-year extension is possible once the applicant has held the subclass 188 VISA for 3 years, giving 6 years from the date of grant of the original Visa.

The applicants can either be in Australia or overseas to lodge this visa.

If the applicant is in Australia:

Must hold a Substantive Visa or a Bridging A, B or C visa.

 188A The Business Innovation Stream

General Requirements:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 · Ownership of a business with turnover of at least AUD 500,000 for at least 2 of the last 4 fiscal years; and

· Net personal and business assets of at least AUD 800,000; and

· Under 55 years of age, unless the nominating state or territory certifies that the applicant will make an exceptional economic benefit; and

· Meet the pass mark in the Business innovation and investment Points test (currently 65 points)

· Have an overall successful career in business
Subclass 888 VISA Requirements:

 

 

 

 

 · The applicant has been in Australia on subclass 188A VISA for at least 12 months, within the 2 years prior to lodgement

· Owned and operated a business in Australia for at least 2 years prior to the application with annual turnover of at least $300,000 for the 2 of last 4 years

· You and/or your partner must meet two of the following three criteria for the 12 months:

· Assests of at least 200,000

· Net personal and business assets of at least $600,000 in Australia

· Employed at least two Australian full-time employees in your business in Australia

B. Investor Stream (subclass 188B)

  1. Be under 55 years old
  2. Net personal or business assets of at least AUD2.25million
  3. Invest AUD 1.5 million dollars in a state or territory for at least 4 years
188B visa is only available to applicants who are nominated by an Australian State or Territory government. To be nominated, the applicant must lodge an Expression of Interest (EOI) through the SkillSelect system.

This is a 4-year temporary visa, for people who want to make a designated investment in an Australian state or territory. After maintained an investment in Australian for 4 years, the applicant can apply for permanent residence through the Business Innovation & Investment (Residence) Subclass 888 visa. The applicants can either be in Australia or overseas to lodge this visa.

If the applicant is in Australia:

·          Must hold a Substantive Visa or a Bridging A, B or C visa.

188B The Investor Stream

General Requirements · The applicant has had business and personal net assests of at least AUD 2.25 million for the last 2 fiscal years

· Under 55 years of age, unless the nominating state or territory certifies that the applicant will make an exceptional economic benefit; and

· The applicant must make an investment of AUD 1.5 million in Australian State or Territory bonds prior to grant of the visa

· Have 3 years of experience either managing a qualifying business or “eligible investments”, and have showed a high level of management skill

· For at least 1 of the 5 fiscal years, you have either:

· Managed a business in which you hold a 10% shareholding; or

· Manage “eligible investments” of at least AUD 1.5 million

· Eligible investments include:

· Ownership interests in a business

· Cash on deposit

· Stocks or bonds

· Real estate

· Gold or bullion

· Loan to a business
Subclass 888 VISA Requirements:

 

 · The applicant has been in Australia on subclass 188A VISA for at least 2 years, within the 4 years prior to lodgement

· Maintained the investment in Australia State or Territory bonds for the last 4 years

C. Significant Investor Stream (subclass 188C)

  1. Investment of at least AUD5 million dollars in Commonwealth, State or Territory government bonds, or eligible investment funds.
This VISA is only available to applicants who are nominated by an Australian State or Territory government. To be nominated, the applicant must lodge an Expression of Interest (EOI) through the SkillSelect system.

This is a 4-year temporary visa, for people willing to make an AUD 5 million investment in Australia. After maintained an investment in Australian for 4 years, the applicant can apply for permanent residence through the Business Innovation & Investment (Residence) Subclass 888 visa.

The applicants can either be in Australia or overseas to lodge this visa.

If the applicant is in Australia:

· Must hold a Substantive Visa or a Bridging A, B or C visa.

188C Significant Investor Visa (SIV) Stream

General Requirements: For grant of the visa, the applicant must make an investment of at least AUD 5 million in a “complying investment”. A “complying investment” for the purposes of the Significant Investor Visa must be made up of:

· At least $500,000 in venture capital and growth private equity funds which invest in start-ups and small private companies

· At least $1.5 million in approved managed funds investing in emerging companies listed on the Australian Stock Exchange.

