LondonJune 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — As tax reforms, fiscal uncertainty, and policy adjustments prompt wealthy individuals and families to reassess their assets and residency arrangements, Singapore, Italy, Switzerland, Greece, Hong Kong (China), and New Zealand are emerging as some of the most sought-after destinations for globally mobile wealth in 2026. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Norway, and South Korea are facing mounting competitive pressure on the international stage.
At the same time, two major mobility hotspots are poised to reshape the global wealth geography this year. The first is the United States—the world’s largest private wealth market and creator of new wealth—where demand for residency and citizenship options has hit record highs as affluent Americans seek international diversification on an unprecedented scale. The second is the Gulf region, where ongoing conflicts are testing the resilience of emerging wealth hubs, particularly the UAE—the top destination for millionaire migrants over the past two years—prompting its internationally mobile residents to enter a new phase of contingency planning.
These findings are key insights from the 2026 Henley Private Wealth Migration Report. The report notes that the world’s wealthiest individuals are increasingly moving away from traditional wealth migration planning models, instead configuring residency rights, citizenship, investments, and business interests across multiple jurisdictions to build what is termed a “sovereign portfolio.”
In the first five months of 2026 alone, Henley & Partners received applications from 86 nationalities across 47 investment migration programs. Over 28% of applicants currently reside outside their country of origin, highlighting a defining feature of today’s wealth landscape: high-net-worth individuals and their families are increasingly planning their lives across multiple jurisdictions rather than being anchored to a single country.
Dr. Juerg Steffen, CEO of Henley & Partners, stated: “For much of the past half-century, governments could largely treat their wealthiest residents as relatively fixed assets—tied down by businesses, family ties, and limited international mobility. But that assumption is increasingly outdated. As a result, jurisdictions are now competing not just for capital, but for the entrepreneurs, investors, business owners, and highly skilled talent that drive economic growth, innovation, employment, and prosperity.”
A New Framework for Understanding Wealth Mobility
The 2026 edition represents the most significant upgrade to the Henley Private Wealth Migration Report since its inception.
While previous versions primarily focused on millionaire migration estimates and wealth flow directions, this year’s report introduces the Global Wealth Mobility Framework. Developed by Henley & Partners, this new analytical model assesses the structural competitiveness of jurisdictions in attracting, retaining, and supporting internationally mobile wealth.
The framework evaluates multiple factors across countries and regions, including tax policies, investor migration pathways, quality of life, rule of law, family inclusivity, geopolitical stability, and capital mobility, generating a wealth mobility competitiveness score for each market. The report also includes a series of policy focuses that analyze how these factors are reshaping the global private wealth migration landscape.
Dr. Parag Khanna, Founder and CEO of AlphaGeo, commented: “Global mobile wealth holders are now choosing jurisdictions the way sovereign wealth funds allocate portfolios—by diversifying across different climate environments, governance systems, and geopolitical regions to hedge against potential shocks that no one can fully foresee.”
Global Wealth Mobility Leaders and Markets Under Pressure
The report identifies a set of jurisdictions that demonstrate strong structural advantages in 2026, excelling in attracting, retaining, and supporting internationally mobile wealth.
Standout performers include Singapore (with a wealth mobility competitiveness score of 79.5 out of 100) and New Zealand (75.8). The second tier 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). The report also notes that Uruguay (71.8), Latvia (71.7), Panama (71.5), Hong Kong (China) (71.2), Switzerland (70.8), Greece (70.5), Costa Rica (70.2), and Monaco (70.0) are among the highly competitive wealth mobility jurisdictions.
Jurisdictions classified as “under-pressure, competitive jurisdictions” include Germany (69.7), Norway (69.0), the United Kingdom (68.3), South Korea (66.2), and France (65.7).
Douglas McWilliams, Founder of the Centre for Economics and Business Research in the UK, stated: “High-net-worth migration is the canary in the coal mine for economic policy. If wealthy populations leave a country en masse, you can be fairly certain that the country’s economic policies have gone wrong.”
The report also identifies a group of jurisdictions facing more persistent structural wealth mobility challenges, including Brazil (64.2), Mainland China (60.5), Russia (58.7), India (56.5), Iran (45.8), Lebanon (45.5), and Nigeria (43.0).
The Wealth Mobility Paradox of the US and UAE
The United States, despite a wealth mobility competitiveness score of only 62.3, holds a unique position within the framework. It remains the world’s largest engine for wealth creation, entrepreneurship, and capital formation, yet it is also Henley & Partners’ largest single source market. Applications from US citizens doubled in 2025 compared to the previous year and have remained elevated in 2026. Only 7% of applications from US citizens come from Americans living abroad, indicating that demand is primarily driven by residents within the US rather than the diaspora.
Despite recent regional tensions, the UAE has achieved a notable wealth mobility competitiveness score of 85.3, one of the highest in the framework, reflecting its strengths in tax competitiveness, investor access, family inclusivity, safety, connectivity, and long-term residency pathways.
However, Henley & Partners also recorded a 41% increase in inquiries from UAE residents between Q4 2025 and Q1 2026, with applications for alternative residency or citizenship rising by 29% over the same period.
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