The Significant Investor Visa (SIV) gave high wealth individuals the opportunity to migrate to Australia. Also known as the ‘golden ticket’ visa, the Significant Investor Visa required visa holders to invest a minimum of $5 million in the Australian economy.
The Significant Investor Visa bought in up to $40 billion in additional capital over 10 years, including $15 billion in complying investments. It supported innovative projects like the ‘Hot Doc’ medical appointments app, Carbon Revolution’s carbon fibre wheels and Morse Micro’s Wi-Fi chips.
In July 2024, the Significant Investor Visa was axed. This was the result of the review into Australia’s Migration Program. At the time, the SIV had little support from the Albanese Government and there was a lot of negativity surrounding it. Clare O’Neill, the minister for Home Affairs at the time felt the visa didn’t add value to Australia.
The Grattan Institute also released a publication around the same time that painted the visa in a negative light. The fact that anyone with enough money could essentially buy their way into Australia gave the Significant Investor Visa a bad rap.
The Significant Investor Visa was replaced with the National Innovation Visa however, this visa doesn’t require any investment in Australia and is not really considered a replacement for the SIV.
The closure of all business stream visas by the Albanese Government has left a gap in the market. Senior executives over 45 years of age, high wealth individuals over 50 years of age and overseas business starters have the money yet no pathway to migrate to Australia.
While many had a negative view of the Significant Investor Visa, many believe the decision to close business stream visas was shortsighted. The SIV attracts high net wealth individuals who are willing to invest in Australia – they are mainly good businesspeople who are helping to create jobs for Australians.
The Argument to Bring Back the Significant Investor Visa
There have been recent discussions that may see the return of the Significant Investor Visa. At a recent Liberal Party fundraiser, opposition leader Peter Dutton commented that he may bring it back, if elected. He has since been vocal about his opinion on the visa.
‘I don’t think there’s anything remarkable in saying that we want to attract high net wealth individuals to our country who can bring potentially hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars.’ [1] Peter Dutton on Sydney radio 2GB.
His comments were further supported when New Zealand prime minister, Christopher Luxton implemented changes to facilitate introducing a similar ‘golden ticket’ visa in New Zealand.
The Trump Gold Card
While Australia and New Zealand contemplate ‘golden ticket’ visas, U.S. president, Donald Trump announced earlier in March that he would start selling $5 million dollar gold cards otherwise known as a ‘Trump Gold Card’ to wealthy foreigners. Wealthy foreigners including Russian oligarchs would be able to buy the ‘Trump Gold Card’ which would give them permanent U.S residence and a pathway to U.S citizenship. While many experts see this as a dangerous move, President Trump believes selling these cards would reduce the nation’s deficit.
While the Coalition hasn’t yet revealed its plans or the proposed structure of the potentially re-introduced Significant Investor Visa, the plan to reinstate the SIV has generated a lot of discussion between former immigration leaders, government representatives and economic experts. Needless to say, the future of the Significant Investor Visa will be a significant topic in the upcoming election.
To learn more about business migration or any other aspect of migration, contact the experienced team of registered migration agents at Visa Solutions Australia. Book a consultation.
