Are you a UK citizen living overseas and thinking of returning to the UK? Or have you recently returned?

Dominick has lived in Asia on two separate occasions during his career, first in Hong Kong and then in Singapore, so has first-hand experience of what it’s like to relocate back to the UK. This includes how time-consuming and stressful it can be!

The right kind of advice at the right time can be the difference between being excited to come home or feeling overwhelmed by everything that needs to be done. This is where Axtru Wealth can help.

You don’t know what you don’t know

Most international advisers focus solely on the plans you have offshore and may not be licenced to advise in the UK. Similarly, the majority of UK-based advisers won’t have lived or worked overseas so may find it difficult to visualise the environment and lifestyle you are leaving behind. 

This is why Dominick is perfectly placed to help. He has spent many years as a professional Advisor in the UK and was also a qualified and licenced Advisor in Singapore. He therefore draws on both his UK and international professional knowledge as well as his own personal experiences of being a long-term expat. 

Click the link below for a no-obligation discussion about how Axtru Wealth can help take the stress out of repatriating whilst ensuring everything that needs to be done is done. 

Meanwhile, here are just some of the areas that Dominick and others returning to the UK have highlighted as being very important: 

Bank accounts in the UK

It may be that you already have active accounts that you’ve been using whilst overseas but will these be sufficient when you return or will additional accounts be required? 

If you have been a Premier customer (or above) overseas, some global banks can help you open an account with the same bank in the UK before you return. This can be a far easier way of getting the accounts set up and ready for use immediately.

Closing down in the country you are leaving

This is something your current international adviser and employer should help you with, and the checklist should include:

• Arranging for protection policies and investment plans to be closed down if they are not transferable to the UK
• For those policies and plans you can keep, notifying the providers that you are repatriating and providing your new address
• Closing local bank accounts
• Settling any outstanding local taxes
• Cancelling long-term visas
• Advising what’s required to terminate your rental contract and utilities accounts
• Serving notice to schools in time (this is often a term in advance)

Cost of living

Depending on where you’ve been based overseas, the cost of living in the UK can be comparatively high so it is essential to plan properly for this. The cost of housing and utilities, food, transportation and schooling are just some of the typical expenses to consider. Where in the UK you are repatriating to, your lifestyle and UK income tax will also be factors in calculating how much you need to live comfortably.

With the help of market-leading cash flow modelling tools, Axtru Wealth can show you what this could look like and highlight and potential issues and opportunities.

Credit history

If you’ve been living overseas for an extended period of time, you may not have much of a credit footprint in the UK. This could hinder access to credit contracts you may expect to be quick and easy to set up, such as mobile phone accounts, rental accommodation (if not buying your home straight away) and car purchases.

This problem may be compounded if you make multiple credit applications within a short period of time. It is therefore important to plan for this as quickly as possible.

Currency exchange rates

If you need to transfer your money from local currency to GBP, it’s important to do this in the best possible way and at the best possible time. Exchange rates can fluctuate quickly, so it’s essential to monitor the currency market and choose a reputable currency exchange provider to minimise your risk.

Axtru Wealth works with a highly-reputable and very cost-effective currency payment service.*

Family Protection

Certain insurance policies you have had overseas can’t be transferred back to the UK, and this may include essential protection such as Critical Illness Cover and Income Protection. If this is the case, these policies will need to be set up again in the UK.

It is important to be mindful that the level of protection required in the UK may be different to what it was overseas, as you will likely have different expenses and liabilities. The duration of cover may also need to be adjusted. As such, a Full Protection Review is highly-recommended as a priority.

Healthcare

Again, depending on where you have lived overseas and your circumstances, you may well have had private medical insurance. You will be entitled to use the National Health Service when you return to the UK but may wish to continue with private medical cover for you and your family.

Life Insurance

It is likely that the life cover you set up overseas can continue to provide valuable protection for you and your family when you return to the UK. But it is important to check this. Life insurance is included in a Full Protection Review.

Mortgages

This may be something you have arranged before returning to the UK but, if not, you can access a wide range of providers through Axtru Wealth to find the best and most appropriate mortgage for you. This includes specialist providers and mortgages for investment properties.

Pension and Retirement Planning

Prior to moving overseas, you may have been contributing to a pension scheme(s) in the UK. It is sensible to understand whether this pension(s) is being managed in a suitable way, according to your current goals and risk appetite which may have changed since you left the UK. Understanding how you can maximise pension tax reliefs is also extremely important.

The best starting point is to obtain up-to-date information for all of your existing pensions before you return. This information should then form part of a full Pension & Retirement Planning review. The review can also bring you up-to-date with current UK pension legislation and be used to understand what your plans for retirement are.

Taxes

The UK tax system is complex and changes regularly so you should familiarise yourself with the current rules and regulations. Of particular importance is to find out whether there are any tax treaties between the UK and the country you lived in overseas. 

It is also important to understand:

•    If there are ways to mitigate any tax liability prior to your return, including looking at potential capital gains tax on second properties.
•    How to model your UK net income and expenses (which are likely to be different to those overseas) to know what your likely surplus income will be.
•    Whether you should backdate your National Insurance contributions to increase your future State pension.
•    The best way to complete your first year’s tax return, with the help of an accountant. This has the potential to be complicated if you receive both overseas and UK income within the same tax year.

In addition to these - and potentially other - financial aspects of repatriating, Axtru Wealth can help refer you to specialists that you may want to speak with before, during or after your move.*

Don’t worry if you’ve already arrived back in the UK and haven’t yet considered any or some of the above; it’s not too late! 

Just get in touch through the link below for a no-obligation discussion with Dominick and we would be delighted to help.

Your home or other property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.

The value of an investment with St. James's Place will be directly linked to the performance of the funds you select and the value can therefore go down as well as up. You may get back less than you invested.

The levels and bases of taxation, and reliefs from taxation, can change at any time. The value of any tax relief is generally dependent on individual circumstances. 

Some investment mortgages are not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. 

*These services are separate and distinct to those offered by St. James's Place.