The number of wealthy people leaving the UK has reportedly increased by as much as 157% since Labour came to power and it is hitting the top end of the property market hard, a leading estate agent has claimed.

The figures come from New World Wealth which has been commissioned by advisors Henley & Partners. It claims much of the exodus is being driven by the tightening of non-dom rules. Currently, their earnings from abroad are UK tax-exempt and the same applies to inheritance tax on their overseas assets.

New rules

However, from 6th April 2025, non-doms coming to Britain will only have a four-year tax-free period and ten years for inheritance tax.

And existing non-doms will have just a two-year transition period before they have to start paying UK tax.

According to His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) there were 74,000 non-doms in the UK but many are mow leaving the UK and are resettling in countries with more generous tax arrangements, such as Switzerland, United Arab Emirates and the United States.

Paul Finch, the Director of ­upmarket estate agents Beauchamp Estates says their exodus is hitting London’s ­ultra-prime housing market hard.

A monumental act of national self-harm”.

As was reported in The Neg, the upmarket estate agency’s Wealth Survey revealed London’s super-prime residential property market contracted by almost £445 million in 2024.

Finch told the Times: “We are seeing an outflow of ultra-high-net-worth individuals, ­historically from or based in the UK, looking to move offshore and relocate to wealth hubs including Dubai, ­Monaco and the French Riviera.”

And David Hawkins, of Foreign Investors for Britain, which represents non-doms, called the Government’s policy a “monumental act of national self-harm”.