Why South Korea Faces an Exodus of 2,400 Millionaires in 2025

A record departure of wealth

South Korea faces a projected net outflow of 2,400 millionaires in 2025, six times the level three years earlier, with an estimated $15.2 billion in assets associated with those departures. As of November 12, the figures remain forecasts for the year, but they have already sharpened debate about inheritance taxes, business succession and the country's ability to retain private investment.

Seoul has fallen five places to 24th in the latest ranking of cities by millionaire population, the largest decline among leading global wealth hubs. The movement abroad comes despite South Korea's considerable wealth: the country had about 1.3 million millionaires in 2024, placing it 10th globally. Worldwide, roughly 60 million millionaires held an estimated $226.47 trillion.

Wealth migration research defines the people it tracks as those with more than $1 million in investable assets who move to another country and live there for at least six months. Investable assets are wealth available for investment. Moving residence can involve decisions about banking, business ownership and where children attend school, as well as where a family lives.

South Korea is part of a larger movement. An estimated 142,000 millionaires are expected to relocate internationally in 2025, a global record. The United Arab Emirates is forecast to receive the largest net inflow, while the United Kingdom, China, India and South Korea are among the countries facing the largest net outflows.

For wealthy Koreans, the reasons combine heavy inheritance and gift taxes, concern about political and economic direction, and preferences for education, safety, privacy and lower taxes. The movement has a colloquial name, Tal Joseon, meaning fleeing Joseon, which expresses a desire to leave among people with the resources to do so.

How the numbers have changed

South Korea's projected departures have accelerated over several years. A net outflow measures the balance between millionaires leaving and arriving, making the 2025 estimate a measure of the country's expected loss after incoming residents are counted.

Seoul's falling position adds a city perspective to the national picture. Some datasets put its millionaire population at about 97,000 in 2022 and about 66,000 in 2023. Definitions and measurement can vary between datasets, while the latest ranking places the capital 24th, five places below its previous position.

• 2022: Some datasets counted about 97,000 millionaires in Seoul.
• 2023: Some datasets put Seoul's millionaire population at about 66,000.
• 2024: South Korea had about 1.3 million millionaires and ranked 10th globally.
• 2025: The projected national net outflow reaches 2,400 millionaires, six times the level three years earlier, alongside a forecast global total of 142,000 relocating millionaires.

The national figures show both the scale and the concentration of the issue. Comparing the projected outflow of 2,400 with the roughly 1.3 million millionaires counted in 2024 gives a share of about 0.18 percent. The economic concern centers on the investment and business activity connected to those people, rather than a large reduction in the country's total millionaire population.

Why inheritance taxes weigh on families

South Korea's inheritance tax begins at 10 percent for estates below 100 million won, about $68,000, and rises to 50 percent for estates exceeding 3 billion won. When the deceased was a major shareholder of a listed company, the effective rate can reach 60 percent after premiums for controlling stakes and valuation rules are applied.

A controlling stake gives its owner substantial influence over a company's decisions. Valuation rules determine the value used to calculate tax, so a premium attached to control can increase the taxable amount. South Korea also has a top income tax rate of 45 percent and separate taxes on gifts.

Advisers working with wealthy clients say estate planning drives many relocation discussions. Entrepreneurs worry about the cost of transferring a family business to their children. Founders of companies traded on public markets can face valuation methods that produce a high tax base when ownership changes hands.

Owners of private companies face a related problem: much of their wealth may be tied up in the business, while future cash flow is uncertain. Paying a large inheritance bill can require selling assets. In some cases, owners sell businesses to private equity firms, turn their holdings into cash and then establish family offices in jurisdictions with more favorable rules for preserving wealth.

A family office manages the investments and financial affairs of a wealthy family. Moving one abroad can shift decisions about portfolios and advisers to a new financial center, even when the family's original business remains in Korea.

Several members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, or OECD, have no inheritance tax. Other favored destinations provide clear exemptions lasting many years for new residents. Those differences give families planning transfers between generations a financial reason to consider residence elsewhere.

Relocation involves more than a tax rate

Some wealthy Koreans have moved their residence to Singapore, where inheritances and gifts are not taxed and dividend income is not taxed at the personal level. The number of wealthy people who changed nationality to Singapore reportedly nearly doubled in one year.

The United Arab Emirates offers another route, combining no inheritance or gift taxes, no personal income tax and investor visas supporting residence over an extended period. For families comparing countries, the tax treatment of an inheritance sits alongside the practical question of whether they can live there comfortably and predictably.

