Pension and financial advice for UK expats, for people planning a move abroad and for those returning to the UK: UK pensions, SIPPs, QROPS and QNUPS, UK tax and residence, inheritance tax, investments and UK property.
Living abroad does not end your financial ties to the UK. Most UK expats still hold UK pensions, and many keep UK property, ISAs, investments or a State Pension entitlement. Your new country will have its own tax and regulatory rules, and the two systems do not always fit together neatly.
For most expats the largest and least reversible decisions involve pensions: whether to leave a UK pension where it is, move it to a SIPP, transfer it to an overseas scheme such as a QROPS, or transfer out of a defined benefit scheme. This page starts there, then covers UK tax and residence, inheritance tax, investments, property, and planning a move abroad or back to the UK.
The advisers in the Trusted Advisor network are UK-regulated: they are authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) or are appointed representatives of FCA-authorised firms. Whether a UK-regulated adviser can advise someone who lives outside the UK depends on where that person lives and on the regulatory requirements that apply there. In some countries a UK adviser may be able to help; in others the advice has to come from a firm licensed locally.
Trusted Advisor cannot provide, or arrange, regulated financial advice in every overseas jurisdiction. If you live abroad, or are about to move, tell the adviser at the outset so they can confirm whether they are able to help before any advice is given.
This page is general information about the UK side of an expat’s finances. It is not financial advice or a personal recommendation.
UK pensions do not have to move when you do. A UK pension can normally stay where it is and pay benefits to you overseas, although some UK providers restrict what non-resident members can do, and the income may be taxable in your country of residence as well as, or instead of, the UK depending on the double taxation agreement. The questions expat pension advice usually needs to answer are whether to leave pensions in place, consolidate them, or transfer them, and how any income will be taxed where you live.
A self-invested personal pension (SIPP) is a UK pension that gives you a wide choice of investments, and some expats use one to consolidate several UK workplace and personal pensions in one place. Not every SIPP provider accepts non-resident members or allows investments in other currencies, so it is worth checking before you move or consolidate.
Once you are no longer UK resident, tax relief on new contributions is generally limited. If you have no UK-taxable earnings, you can generally still get relief on contributions of up to £3,600 gross a year for the five tax years after the year you leave, provided you were UK resident when you joined the scheme. Consolidating older pensions can also mean giving up valuable guarantees, such as guaranteed annuity rates or protected tax-free cash, so these should be checked before any transfer.
A qualifying recognised overseas pension scheme (QROPS) is an overseas pension scheme that meets HMRC’s conditions to receive transfers from UK registered pension schemes. A transfer to a scheme that is not a QROPS can trigger UK unauthorised payment tax charges.
A transfer to a QROPS can be subject to the 25% overseas transfer charge unless an exemption applies. Broadly, the main exemption is where you are resident in the same country in which the QROPS is established. Since 30 October 2024 transfers to schemes in the European Economic Area are no longer automatically exempt, and the charge can also apply if your circumstances change within five full tax years of the transfer.
The case for a QROPS depends on where you intend to retire, the currency you will spend in, charges, the investment options, and how the transfer is taxed in both countries. Transfers are usually irreversible, so specialist advice before acting is important.
A qualifying non-UK pension scheme (QNUPS) is an overseas pension scheme that meets HMRC conditions. QNUPS have been associated with UK inheritance tax planning, but from 6 April 2027 most pension funds, including those in QNUPS, are brought within the scope of inheritance tax. QNUPS are complex, specialist arrangements with a history of being mis-sold; they are not suitable for most people and should only be considered with advice that covers the tax position in the UK and in your country of residence.
If you have a defined benefit pension with a transfer value of more than £30,000, the scheme must check that you have taken advice from an FCA-authorised adviser with pension transfer permission before it can allow a transfer. FCA rules say advisers should start by assuming a transfer will not be suitable, because it usually means giving up a guaranteed income for life. Living abroad does not change this requirement.
You can claim your UK State Pension while living abroad. Whether it increases each year depends on where you live: it is uprated in the European Economic Area, Switzerland, Gibraltar and countries with a relevant social security agreement with the UK, but you will not get yearly increases if you live anywhere else.
Gaps in your National Insurance record can reduce your State Pension. From 6 April 2026 you can no longer pay voluntary Class 2 contributions for time abroad, and new applicants for voluntary Class 3 contributions generally need 10 continuous years of UK residence or 10 qualifying years.
Expats are a common target for pension scams and for unsuitable overseas transfers. Warning signs include unsolicited contact, offers of a “free pension review”, pressure to act quickly, promises of guaranteed or unusually high returns, and recommendations to move your pension into unregulated or overseas investments. Check any firm on the FCA register, and use the FCA’s ScamSmart guidance before transferring a pension.
Your UK tax position depends on whether you are UK resident for a given tax year, which is decided by the Statutory Residence Test. It looks at days spent in the UK and your ties here, such as family, accommodation and work, so moving abroad does not automatically make you non-resident. When you leave, you can tell HMRC using form P85 or through your Self Assessment tax return.
