Millionaires on the Move: Winners, Losers, and the Global Competition for Wealth in 2026

LONDON, June 16, 2026 /CNW/ -- Singapore, Italy, Switzerland, Greece, Hong Kong, and New Zealand are emerging as some of the  most attractive destinations for internationally mobile wealth in 2026 , while the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Norway, and South Korea are facing growing competitiveness pressures  as tax reforms, fiscal uncertainty, and policy shifts prompt wealthy individuals and families to reassess their options.

At the same time, two mobility flashpoints look set to reshape the geography of global wealth this year: the US , the world's largest private wealth market and creator of new wealth, is also generating record demand for residence  and citizenship  optionality as affluent Americans seek international diversification in unprecedented numbers; and the Gulf, where ongoing conflict is testing the resilience of the region's emerging wealth hubs, particularly the UAE -- the leading destination for millionaire migration over the past two years -- prompting a new phase of contingency planning among its internationally mobile residents.

These findings are among the key insights from the Henley Private Wealth Migration Report 2026 , which identifies a growing shift away from traditional relocation planning as the world's wealthiest increasingly build 'sovereign portfolios' of residence rights, citizenships, investments, and business interests across multiple jurisdictions.

In the first five months of 2026 alone, Henley & Partners  received applications from 86 nationalities across 47 investment migration programs . More than 28% of applicants currently live outside their country of nationality, underscoring a defining characteristic of today's wealth landscape: HNWIs and their families are increasingly structuring their lives across a range of jurisdictions rather than remaining tied to a single country.

"For much of the past century, governments could largely treat their wealthiest residents as a relatively fixed asset -- rooted by businesses, family ties, and limited international mobility. That assumption is becoming increasingly outdated," says Dr. Juerg Steffen , CEO at Henley & Partners. "As a result, jurisdictions are competing not only for capital, but also for the entrepreneurs, investors, business owners, and skilled individuals who drive economic growth, innovation, employment, and prosperity."

A New Framework for Understanding Wealth Mobility

The 2026 edition marks the most significant evolution of the Henley Private Wealth Migration Report since its launch.

While previous editions focused primarily on millionaire migration estimates and directional wealth flows, this year's report introduces the Global Wealth Mobility Framework -- a new analytical model developed by Henley & Partners to assess the structural competitiveness of jurisdictions in attracting, retaining, and supporting internationally mobile wealth.

The framework evaluates countries across a range of factors including taxation, investor migration pathways, quality of life, rule of law, family inclusion, geopolitical stability, and capital mobility, generating a Wealth Mobility Competitiveness Score for each market. The report also includes a series of policy spotlights  examining how these forces are reshaping private wealth migration around the world.

"The world's most mobile wealth are making jurisdictional decisions the way sovereign wealth funds allocate portfolios -- diversifying across climates, governance systems, and geopolitical zones to protect against shocks none of us can fully foresee", says Dr. Parag Khanna , Founder and CEO at AlphaGeo.

Global Wealth Mobility Leaders and Markets Under Pressure

The report identifies a group of jurisdictions demonstrating particularly strong structural positioning in 2026 for attracting, retaining, and supporting internationally mobile wealth.

Among the standout performers  are Singapore (with a Wealth Mobility Competitiveness Score of 79.5 out of 100) and New Zealand (75.8). A second group of strong performers includes the Cayman Islands (74.3), Cyprus (73.5), the Netherlands (72.8), Portugal (72.5), Italy (72.3), and Bermuda (72.0), and the report also highlights Uruguay (71.8), Latvia (71.7), Panama (71.5), Hong Kong (71.2), Switzerland (70.8), Greece (70.5), Costa Rica (70.2), and Monaco (70.0) as highly competitive wealth mobility jurisdictions.

Among those classified as ' Competitive Jurisdictions Under Pressure ' are Germany (69.7), Norway (69.0), the UK (68.3), South Korea (66.2), and France (65.7).

"High-net-worth migration is the canary in the coal mine for economic policy", says Douglas McWilliams , Founder at the Centre for Economics and Business Research in the UK. "If wealthy people are leaving a country en masse, you can be reasonably sure that the country's economic policy isn't working."

The report also highlights a group of jurisdictions  facing more persistent structural wealth mobility challenges, including Brazil (64.2), China (60.5), Russia (58.7), India (56.5), Iran (45.8), Lebanon (45.5), and Nigeria (43.0).

The US and UAE Wealth Mobility Paradoxes

With a Wealth Mobility Competitiveness Score of just 62.3, the US  occupies a unique position in the framework. America remains the largest engine of wealth creation, entrepreneurship, and capital formation, yet it is also Henley & Partners' largest single source market. Applications from US nationals doubled in 2025 compared to the previous year and remain elevated in 2026. Only 7% of applications by US citizens originate from Americans living outside the country, highlighting that demand is being driven overwhelmingly by US residents rather than expatriates.

Despite recent regional tensions, the UAE  achieved an impressive Wealth Mobility Competitiveness Score of 85.3, one of the highest in the framework, reflecting its strength across tax competitiveness, investor access, family inclusion, safety, connectivity, and long-term residence pathways.

However, Henley & Partners recorded a 41% increase in enquiries from UAE-based individuals between Q4 2025 and Q1 2026, while applications for alternative residence or citizenship rose by 29% over the same period.

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SOURCE Henley & Partners

Sarah Nicklin, Group Head of PR, [email protected], [phone]