More than 10,000 millionaires have left the United Kingdom in the past year, according to figures from New World Wealth (NWW), a South Africa-based analyst firm.
Higher taxes, the growing dominance of the United States and Asia in the tech sector and the crumbling UK healthcare system are said to be the reasons for the exodus. According to NWW, 4,200 millionaires left the UK in 2023. In 2024, that number rose as high as 10,800. Only China saw more millionaires leave last year.
Between 2017 and 2023, 16,500 millionaires already left the UK in the wake of Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic. British millionaires are mainly moving to Paris, Dubai, Amsterdam, Monaco, Geneva, Sydney and Singapore. For retirees, Florida, the Algarve, Malta and the Italian Riviera are popular hotspots.
Non-doms and NHS
Until the 2000s, Britain (and London in particular) was one of the main magnets for capital: wealthy families from mainland Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle East often moved to the British capital.
According to analyst Andrew Amoils, the exodus of capital from Britain is partly due to changes to the favourable tax system for those not domiciled in the UK. The so-called "non-doms" have had to pay much more tax in recent years, which has caused many of them to leave the country.
The poor state of the British public health service could also have something to do with it, he said.