Non-residents are generally still taxable in the UK on UK-source income, such as rent from UK property. Under the Non-Resident Landlord Scheme, a letting agent, or in some cases the tenant, must deduct basic rate tax from rent paid to a landlord living abroad unless HMRC has approved the rent being paid without deduction. Non-residents are also liable to UK capital gains tax when they dispose of UK land and property, and must report the disposal to HMRC within 60 days of completion, even if there is no tax to pay or they made a loss.
If you return to the UK after a short period abroad, temporary non-residence rules can bring some gains and income received while you were away back into UK tax. Where the same income is taxable in two countries, a double taxation agreement between the UK and your country of residence may give relief. The UK has agreements with many countries, including the United Arab Emirates.
Since 6 April 2025, whether your worldwide assets are within the scope of UK inheritance tax depends mainly on long-term UK residence rather than domicile. People who have been UK resident for at least 10 of the previous 20 tax years are generally in scope, and that exposure can continue for several years after leaving the UK. UK assets, such as UK property, can remain subject to UK inheritance tax wherever you live.
Under the Finance Act 2026, most unused pension funds and pension death benefits will count towards your estate for inheritance tax from 6 April 2027. If you own assets in more than one country, consider whether you need a will in each country and how local succession rules will interact with your UK estate.
You can keep an existing ISA after becoming non-resident, and its income and gains stay free of UK tax, but you generally cannot pay new money into it. ISA income and gains may still be taxable in your new country. Some UK banks, platforms and fund providers also restrict or close accounts for customers living abroad, or limit what you can buy.
Currency matters too. If you will spend your retirement income in another currency, an adviser can help you consider how much currency risk to take across your pensions and investments.
Many expats keep a UK home or buy UK property to let. Fewer lenders offer mortgages to borrowers who live abroad, and criteria are often stricter than for UK residents. Rental income, the Non-Resident Landlord Scheme and capital gains tax reporting on a later sale all need to be planned for.
The best time to get advice is before you move. Decisions about pension contributions, using your ISA allowance, when to sell assets, and how to hold investments can be easier to make while you are still UK resident.
Returning to the UK needs similar planning in reverse: the timing of your return can affect how income and gains are taxed, and overseas pensions and investments may be treated differently once you are UK resident again.
The UAE does not currently charge personal income tax on employment income, but that does not remove your UK tax exposure. UK rental income, UK property gains, inheritance tax based on long-term UK residence, and returning to the UK within the temporary non-residence period can all still matter.
Financial advice given to people living in the UAE is regulated locally, for example by the Dubai Financial Services Authority in the Dubai International Financial Centre, by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority in Abu Dhabi Global Market, and elsewhere by federal regulators such as the Capital Market Authority and the Central Bank of the UAE. A UK-regulated adviser may not be able to advise you while you live there, so if you live in the UAE, tell the adviser at the outset. If you are considering a transfer of a UK pension to an overseas scheme, check how the overseas transfer charge would apply to you.
Check the firm on the FCA register at register.fca.org.uk, and if you are considering a defined benefit transfer, confirm that the adviser holds the pension transfer permission. If you are dealing with a firm licensed outside the UK, check its licence with the local regulator, and be aware that UK protections such as the Financial Ombudsman Service and the Financial Services Compensation Scheme may not apply.
Ask how the adviser is paid, what the ongoing charges will be across any products they recommend, and whether they can advise someone in your country of residence.
Tell us about your circumstances, including where you live, and we will look for an adviser in the Trusted Advisor network whose specialisms fit. If you live abroad, tell the adviser at the outset so they can confirm whether they are able to help.
Find an adviserPossibly. The advisers in the Trusted Advisor network are UK-regulated, and whether a UK-regulated adviser can advise you depends on the country you live in and the regulatory requirements that apply there. Tell the adviser that you live abroad at the outset so they can confirm whether they are able to help.
It depends on where you live and plan to retire, the currency you will spend in, charges, and how the transfer would be taxed. A transfer may be subject to the 25% overseas transfer charge unless an exemption applies, and transfers are usually irreversible. For many people, leaving a UK pension in place remains an option to compare.
A SIPP is a UK registered pension scheme with a wide investment choice. A QROPS is an overseas pension scheme that can receive transfers from UK pension schemes. A QNUPS is an overseas pension scheme that meets HMRC conditions. QNUPS have been associated with UK inheritance tax planning, but from 6 April 2027 most pension funds, including those in QNUPS, are brought within the scope of inheritance tax. QNUPS are specialist arrangements that are not suitable for most people.
Yes. You can keep an existing ISA and it stays free of UK tax, but you generally cannot add new money once you are not UK resident. The income and gains may be taxable in your new country.
It depends on the country. The UK State Pension is increased each year if you live in the European Economic Area, Switzerland, Gibraltar or a country with a relevant social security agreement with the UK. You will not get yearly increases if you live anywhere else.
Review them when your circumstances change, for example when you move country, change jobs, approach retirement, or plan to return to the UK, as well as periodically in between, because tax rules in both countries can change.