Lawyers caution that returning to South Korea too soon can bring additional tax assessments if authorities suspect tax avoidance. Families therefore often remain abroad for five to ten years before moving back. That period can form part of a wider plan involving asset transfers, trusts and children's education. A trust is a legal arrangement through which assets are held and managed for beneficiaries.

Clients also cite political volatility and perceived uncertainty for businesses. Maintaining homes and assets in different countries helps them spread exposure to policy reversals, regulatory changes and regional security tensions. International schools, reliable healthcare and an environment focused on security can determine where a family chooses to spend the next decade.

Dubai leads the destination race

The United Arab Emirates is forecast to remain the world's leading destination for incoming millionaires. Its projected net inflow rises from a record 6,700 in 2024 to about 9,800 in 2025. The increase of 3,100 amounts to roughly 46 percent, illustrating the growing attraction of the Gulf as other countries lose wealthy residents.

Dubai combines zero personal income tax, no inheritance or gift taxes, residence options suited to investors and an extensive banking and financial services sector. Its connections with Europe, Africa and Asia make it a base for families whose businesses and investments cross several regions.

Family offices managing global portfolios have helped turn Dubai into a central wealth management hub. Affluent Koreans seeking asset protection, predictable rules and residence rights that support international mobility can also draw on the city's established services.

Saudi Arabia is gaining ground in the same region. It is projected to receive about 2,400 millionaires in 2025, supported by large investment programs and new financial districts. That expected inflow matches South Korea's projected net outflow in size, although it represents arrivals from the wider international market.

Singapore and Bangkok offer different attractions

Singapore is expected to gain around 1,600 millionaires in 2025, with its inflow easing compared with recent years. It remains a favored Asian base because of political stability, strict rule of law, a broad network of tax treaties and a sophisticated financial sector.

Family offices and regional headquarters benefit from that financial network. For Korean families, Singapore's education system, safety and proximity to home can outweigh higher living costs and property taxes that have risen in recent years. Private banks and global wealth managers continue to expand there, sustaining a deep market for family office services.

Singapore's tax treatment also supports its appeal: it imposes no inheritance or gift taxes, and personal dividend income is not taxed. Families can therefore weigh the costs of daily life against the treatment of investment income and transfers to the next generation.

Thailand is forecast to attract about 450 millionaires in 2025, with Bangkok emerging as a Southeast Asian haven. Demand comes from affluent families across the region, including China, Vietnam and South Korea. International schools, improving financial services and an active premium property market are among the attractions.

Thailand has personal taxes, so its appeal follows a different balance. Living costs, lifestyle convenience and regional connections, especially to Korea and Japan, can make Bangkok a practical choice for families seeking comfort and access to investments.

The United States and Europe remain options

The United States is projected to receive around 7,500 millionaires in 2025, compared with an estimated 3,800 in 2024. Its deep capital markets, broad economy and established Korean communities in Los Angeles and New York attract entrepreneurs and investors.

Europe offers a range of arrangements rather than a single model. Italy has a favorable tax regime for new residents. Switzerland has longstanding arrangements in certain cantons under which qualifying residents pay a negotiated lump sum rather than tax calculated through the usual methods.

Portugal and Greece offer residence options linked to investment, while Malta has investor programs. Families considering these destinations seek European mobility alongside clarity about how their wealth will be taxed.

Japan and Hong Kong have also regained momentum in Asia, with projections of several hundred net millionaire arrivals each. Their renewed appeal reflects perceptions of stability and greater confidence among regional investors. For Koreans considering a move, the wider list includes the UAE, Singapore, Thailand, the United States, Italy and Switzerland, with each offering a different combination of taxes, residence rules and lifestyle.

What departures can mean for Seoul

The estimated $15.2 billion associated with South Korea's projected millionaire outflow represents a potentially meaningful shift in private wealth abroad. The concern extends to domestic investment, charitable giving and the money available to finance new ventures.

Wealthy individuals often own growing businesses, support philanthropic projects or provide early funding for startups. When they move, investment decisions may follow them. Entire family office teams can relocate to competing cities, taking demand for financial and professional services with them.

Seoul's decline to 24th in the city ranking therefore carries weight beyond its position on a list. The movement points to relocation and slower wealth creation at home, while the earlier city estimates show how sharply some measures of its millionaire population have changed.

Property markets can also feel the effects. Fewer transactions involving expensive homes can reduce liquidity, meaning properties become harder to buy and sell, and can reduce attention to new developments. Domestic asset managers and other service providers may receive fewer assignments as families shift financial activity abroad.

