Our image of international migrants today tends to be one of people escaping from poverty or violence in regions like central America, west Africa or the middle east. But there is another, much more affluent type of migrant. ‘Wealth migration’ has become an important, although much smaller, part of overseas migration in the twenty-first century. This article looks at the migration of high-income individuals and families taking advantage of so-called ‘golden visas’ that expedite their permanent residency in a country in return for investment or cash settlements.
‘Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses…’. Emma Lazarus’ 1883 sonnet inscribed on the Statue of Liberty in New York harbour has welcomed many thousands of immigrants to the USA. Her poem reflects a common view that the typical migrant is poor and poorly resourced. But today there is no such person as the ‘average immigrant’. For example, expatriates working abroad for multinational companies and professional athletes are temporary migrants characterised by their wealth rather than their poverty.
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