Relocation: Where do you start?

You are looking to apply for the correct UK visa for you and relocate to the United Kingdom. 

Choosing the right type of visa is an extensive process. However, you also need to receive UK Relocation Tax Advice in order to organise your financial affairs before you relocate to the UK.

Receiving UK Relocation Tax Advice

As you receive your UK Relocation Tax Advice, you will need to pay attention to at least 3 UK tax aspects as you relocate.

1. Your tax status

As you prepare to relocate to the UK (the British Isles, England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) under your chosen visa, you also need to thoroughly consider your newly acquired UK tax status. 

The United Kingdom is a sophisticated and complex tax jurisdiction, which may not be as easy to navigate and requires specialist knowledge.

You will note that Scotland is a separate UK tax jurisdiction, which sets higher income tax rates than the rest of the UK.  Scotland has enough legislative autonomy to set its own tax rules.

It is important to obtain crucial professional tax advice before you relocate. You need to be able to plan ahead and anticipate changes to the way you are going to be taxed when you become resident in the UK.

2. Protecting your overseas assets

The UK is a sophisticated tax and legal jurisdiction.

However, it is possible to protect your overseas assets if important steps are taken before you relocate to the British Isles, England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

Therefore, it is important to ascertain what these specific steps are for you.

You will learn about the tax implications to overseas nationals in the UK who are better known as non-doms. Non-doms are international individuals who have their domicile overseas and not in the United Kingdom.

Separate tax regime exists, which may help you to organise your financial affairs better than double taxation treaties. You may be able to choose how you are going to be taxed.

You may even become a non-dom remittance basis taxpayer. There will be an annual compliance calendar that you will need to observe and comply with.

You will also need to keep your own records for UK tax and immigration purposes. It is best to start good habits early on.

3. Structuring your worldwide wealth

As you become a tax resident in the UK, your worldwide assets fall under the UK’s rights to tax your overseas assets.

Therefore, your global wealth needs to be reviewed and structured accordingly. If your assets are structured already, these structures need to be reviewed in accordance with UK tax considerations.

You may need to examine: 

• UK international trusts to manage your worldwide assets;
• Existing property investments and compliance;
• Future IHT (UK inheritance tax) implications; 
• The process of buying your home in the UK;
• UK tax implications on your overseas business.

Consult an UHNWI Advisor and get clear about your Global Wealth Strategy from Day 1:

A highly experienced UHNWI advisor can help you to tackle UK tax, immigration, investment, relocation  and FOREX issues all at the same time when you book your Global Wealth Strategy.

Book a call with me to discuss your Global Wealth Strategy as you invest operate or relocate to the UK or Switzerland. You may submit your enquiry here.

You will be first guided to a payment page when you choose “book a call” option. After making the payment, you will be able to choose the most convenient date and time for our Zoom meeting. You can report a payment issue here.

Saule Voluckyte, M.A.E.S, LL.B, FAIA

I have been working exclusively with UHNWI in Mayfair, London since January 2008. I built specialist knowledge and expertise required to serve ultra high net worth individuals investing, operating and relocating to the UK or Switzerland.

Within the industry, I am the single adviser who is able to traverse the different areas of expertise and bring a comprehensive approach across: global structuring, UK immigration, international taxation and FOREX to develop their global wealth strategy, while they build, grow and expand their wealth worldwide.

Previous experience as one of the senior advisors for the government, made me a go-to person when delicate and uncomfortable scenarios involving heads of state need to be handled with care and preserve privacy.