· A ‘balancing investment’ of up to $3 million in managed funds that may invest in a range of assets, including ASX-listed companies, Australian corporate bonds or notes, annuities and commercial real estate
Subclass 888 VISA Requirements: ·  The applicant needs to spend 40 days per year in Australia on Significant Investor visa for the last 4 years, and be sponsored by a state or territory government to qualify for a permanent subclass 888 visa

D. Premium Investor Stream (subclass 188D)

  1. Investment of AUD15 million dollars into complying investments
This VISA is only available to applicants who are nominated by an AusTrade.

This is a 4-year temporary visa, for people who want to invest at least AUD 15 million into complying investments in Australia. After maintained an investment in Australian for 1 year, the applicant can apply for permanent residence through the Business Innovation & Investment (Residence) Subclass 888 visa.

The applicants can either be in Australia or overseas to lodge this visa.

If the applicant is in Australia:

You must hold a Substantive Visa or a Bridging A, B or C visa.
General Requirements Applicants must make an investment of at least AUD 15 million in a “premium investment” prior to grant of the visa. A “premium investment” for the purposes of the Premium Investor Visa includes:

· Australian securities exchange listed assets

· Australian government or semi-government bonds or notes

· Corporate bonds or notes issued by an Australian exchange listed entity (or wholly owned subsidiary of the Australian listed entity) or investment grade rated Australian corporate bonds or notes rated by an AFS licenced debt rating agency

· Australian proprietary limited companies

· Real property in Australia excluding residential property

· Deferred annuities issued by Australian registered life companies

· State or territory government approved philanthropic contribution
Advantages: · No residence requirement

· Fast-track 12 months pathway to permanent residency

E. Entrepreneur Stream (subclass 188E)

  1. Be under 55 years old
  2. Develop an enterprise or business in Australia OR
  3. Commercialise a product or service
  4. AUD 200,000 funding from any of the following:
  • Commonwealth agencies;
  • State and Territory governments;
  • Publicly funded research organisations; and
  • Investors registered as a Venture Capital Limited Partnership/s (VCLP) or an Early Stage Venture Capital Limited Partnership/s (ESVCLP).
This VISA is only available to applicants who are nominated by an Australian State or Territory government. To be nominated, the applicant must lodge an Expression of Interest (EOI) through the SkillSelect system.

This is a 4-year temporary visa, for entrepreneurs with innovative ideas and financial backing from a third party. After spending 2 years in Australia and being sponsored by a state or territory government to qualify for a permanent residence through the Business Innovation & Investment (Residence) Subclass 888 visa.

The applicants can either be in Australia or overseas to lodge this visa.

If the applicant is in Australia:

· You must hold a Substantive Visa or a Bridging A, B or C visa.

188E Entrepreneur Stream

General Requirements:

 

 · Nomination by a state or territory government

· Competent English

· Under 55 Years of age, unless a State or Territory Government nominates you as providing an “exceptional economic benefit” to the state or territory

· Funding agreement in place for at least $200,000 to establish a venture in Australia

· Ownership interest of at least 30% in the venture
Acceptable Business Activities:

 

 

 The proposed venture would need to be either:

· Commercialisation of a product or service in Australia; or

· Development of an enterprise or business in Australia

Certain activities which are not considered sufficiently innovative will be excluded. This are defined by legislative instrument and include:

· Purchase of an existing business or franchise

· Real estate activities

· Labour hire activities
Eligible funding

 

 

 To apply for the Entrepreneur Visa, the applicant will need to have an agreement for at least $200,000 in funding from one or more of the following sources:

· Commonwealth agencies

· State and territory governments

· Publicly funded research organisations

· Investors registered as Venture Capital Limited Partnerships or Early Stage Venture Capital Limited Partnerships

· The funding agreement must involve the transfer of at least 10% of the funds within 12 months of commencing the activity in Australia.

For more information, please follow this link

https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/trav/visa-1/188-

New Zealand

Investor visas

Our Investor business migration visas are for investors who want to gain residence in New Zealand.

The Investor Visa (Investor 2 Category) is an option if you plan to invest a minimum of NZ$3 million over a four-year period. If you’re looking to invest $NZ10 million or more then the Investor Plus Visa (Investor 1 Category) could be a better option. Below are the main differences between these two options.

