Six in ten millionaire investors have considered leaving the UK due to high taxation, a new study from Wealth Club has revealed.
The study of 341 Wealth Club clients, all with an overall wealth of £1 million or more, found that 61% have considered becoming non-UK tax residents because of UK taxes. This includes 16% who are actively considering leaving and 45% who have considered it but are unlikely to move.
Almost all (97%) believe taxes will definitely or probably increase over the next 12 months, with more than half (53%) convinced tax rises are inevitable.
Inheritance tax rises pose the greatest concern to respondents (22%), followed by wealth taxes (21%) and capital gains tax (18%).
The research found respondents have overwhelmingly built their own wealth, with just 2% stating that inheritance or family money was the main source of their wealth. Around 12% have accumulated their wealth by starting a business, while 11% have done so through self-employment, 40% through employed earnings and a further 33% through successful investing.
However, almost half (47%) identified higher taxes as the single biggest threat to their wealth, while a further 26% cited government policy. Together, these ranked well ahead of inflation, market volatility and geopolitical events.
Alex Davies, founder and CEO of Wealth Club, said: “Six in ten millionaire investors have at least considered leaving the UK because of taxation. What is often overlooked is where this wealth came from. Almost all the investors we surveyed built it themselves through work, starting businesses or investing over many years. The overwhelming majority earned it.
“This matters. These are the people who work hard, create businesses and jobs, invest in growing companies and generate significant tax revenues. Governments inevitably face difficult choices and must balance the public finances. However, every tax rise and every policy change that makes Britain a less attractive place to save, invest and build businesses risks encouraging more wealth creators to look elsewhere. That would ultimately leave the UK poorer, not richer.”
The Wealth Club’s research is supported by official data which shows the number of UK millionaires has fallen to 442,000, the lowest level since 2007, and around 7% lower than a year earlier.
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