Australia announces new investor visa

Support migrant centric journalism today and donate

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has announced a new permanent residence visa aimed at wealthy investors.

The 'Premium Investor Visa,' which will be launched next summer, is available for applicants who can invest $15 million or more into the Australian economy.

This new visa will be in addition to the 'Significant Investor Program' for investments of $5 million or over. There have already been over four hundred Significant Investor visas issued since November 2012. Investors who meet the residence requirements may also be able to gain permanent residence in Australia.

It is hoped the new visa will improve the flow of foreign investment, and attract high net-worth individuals to Australia.

The Significant Investor program has resulted in investments of over $2.1bn into the Australian economy. It is hoped that the Premium Investor Visa will help generate even more inward investment into the Australian economy.

Meanwhile in the UK the Tier 1 Investor Visa doubled in cost from one million pounds to two million pounds on 6 November 2014.