Recent changes have been made to our investor visa policies to further recognise and reward higher levels of business experience, English language skills and growth oriented investments.

Criteria for approval

Investor Visa

$ 3mNZD

Invested for 4 years

146 days in NZ in each of the last three years of a four year investment period or 438 days in NZ over the four year investment period*.

Investor Plus Visa

$10mNZD

Invested for 3 years

44 days in NZ in each of the last 2 years of a three year investment period or 88 days over the three year investment period*.

No additional requirements.

View full criteria | Immigration New Zealand

*depending on the make-up of your investment

Rewards for growth investments

If you invest at least 25% of your investment funds into assets other than Bonds and Philanthropic Investment, Investor visa holders will be able to meet their time in New Zealand requirement flexibly, with Investor 2 visa holders required to spend 438 days over the 4 year investment period and Investor Plus visa holders needing to spend 88 days over the 3 year investment period.

Investor 2 visa holders who invest at least 50% of your investment funds into assets other than Bonds and Philanthropic Investment will qualify for a reduction of $0.5m of the investment amount.  For example, if you nominate $3m of investment funds and invest $1.5m outside of Bonds and Philanthropic Investment, you will only be required to invest a further $1m to meet the visa requirements.

Acceptable investments

If you’re interested in applying under one of our investor policies, the opportunities you take up must fit our ‘acceptable investment’ criteria. Broadly speaking, acceptable investments can be:

  • Equity in NZ firms, public or private. An equity investment can be active or passive, and be made direct or via managed funds (only the proportion of the Fund that is invested in NZ is counted as acceptable).
  • Bonds, issued by the NZ Government, NZ local authorities or approved NZ banks, finance companies or firms.
  • New residential property development that is not for the investor’s personal use and designed to make a commercial return on the open market.
  • Up to 15% of the investment total can be philanthropic investment.

Generally, to be considered acceptable, an investment must:

  • Be capable of a commercial return under normal circumstances.
  • Be invested in New Zealand in New Zealand currency.
  • Have the potential to contribute to New Zealand’s economy.
  • Not be for the personal use of the investor.

This is just an overview, and there are other conditions that apply.

Acceptable investments | Immigration New Zealand

Investment funds

You can nominate a mix of funds and/or assets to invest. They must be equivalent to at least NZ$3 million for Investor or NZ$10 million for Investor Plus, though you may nominate more, depending on the points claimed in your Expression of Interest (EOI).

You’ll need to provide evidence showing that your investment and/or assets are owned by you or jointly by you and your partner and/or dependent children if they are included in the application.

You’ll also need to provide evidence showing that your intended investment funds:

  • are unencumbered, i.e. not subject to any mortgage, lien, charge and/or encumbrance (whether equitable or otherwise) or any other creditor claims
  • have been earned or acquired legally
  • are transferable through the banking system or through a foreign exchange company that uses the banking system (Immigration New Zealand will not be able to approve your application if you are unable to transfer funds to New Zealand through the banking system).

If your residence is approved in principle

With either category, you’ll have 12 months to transfer your investment funds in an acceptable investment in New Zealand. You’ll need to provide verifiable documents to show that the funds you transfer to New Zealand came from the funds and/or assets that you nominate.

You can apply to have this timeframe extended and you can also apply for a work visa so you can travel to New Zealand to look into investment opportunities.

Invest in New Zealand
You can nominate a mix of funds and/or assets to invest.

After residence is approved

For the Investor Plus category, you’ll need to keep your investment funds in an acceptable investment for three years. You’ll also have to spend at least 44 days in New Zealand each year in years two and three of your three-year investment period or 88 days over the three year investment period*.

For the Investor category, you’ll need to keep your investment funds in an acceptable investment for four years. You will also have to spend at least 146 days each year in New Zealand in years two, three and four of your four-year investment period or 438 days over the four year investment period*.

*Depending on the make-up of your investment

 

Other business visas to consider

Looking to own and work in a business?

If you want to work full-time in a business you own, our Entrepreneur visas are worth exploring.

Entrepreneur visas 

Looking to make a global impact?

If you’re a high impact entrepreneur or investor looking to create scalable, positive global impact, our Global Impact Visa could be for you.

Global Impact Visa

https://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/investing-in-nz/visas/investor-visa

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