Indian-origin billionaire Lakshmi Niwas Mittal, one of the United Kingdom’s wealthiest person, is reportedly preparing to leave the country. The upcoming super-rich tax has been cited as a major reason behind Mittal’s decision. The Rajasthan-born steel tycoon, founder of ArcelorMittal may choose Dubai as his new home, according to a PTI report citing The Sunday Times. The report added that Mittal currently resides in Switzerland for tax purposes and is planning to leave the UK after three decades.
Why is Mittal leaving UK?
With an estimated net worth of £15.4 billion (around Rs 1.90 lakh crore), Mittal ranked as UK’s eighth-richest person in this year’s Sunday Times Rich List. He has become the latest billionaire to consider relocating ahead of Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ upcoming budget. The UK Labour government’s inheritance tax is cited as the main reason behind Mittal’s decision. Notably, many wealthy people are leaving the UK after the government ended the “non-dom” status in April, which previously let them pay tax only on UK income and not on money earned abroad. Chancellor Reeves is expected to announce more tax increases in her next budget.
One of Mittal’s advisers was quoted in the report, saying that many wealthy people residing in the UK are puzzled about why they should pay taxes to the UK government on their assets held abroad. “The issue was inheritance tax. Many wealthy people from overseas cannot understand why all of their assets, no matter where in the world they are, should be subject to inheritance tax imposed by the UK Treasury. People in this situation feel they have little choice but to leave, and they are either sad or angry about having to do so,” the adviser said.
Who is Lakshmi Mittal?
Born on 15 June 1950, Lakshmi Niwas Mittal is an Indian steel magnate, based in the United Kingdom. He is the executive chairman of ArcelorMittal, the world’s second largest steelmaking company, and also the chairman of stainless steel manufacturer Aperam. He owns 38% of ArcelorMittal and holds a 3% stake in EFL Championship side Queens Park Rangers.
Forbes ranked Mittal as the third-richest person in the world in 2015, making him the first Indian citizen to be ranked in the top ten in the publication’s annual list of the world’s richest people. He was ranked the sixth-richest person in the world by Forbes in 2011, but his ranking fell to 82nd in March 2015 and further dropped to 130th by October 2024. Mittal was also the 57th-most powerful person among 72 individuals named in Forbes’ ‘Most Powerful People’ list for 2015. He has been a member of the board of directors of Goldman Sachs since 2008.
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