Nigel Farage’s Reform UK is planning to shake up the tax system should it win the next general election — and it revolves around his proposed “Britannia Card”.
The party leader said the radical policy would “encourage the return of wealth and talent to the United Kingdom” by reintroducing the controversial “non-dom” status scrapped by Chancellors Jeremy Hunt and Rachel Reeves.
But what exactly is the Britannia Card? And would it work in practice?
What is the Britannia Card?
The Britannia Card would grant wealthy foreigners a 10-year residence permit in exchange for a one-time fee of £250,000.
Reform UK said millionaires and billionaires will not be taxed on any wealth, income or capital gains earned abroad.
They would also avoid inheritance tax, although they would still need to pay tax in the normal way for any funds earned in Britain.
How will it benefit the public?
All the cash collected from the Britannia Card would not go towards public services such as schools and the National Health Service.
Instead, money from the rich would be given directly to the poorest 10 per cent of UK earners, in what has been described as a “Robin Hood tax”.
According to Reform UK, if 6,000 non-doms paid for a Britannia Card each year, that would give a £600 income boost to 2.5 million people.
What are the criticisms?
Analysis from Tax Policy Associates estimated the proposal would cost more than £34 billion over five years.
Dan Neidle, the group’s founder, said the Britannia Card would discourage highly skilled professionals who cannot afford the £250,000 payment from moving to the UK.
Labour’s Ellie Reeves also damned the Britannia Card as a “bonanza for billionaires”, likening it to Liz Truss’s mini-Budget, saying its £2.5 billion annual cost will result in tax hikes on working families.
What has Reform UK said?
At a press conference, Mr Farage and former chairman Zia Yusuf said the scheme would make the UK more attractive to wealthy individuals by creating a “stable, indefinite remittance-style regime.
Mr Yusef highlighted a recent Bloomberg report which suggested around 4,000 company directors have left the UK since Labour came to power in July last year.
Meanwhile, Mr Farage rejected claims his wealth redistribution plan is “profoundly left-wing”, adding it “could not be further from the truth”.
