"The new regulations don't make sense," I said, adding that I'm one of the thousands of millionaires who are leaving the UK

After the non-dom tax status was eliminated, a serial entrepreneur who is leaving the UK was interviewed by BFIA

The owners of a multimillion-dollar English castle are leaving the country after the government eliminated non-dom tax status.

Both Ann Kaplan and Stephen Mulholland are moving to Italy because it "doesn't make any sense" for the business owners to remain in the UK after the crackdown.

"We don't have any other choices. "It doesn't make any sense to remain a resident in the UK as a business decision," Ann Mulholland told BFIA.

The tax changes are reportedly causing tens of thousands of millionaires to leave the UK, including the couple.

According to the Henley Wealth Migration Dashboard, migration cost the UK 10,800 millionaires in 2024, a 157 percent increase from the previous year (when it lost 4,200 millionaires in 2023).

The numbers, which were gathered by investment migration consultants Henley & Partners and global analytics firm New World Wealth, pertain to people who have liquid wealth of at least USD 1 million.

According to an April 2025 analysis by the Adam Smith Institute, the UK could lose up to 111 billion pounds by 2035 and 44,415 jobs by 2030 if the non-dom tax status is abolished.

According to the economic think tank, by 2035, the UK may lose up to £14.02 billion in annual growth.

"We do not recognize these figures," a spokesman for HM Treasury stated. The regime changes will generate £33.8 billion over the next five years, according to the independent OBR.

By replacing the antiquated non-dom tax regime with a new, globally competitive residence-based system, we can address tax injustice, draw in the best talent and investment, and make sure that all long-term UK residents pay their taxes here.

In what ways have non-dom tax laws evolved?

For tax purposes, a non-dom is a UK resident whose domicile, or permanent home, is outside the country.

In the past, non-doms were only required to pay UK tax on their domestic income, unless they transferred funds from another country into a UK bank account.

Some non-doms were required to pay an annual fee under the previous regulations if they had been residents of the UK for a specific period of time and failed to pay UK tax on foreign income or gains.

This was referred to as the "remittance basis" and the annual fees were either 1.

30,000 if the individual had resided in the UK for at least seven of the nine preceding tax years and 60,000 for at least twelve of the fourteen preceding tax years. The non-dom tax regime was to be phased out, according to plans announced by then-Tory chancellor Jeremy Hunt in March 2024. For the first four years, non-doms who relocated to the UK after April 2025 would not be required to pay taxes on their foreign earnings, he said. If they continued to reside in the UK after this period, they would then be subject to taxation on these earnings. A two-year transition period was given to current non-doms.

In the Autumn Budget for 2024, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a new residence-based tax system that went into effect on April 6, 2025. She went one step further by eliminating the intention to reduce foreign income taxes by 50% in the first year of the new regime and prohibiting the use of offshore trusts to shield assets from inheritance tax.

By extending the transition period, Reeves gave the wealthy three more years to bring in foreign income at a low tax rate in the UK.

Newcomers to the UK are now exempt from paying foreign income and gains tax for the first four years of their tax residency as long as they haven't been a UK tax resident during the ten years before their arrival. All gains and foreign income will then be subject to taxation at the appropriate marginal rate.

Reeves' 2024 Autumn Budget included additional reforms to the non-dom tax regime, which the Treasury estimates will generate £12.7 billion over the following five fiscal years.

However, according to a report by the economic consulting firm Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), the Treasury would not benefit in any way if 25% of taxpayers who do not use the non-dom remittance basis left the UK.

According to CEBR's report, if half of the participants left, the Treasury would suffer net losses of £20.4 billion in the first year of the scheme.

The "very mobile" and "leaving the UK is very easy" millionaires are.

Ann remarks, "I'm very sad to leave, because I absolutely feel at home here, but leaving is very easy." "Upping and leaving the country tends to be relatively "easy" for the mega-rich. All of us are highly mobile, with the exception of those of us who have small children and must make some more significant decisions. For us, however, leaving is quite simple.

