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Post by Glaswegian on Oct 31, 2013 14:29:37 GMT
Folks,
Might be silly questions to ask but if by UK law we are not resident for some years then why open an account in an offshore account? If we will let HMRC know that we are leaving UK for a job elsewhere in the world, why would they chase us for tax?
I take it offshore accounts are solely for tax purposes or am i missing something else?
Cheers
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Post by GroveWanderer on Nov 2, 2013 12:33:16 GMT
There are a few reasons that I can think of (other people may know of additional reasons). Firstly, interest from offshore accounts is not subject to tax. Any interest you earn from an onshore account in the UK has 20% tax automatically deducted from it even if you are resident abroad. Secondly, under the new guidelines on establishing and maintaining non-UK resident and non-UK domicile status, keeping an account in a mainland bank counts against you as it indicates continuing ties to the UK in a way that an offshore account does not. Thirdly, offshore accounts normally offer special services specifically tailored towards the needs of expat account holders. Having said all that, it is not an absolute necessity to open an offshore account just because you are living abroad and depending on your exact circumstances, you might prefer to keep an onshore account. There is a good article looking at this issue on the following link: www.expatnetwork.com/Money/Banking-and-Savings/Why-You-Need-Offshore-Account.cfm |
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Post by Glaswegian on Nov 5, 2013 9:12:34 GMT
Many thanks for your informative reply.
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