The U.K. closed a tax loophole for the global rich, now they're fleeing

Non-dom regime and the “loophole”

• Non-dom status let foreign residents pay UK tax only on UK income; foreign income remained untaxed unless remitted.
• Some commenters see this as a centuries‑old “loophole” enabling offshore funneling and tax avoidance; others say it’s coherent with residence‑based worldwide taxation and not unique.
• Confusion in the thread over which countries tax worldwide vs local income; resolution: many do tax worldwide income but use treaties to avoid double taxation.

Do global rich benefit or harm the UK?

• Pro‑non-dom view: they are heavy net contributors—tiny in number (~0.1% of residents) but paying a multiple of that share in taxes (stamp duty, VAT, council tax), employing staff, and using few public services.
• Anti‑non-dom view: benefits are overstated “trickle down”; the ultra‑rich hoard wealth, crowd out locals in housing, inflate asset prices, and can be “parasites” or tied to dubious foreign money.

Is there really an exodus?

• Article implies a flight of the rich; some commenters echo this, citing falling high‑end property prices and closures of luxury businesses.
• Others link data suggesting only a few hundred non-doms have left and overall non-dom tax take has risen, calling the “exodus” PR or media spin; the extent of actual departure is labeled unclear.

Trickle-down, inequality, and housing

• Many argue decades of experience show trickle‑down economics fails and drives wealth inequality; London’s housing crisis is cited as a key harm.
• Counterpoint: housing shortages are primarily about constrained supply; rich buyers worsen but don’t create the problem. Others respond that the rich also block new development and use homes as investments or second homes.

How (and what) to tax: income, wealth, assets

• Some argue the real missed opportunity is taxing assets—especially land and UK property—since those can’t “move,” unlike people or offshore income.
• Examples raised: Dutch‑style wealth taxes on assumed returns; Swiss and Estonian practices; proposals to tax land heavily or align tax on capital with tax on labor.
• Critics of wealth taxes highlight valuation, liquidity, and startup/founder issues; fear they hit upper‑middle professionals more than true oligarchs.

Inheritance and intergenerational wealth

• Debate over the UK’s 40% inheritance tax (above thresholds): some call it “crazy” and unfair to family businesses and farmers; others say even 40% on large estates is modest given how unearned and politically powerful inherited wealth is.
• Discussion of planning and loopholes (gifting assets early, step‑up in basis) and how the very rich often avoid much of the burden.

Broader politics: fairness, services, and the state

• One camp emphasizes fairness and social cohesion: rich benefit most from stable, well‑policed societies and should pay more, even if some leave.
• Another camp emphasizes fiscal reality and incentives: the UK is stagnating, spending has grown sharply, services haven’t improved proportionally, and pushing high earners out will deepen budget problems.
• Underneath is a clash over whether the state mainly “steals” or mainly provides essential preconditions (infrastructure, security, educated workforce) for private wealth.