Alexander Vick doesn’t miss the fjords. After studying economics at Harvard, he worked in investment banking and set up hedge funds in New York. During the dot-com fever of the 1990s and 2000s, he accumulated a significant portion of his assets and … He later founded software companies and the Internet sector, and was a pioneer in that Digital services.
Now, instead of living in his native Norway, he resides in Monaco. Your country is Very hostile to the rich And he expels them. With a wealth tax dating back to 1892 and legislation allowing citizens to view their neighbours’ tax returns, those with great wealth prefer to leave. Especially since Labor leader Jonas Gahr Storr won the election again with his support for a wealth tax, one of the big issues in the election campaign.
Norwegians They pay 1% of their net worth Between 1.76 million and 20.7 million kroner (150 thousand – 1.7 million euros) and from 2022 1.1%. In concrete numbers, 671,639 people, or 12% of the population, paid this tax in 2023.
Deciding to leave Norway will involve paying an exit tax of 37.8% on unrealized capital gains exceeding three million kroner (255,000 euros), such as gains derived from shares that have appreciated in value but have not yet been sold.
A journey of great wealth
Legal loopholes that allowed immigrants to defer payments indefinitely close in 2024, yet the latest tax hike has boosted Exit effect. According to data from the Civita Research Centre, in 2022 there were 261 residents with assets of more than ten million kroner (855 thousand euros) and in 2023 there were only 254, a decline that has accelerated since the last increase.
Kapital magazine published a ranking of the 400 richest people in Norway, which reveals that 105 of them already live abroad or have transferred wealth to relatives abroad. Some of his pictures hang in “Wall of shame” In the offices of the small opposition Socialist Left Party, although they claim that only in this way have they been able to protect their assets.
“The wealth tax system makes it difficult for companies to compete with the rest of the world,” he told Reuters. Knut Erik CarlsenWho made his fortune from fish oil supplements and moved to Switzerland. Heirs often leave before taking control of the inherited shares, because they believe that remaining may cost them control of their companies. “I would not have allowed our company to sink under my supervision because we did not have the capital,” explains one of the affected people.
An opinion poll published by Aftenposten newspaper before the September elections showed that 39% of Norwegians supported maintaining or increasing the wealth tax, while 23% wanted to reduce it, and 28% called for its abolition. Proponents say the tax is… Redistribution mechanism In a country that abolished the inheritance tax in 2014, it is considered one of the richest countries in the world in terms of oil, shipping, and fishing. Critics say this model penalizes national ownership and risks hollowing out the entrepreneurial base.
Norwegian millionaires don’t waste much time voicing their opinions. The country will lose another 150 people this year, a significant departure in a country of 5.6 million. according to henley and company, Who advises wealthy clients on relocation, “It’s about doing the math, which is expensive, but it helps buy freedom.”