Moving Overseas

Leaving the UK to live overseas is an exciting, if daunting prospect. Moving abroad – whether for the short or long term – impacts every aspect of your life and settling in a new location offers an excellent opportunity to reconsider your finances.

There are a number of specific areas which you should give thought to before you leave the UK:

Tax
If you are moving abroad on a short-term basis, bear in mind that your employment and absence from the UK must last for at least one complete tax year for you to qualify as non-resident. Non-resident status means your earnings will be exempt from UK tax. There have been recent developments in this area - for further information please visit our Residence page.

Savings and Investments
If you are working abroad it is vital to consider whether you want to retain your entitlement to the State pension, and how you will fund future moves overseas, a return to the UK or your retirement. The latest investment solutions are flexible enough to be tailored to your lifestyle and retirement aims. For more information visit our Wealth Management page.

Estate Planning
It is critical to ensure that a current will and any trusts are in place. If not, it is important to act immediately. Any additional planning will be determined by the local succession laws of the country you are moving to, so you must check how these affect your existing will. Two key areas to watch out for are residency laws and property legislation. Firstly, beware that in some countries, the local law will automatically consider you a resident after a certain period of time (regardless of where you are domiciled) and Inheritance Tax may become a factor. Secondly, buying a property in your new country may necessitate a local will, relating to the property only, which ‘fits’ with your existing, original will. For more information visit our Estate Planning page.

The Fry Group is well placed to help you with your tax and financial planning wherever you live – both now and in future years. We have a 100 year pedigree and work with clients who live all around the world.

If you are planning to move overseas, or have recently left the UK, please contact us for more information, help or advice.