Prime Minister Christopher Luxon makes announcement in Auckland. Video / NZ Herald
The Government is relaxing immigration settings to encourage wealthy foreigners to invest in New Zealand businesses.
Speaking from Auckland today, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon detailed changes to the Active Investor Plus (AIP) visa category, creating two “simplified” investment categories that will replace its “complex weighting system”.
One will be a growth category that is applied to those making “higher-risk investments”, including those directly in local businesses. It will require a minimum investment of $5 million for a period of at least three years.
The second is a new “balanced” category, which focuses on mixed investment and required a minimum spend of $10m over five years.
Luxon was joined by Finance Minister Nicola Willis, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford and Minister of Trade Todd McClay while making the announcement.
“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.
“Unfortunately, changes made to the AIP visa category by the previous government had the effect of discouraging potential investors from seeking New Zealand residence.”
Several other changes have been made, including stripping away the visa’s English language requirement, which demanded applicants have an English language background. Luxon today claimed the requirement had scared off many potential investors in recent years.
Successful applicants in the growth category would have to spend a minimum of 21 days in New Zealand.
Those under the balanced category would have to spend 105 days in New Zealand but could be given reductions if they went over and above the $10m base investment.
“I declare that New Zealand is open for investment,” Luxon said.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Auckland Regional Chamber of Commerce chief executive Simon Bridges at the Cordis Hotel on February 9, 2025. Photo / Alex Burton
Luxon criticised the previous Labour Government during the announcement, saying migrants entering New Zealand under this visa had invested $70m, which was down on the $2.2b invested in the two years prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I’m dusting off the welcome mat,” he said speaking at the Auckland Business Chamber event.
“I want regular Kiwis to understand investment like this is fantastic.”
Economic growth has been key area of focus for Luxon in 2025, regularly referencing his view New Zealand needed to make itself more attractive to foreign investors.
Aside from the announcement, Luxon was also likely to be asked about revelations showing Act Party leader and soon-to-be Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour sent a detailed letter to police advocating for Philip Polkinghorne during the police investigation into the death of the Remuera eye surgeon’s wife, as reported by the Herald today.
Polkinghorne was found not guilty of his wife Pauline’s death after a nine-week trial last year.
Adam Pearse is a political reporter in the NZ Herald Press Gallery team, based at Parliament. He has worked for NZME since 2018, covering sport and health for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei before moving to the NZ Herald in Auckland, covering Covid-19 and crime.
