Bringing Money From Italy into UK

bigtel_2

Hi,

My girlfriend is currently selling a house in Italy and would like to bring the money into the UK to buy a house here. Is there a certain way in which this needs to be done so as she isn't taxed at a high rate etc?

In the past we had just transferred money between her Italian bank account and My UK account before she got her own UK account but it was costing about £20 to transfer around £150.

Also she still has some money in her Italian accounts and might need to put it into her UK bank account so is there a cheaper option available?

Thanks

dzug1

The £20 is likely to be a flat rate regardless of amount so will not be significant with a large sum.
However the exchange rate will be.
You will be better off using a currency broker than a bank - I don't know enough about them to make a recommendation though.

worried_jim

Try-
http://www.currencysolutions.co.uk/enquiries/enquiry.php?source=GT:Currency%20Broker&gclid=CO79oYb75Z4CFUoB4wodj3h4JA

Currency Broker

Cook_County

She will of course need to report the transactions on her UK tax return so should take tax advice before acting.

trigga

If its amounts like £150 she can just use her italian atm card in a uk machine?

Nukumai

Cook_County wrote: »

She will of course need to report the transactions on her UK tax return so should take tax advice before acting.

Out of interest - why does this require reporting to the tax authorities?

glider3560

You only need to declare cash
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/customs/arriving/declaring-cash.htm

I can't see why you would need to declare it on a tax return?

kalaika

glider3560 wrote: »

I can't see why you would need to declare it on a tax return?

If the OP's girlfriend is resident or ordinarily resident in the UK, as well as being domiciled in the UK, she is liable to UK Capital Gains Tax on gains made on foreign assets as well as UK assets.

If, however, the OP's girlfriend is resident or ordinarily resident in the UK, but not domiciled here, then she may be liable to UK tax on the foreign gains when they are remitted to the UK.

(See the section on Overseas Assets at the bottom of this page: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/cgt/intro/when-to-pay.htm)

Bigtel, your girlfriend will need to get some professional advice on this matter to make sure she doesn't get hit with an unexpected tax bill.

Nukumai

bigtel - I think you might be confusing matters by mentioning "tax" in your opening comment.

Assuming that there is nothing irregular with the property sale and funds transferral (a key assumption!) :

1. there should be no tax implications with regard to the transferral of the sale proceeds from EUR to GBP. Use a bank or (regulated) currency broker;

2. there should be no UK tax issue with the actual property sale.

If, though, the situation is not as straightforward as I am assuming then, as previously advised, see a tax advisor or accountant. FWIW, I have done the same myself on 2 occasions (sold property offshore and repatriated the proceeds upon returning to the UK).