Ann thinks the UK economy will be "massively impacted" by the anticipated departure of wealthy non-domicile residents.

"The state of the country that is left without the income and without the opportunity to keep people like us here is really what I'm worried about," she says.

"We are taking the taxes we pay in the UK with us when we leave; we will no longer be paying those taxes.

"The government assumed that we would pay taxes on our foreign income and projected that we would continue to pay the taxes we currently pay in the nation in addition to taxes on our foreign assets.

Following the departure of their youngest son from Canada three years ago, the serial entrepreneur and her self-made husband relocated to England.

Ann says that moving to the country felt like a "natural" decision because her mother is from England and she had visited and attended school there. "So the ancestry part was attractive," Ann continues, referring to her husband Stephen's Irish heritage.

This image shows Ann Kaplan Mulholland outside the door of Kent's Lympne Castle.

After the non-dom tax status in the UK is abolished, Ann Kaplan Mulholland and her spouse will move to Italy.

The Royal Family, "the culture, the restaurants, the history," and other factors drew them to the UK.

"It was all of it that convinced me that this is the place I want to live, more than any other country," Ann says.

Another factor influencing the decision was the non-dom tax regulations.

Because we still have an active insurance business and other real estate holdings that generate income, we picked a location where it wouldn't have an impact on our other current ventures and investments. Out of all the options we had, England was a logical choice, Ann explains, adding that they weren't just thinking about "where do we want to live," but also "where do we want to live, that's a preferable country to live in, given whatever businesses we're operating."

The couple has since acquired other properties in the UK and paid 5 million for Lympne Castle in Kent in 2023. They have since restored it, allegedly at a cost of £25 million. The castle is now a fully functional business that can be rented out for events like weddings.

The castle currently employs nearly 100 people, according to Ann, who also says they have plans to turn it into a medieval tourist attraction in the southeast of England.

Stephen Mulholland outside Kent's Lympne Castle.

In 2023, Ann Kaplan and Stephen Mulholland (pictured) purchased Kent's Lympne Castle.

Fleeing the United Kingdom after the non-dom tax status was eliminated.

The pair is currently moving to Italy after the non-dom tax status was eliminated.

Ann plans to continue operating the company from abroad and will make occasional trips to the historic site.

Ultra-rich millionaires from abroad who relocate their tax residence to Italy are subject to an annual flat tax of 200,000 euros, plus a flat rate of 25,000 euros per spouse or child.

It's a cost the Mulhollands are prepared to incur.

Even if it means paying a high flat tax rate, Ann is not opposed to the idea of remaining in the UK while the wheels are turning for the move.

Ann suggested that Labour could provide a brief reprieve, allowing them to consider the potential economic effects of HNWIs leaving the UK, since the Conservative government was the one who initially announced the abolishment.

"Reeves might look at it and say, Hey, maybe this isn't a good idea," she continues. We were unaware that everyone was leaving. that it could be wise for the economy to review the rule changes.

Ann contended that the government should have imposed "big" fees for non-domicile millionaires or mandated that they invest a specific amount in UK infrastructure instead, as this would have been more beneficial to the economy.

"If you wish to stay, the government should tell you that you will be charged the fees. It makes no sense to touch your global assets, but it's still worthwhile to stay and make investments in your infrastructure," she says.

The British Virgin Islands, for example, has regulations that Ann cites: "They want us to invest with them. If they are unable to obtain it in their own country, they throw open the red carpet to attract foreign investment and capital.

The business owner is not against a wealth tax. She claims that a wealth tax would be much simpler to support than a global asset tax.

"I don't mind if they raise our prices.

See also: Merryn Somerset Webb says that the wealthy are already being burdened with high wealth taxes.

"Have us invest in your country, and it will create more jobs, more investments, and more wealth," she continues.

However, why force affluent people to leave?

"Those residents and customers who might not be as aware of the magnitude of the loss are not being treated fairly.