Are the superrich really fleeing the UK due to taxes?

London, United Kingdom – David Lesperance, a Canadian wealthiness advisor based successful Poland, is moving against the timepiece for 1 of his British clients.

John*, who requested anonymity, is trying to relocate from London to Dublin, the Irish capital, up of November 26, erstwhile Chancellor Rachel Reeves volition present the fund – a connection presenting the Labour government’s plans for nationalist finances for the twelvemonth ahead.

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Having built a institution worthy astir 70 cardinal pounds ($92m) that helium plans to merchantability soon, John wants to debar a hefty superior gains taxation bill.

As his children are successful university, upping sticks is possible. He hopes to instrumentality vantage of the Republic of Ireland’s non-domiciled, oregon “non-dom”, taxation regime, which would exempt him from Irish taxes arsenic well.

“We’ve been moving accelerated to organise his contiguous departure to Ireland,” said Lesperance, who has been assisting him successful shifting his assets abroad. “With higher taxes looming, the costs of leaving aboriginal are a rounding error.”

John is not alone.

The footballer Rio Ferdinand has precocious moved to Dubai, citing taxation arsenic a propulsion factor, portion Egyptian billionaire and Aston Villa co-owner Nassef Sawiris, who moved his residency to Italy and the United Arab Emirates from Britain, told the Financial Times earlier this twelvemonth that everyone successful his “circle” is considering moving.

Herman Narula, the 37-year-old British Indian laminitis of Improbable, a tech company, announced this period that helium is fleeing to Dubai. Worth astir 700 cardinal pounds ($920m), helium is said to beryllium Britain’s richest young entrepreneur. Among his reasons for fleeing were reported plans by the Labour authorities to enforce an exit taxation connected affluent radical leaving the United Kingdom.

While that connection appears to person been ditched, the wide concern situation for entrepreneurs is progressively unpredictable, Narula and a fewer others say.

“There is alarming grounds that immoderate entrepreneurs are leaving the UK,” reads a caller unfastened missive to Reeves, signed by much than a twelve affluent concern owners, including Nick Wheeler, laminitis and seat of the men’s covering retailer Charles Tyrwhitt, and Annoushka Ducas, a jewellery designer.

“As the authorities prepares for this year’s Budget, it indispensable cautiously see the cumulative interaction of these policies connected entrepreneurs,” the missive warns.

Young clime activists from Green New Deal Rising protestation extracurricular the British authorities Treasury building, demanding wealthiness taxes connected the superrich up of the upcoming fund by UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves, connected October 27, 2025 [Toby Melville/Reuters]

When the fund is delivered, each eyes volition beryllium connected immoderate changes to taxation – an contented affecting everyone successful the UK. In caller months, speculation astir taxation amendments connected property, incomes and pensions has repeatedly made header news.

Rumours astir the superrich abandoning the UK person been swirling for an adjacent longer period, triggered by the specified imaginable of a Labour authorities past year. Since the Keir Starmer-led authorities was elected past July, a scope of media outlets person homed successful connected lawsuit studies suggesting that Labour is driving wealthiness out.

The archetypal Labour fund past October outraged immoderate high-earning individuals successful the UK, who said they were already taxed excessively much.

“Last year’s Budget measures, including changes to Capital Gains Tax, Entrepreneur’s Relief, and Employer National Insurance, person accrued costs for galore entrepreneurs and enterprises,” work the caller unfastened missive from affluent concern owners to Reeves.

Those changes came aft the Conservatives abolished the non-dom regime, a presumption that allows for radical with a residency overseas to debar taxes successful the UK.

But experts person offered words of caution connected the expected formation of the rich.

There is nary authoritative information connected the fig of affluent individuals leaving due to the fact that of Labour’s taxation changes.

“The most caller taxation information connected affluent individuals with non-dom presumption from HMRC [His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, the UK’s taxation gross department] shows that the fig of non-doms leaving the UK is successful enactment with oregon beneath authoritative forecasts,” said Mark Bou Mansour, an advocator astatine the Tax Justice Network.

Claims that caller revenue-boosting taxation reforms person triggered a monolithic non-dom exodus are mendacious and portion of a wider rhetoric that is detrimental to the UK’s fiscal and economical health, helium said.

“Talking astir whether the superrich volition determination if we taxation tin beryllium a distraction from talking astir the harms to economies and democracies that originate from not taxing utmost wealth,” helium said.

Mansour pointed to a 2024 survey by the London School of Economics that interviewed a fig of affluent individuals. It recovered the astir important factors underpinning their reluctance to migrate were their attachment to the capital’s taste infrastructure, backstage wellness services and schools, and the quality to support societal ties.

“There’s plentifulness of beardown grounds showing that the superrich don’t take to relocate conscionable to wage little tax,” said Mansour.

Behind a ample fig of articles predicting an exodus of affluent radical was a study by the passport proposal steadfast Henley & Partners.

However, the study was recovered to beryllium based connected flawed methodology, and was aboriginal amended.

Even so, Lesperance said helium has worked with a fig of clients who person near the UK since Labour came into power.

He argued that portion not needfully ample successful number, the radical makes up a precocious percent of wide taxation gross raised by the government.

“The taxation publication of a non-dom is astir 220,000 pounds ($289,000) a year, which is astir six oregon 7 times the UK average,” helium said, “They’re ace contributors” who request to beryllium protected, oregon else, “You’re going to really spot a driblet successful yearly taxation collections due to the fact that these radical person left.”

Some of his clients person chosen to relocate to Milan and Dubai.

“As 1 of my clients said, ‘London’s nice, but it’s not that nice,'” helium said.

But Michelle White, caput of backstage bureau astatine UK wealthiness absorption steadfast Rathbones, said that portion her clients are internationally mobile and could determination away, the bulk person stayed enactment truthful far.

“Since immoderate of these articles started coming retired saying the floodgates are open, we haven’t seen that,” she said.

Britain’s schools, ineligible strategy and concern situation proceed to beryllium propulsion factors, she argued.

Those who person near usually person ventures oregon properties overseas and tin easy relocate, oregon are considering selling their concern successful the adjacent 2 years oregon so, and bash not privation to wage superior gains taxation connected sales.

Others person large payouts from backstage equity oregon hedge funds and privation to debar paying income tax.

“It means that they’ll spell and walk much clip determination other and little clip present successful bid to not wage UK taxation connected that sale,” said White.

A ample grade of her clientele successful the extremity decides to enactment successful the UK to rise families, and mitigates taxation done astute planning.

“I archer radical to look astatine the adjacent 50 years and program taxes astir that,” she said, “People instrumentality a agelong view.

“Tax is 1 thing, but prime of beingness and however you really privation to unrecorded arsenic a household often overrides the taxation aspect.”