South Korea faces wider pressures at the same time, including high household debt, cooling conditions in some property market segments and rapid population aging. Departing wealth can add to those strains by reducing the willingness to invest domestically at the margins. Policymakers are also concerned about the message this sends to entrepreneurs considering expansion or a listing on a Korean stock exchange.

How families organize a move

Wealthy families usually organize relocation as a sequence of decisions about residence rights, ownership, investments and family governance. Investor visas, entrepreneur permits and programs for skilled people offer different routes, with each family's needs shaping the choice.

Banking and custody arrangements follow. Custody means the safekeeping of financial assets. Families may establish an office, hire investment professionals and manage their global holdings from one or two financial hubs. Schooling, language support for children, healthcare and local security complete the practical planning.

Advisers describe three main filters: stability, accessibility and tax efficiency. Stability means strong institutions and predictable rules. Accessibility covers residence programs and ease of doing business. Tax efficiency includes taxes on income, capital gains, inheritances and gifts, as well as the treatment of income earned abroad.

Some families treat residence as another part of their investment strategy. By maintaining bases in different jurisdictions, they seek to protect assets and retain mobility during geopolitical shocks. Property in key cities can serve both as a home and as an anchor for residence planning.

Dubai, Singapore, Switzerland, Italy and parts of the Caribbean have become strategic locations for these arrangements. Family offices grow where rules are clear and service quality justifies costs. Korean families may keep business operations at home while holding part of their wealth abroad and arranging education overseas for the next generation, preserving commercial ties to Korea while spreading policy risk.

Can changes to policy retain more wealth?

Supporters of tax reform argue that South Korea's inheritance and gift taxes compare poorly with those of competing economies and make business succession harder. They favor lower headline rates, larger exemptions for transfers of family businesses and simpler rules for valuing substantial shareholdings.

Opponents of rapid reductions warn that tax cuts could weaken public finances and deepen inequality. Their preferred approach is targeted support for succession while retaining progressive taxes on large estates and gifts. Progressive taxation means higher rates apply as the taxable amount increases.

The United Kingdom provides an example of wealthy residents responding to changes in policy. It ended its non domiciled tax status, a longstanding arrangement that allowed foreign residents to shelter overseas income and gains when that money was not brought into the country. The change coincided with forecasts of a record net outflow of millionaires from the UK in 2025.

Charlie Sosna, a lawyer at Mishcon de Reya who advises wealthy clients on relocation, said policymakers in London underestimated how readily international wealth could leave:

The government was overconfident that the international wealthy loved London so much that they would not go.

Economists warn that South Korea's outflows could continue without adjustments, particularly as younger wealthy families become more mobile and more comfortable conducting business across borders. Proposed responses include clearer succession rules, incentives lasting a defined period to keep family offices in Korea, and more predictable personal taxation for residents who stay for many years.

Visa options attracting foreign founders and senior financial professionals could also strengthen Seoul as a regional capital hub. The policy debate involves retaining domestic wealth while drawing new investment and expertise from abroad, even as some Korean family assets continue to be managed elsewhere.

A different search for security among young Koreans

Many Koreans in their twenties and thirties are responding to economic uncertainty through frugality rather than international relocation. Surveys indicate that a large share have reduced spending on things they can do without in recent months.

Students describe saving money on meals, using the subway and buying secondhand goods as normal habits. High housing costs, slower wage growth and a labor market in which many graduates start in temporary or contract jobs contribute to the pressure.

Wealthy families moving abroad and younger households trimming budgets have very different resources, but both are seeking greater security during an uncertain economic period. For policymakers and business leaders, rebuilding confidence involves conditions that encourage investment while addressing the pressures facing ordinary households.

Key Points

• South Korea faces a projected net outflow of 2,400 millionaires in 2025, six times the level three years earlier.
• The expected departures are associated with about $15.2 billion in assets moving abroad.
• Seoul fell five places to 24th in the latest ranking of cities by millionaire population.
• Inheritance and gift taxes, political uncertainty, education and lifestyle preferences help drive relocation decisions.
• The UAE, Singapore, Thailand, the United States and parts of Europe are prominent destinations.
• Global millionaire migration is forecast to reach a record 142,000 people in 2025.
• Reform proposals focus on business succession, tax predictability and keeping family offices in Korea, alongside concerns about revenue and inequality.
• Many younger Koreans are cutting spending as housing costs, wage pressures and insecure employment shape household decisions.