Individuals are generally required to invest somewhere between $2.5 to $5 million USD, and stay in New Zealand for a specified number of days. They must also hold their investments for a certain number of years to qualify. Around 40% of inquiries to Greener Pastures have come from Americans investors, many of whom cite political uncertainty as a motivating factor, says Dominic Jones, managing director of Greener Pastures New Zealand.
“This visa is hugely valuable to New Zealand. We’re a small country. That means often we’re short on capital, both financial capital and also human capital,” Jones told Fortune earlier this year. “Attracting super successful, highly wealthy people to a place like New Zealand has a lot of really positive flow on effects.”
Though residency doesn’t come with all of the perks of citizenship, it does allow wealthy foreign nationals easier access to travel to the country they bought their property in and throughout the E.U. It has been popular among elites who enjoy barrier-free travel, as well as retirees looking for greener pastures outside the U.S.
But citizenship for sale has also attracted criminal elements, anti-corruption organizations have found, and European government leaders say wealthy investors buying up properties in major cities contributed to sky-rocketing housing costs that are pricing out locals.
Hungary, meanwhile, restarted its golden visa program last year. At the start of 2025, it also abolished the real estate investment option.
