Non UK Resident looking to invest 150k instant access what are my options ?

jackas

Hi there,
i have posted other threads asking a similar question but dont feel i have received any definitive answers so i will just resummarise here and perhaps explain more clearly my dilemma and hope someone may be able to offer some advice :-
i am a uk citizen living abroad (non uk resident) i have several uk current accounts including isa's but have a lump sum (150k) that i am looking to invest with easy access at the best interest rate whilst also protecting the money as best as possible,my thoughts originally were 3 x 50k investments offshore with Anglo Irish,Nationwide + perhaps Halifax but looking at this closer it would appear that these accounts are not covered by the UK FSCS protection although they are covered under the IOM DCS , which some people suggest is not worth the paper it is written on ?
can anyone perhaps suggest or offer advice what my best/safest options are ,i could i suppose open further mainstream current accounts in the UK but a lot or most of these require you to be a UK resident ,any help or advice would be gratefully recieved , i would like to move this money asap as it is wallowing in current account at the moment with a pitiful int rate (0.02%),
Cheers,
Jackas

bendix

I don't know what you expect people to suggest. Interest rates are low. You also want instant access.

Short of waving a magic wand and finding an instant access account paying 10% per annum, what are you hoping to get from here?

What are the savings / investment options like wherever you currently live?

Jonbvn

AFAIK, in the UK only the Halifax will allow you to open a savings a/c whilst non-resident. This forces you to consider offshore accounts.

Sorry but the answer is that there isn't one!

novazombie

If you are nonUK resident do you pay UK tax on income generated here?

Jonbvn

novazombie wrote: »

If you are nonUK resident do you pay UK tax on income generated here?

You get the £6.5k allowance just like everyone else.

barak

Jonbvn wrote: »

You get the £6.5k allowance just like everyone else.

That's making quite a few assumptions isn't it? :undecided

Jonbvn

barak wrote: »

That's making quite a few assumptions isn't it? :undecided

Which assumptions do you mean?

jackas

Hi guys thanks for your replys,just to clear a couple of things up im not looking for magic wand or an account paying 10% i know that the interest rates in and around the UK are woeful at the moment but the currency exchange rate to the country in which i currently reside is even worse. Therefore i am looking for somewhere to park 150k safely for a short term , the reason i was looking offshore was because these accounts seem to cater better for expats or non uk resident but then it appears that there is some controversy regards the security of your money in these accounts (depending where they are ?) , the only other option is too apply for a current account as if i am still a UK resident but what are the ramifications if found not to be ? as i stated previously i am confused by the complexity of it all as i have never really dealt with these type of accounts before or looked to closely into the security of said accounts, i was merely after some feedback/advice from people with prior experience or greater knowledge,
thanks again for you replies both positive and negative,
Cheers,
Jackas

tweener_2

See if you can open an HSBC Premier UK account. I opened mine before leaving the UK but they have no problem with me having a foreign address. You need 50k minimum to maintain it. Put 49,999 in a fixed rate saver. They just upped their rates today. Below 50k you can withdraw the money at 90 days interest penalty if you need it. 50k or more it's locked up for the term. If they let you open it then register for gross interest.

The great thing about HSBC Premier is you can do free global transfers between Premier accounts worldwide. The rates are good too. The Premier UK minimum balance is lower than a lot of other (western) countries so as long as you maintain 50k minimum in UK you can use this account to open Premier in a lot of other countries without fees or minimum balances. You can also transfer in your cash ISAs if their rate is better to maintain the minimum.

As for the other 100k that's a good question. I also have Anglo Irish. It's guaranteed by IOM and Anglo Irish (which is now nationalised) so I assume it's safe but you never know. There's also Nationwide International.

If you find anything better let me know

jackas

Tweener,
what are the current rates that you are talking about please as i couldnt seem to find them for this account,
also if you only deposit 49.999 in the fixed rate saver (unsure also of int rate ?)then you dont meet the criteria for opening the account,
Cheers,
Jackas

rockitup

Tweener

I had a quick look at the HSBC Premier site and they only seem to pay 0.75% Gross, not so good.

Maybe you were looking at their regular saver which pays 8% on regular monthly amounts of up to £250 for 1 year. Roughly this works out to £120 interest gross for the year