moving to Ireland

oliver2345

Hello,

I'm moving to the Republic of Ireland soon. Does anyone know if I can keep my savings and bank account open in the UK when I'll no longer live here?

Thank you for your help.

bowlhead99

That's something that can vary from bank to bank and product to product.

It's certainly possible for non-UK residents to have UK bank accounts, although new accounts (especially the ones with good features and high interest rates) can be difficult to access because the T&Cs often refer to accountholders needing to be over 18 and UK residents. But once someone already has an account which they opened as a UK resident - if they don't want to lose a customer, the bank may just process a change of address and start sending the statements to your new place in Ireland.

It's more work than it used to be, to maintain accounts for non-UK residents, because banks now have to send reports to HMRC showing the interest amounts and balances etc so that they can be shared with the foreign tax authorities. And as a non-UK resident you won't be eligible for the various products where they would make their money off you (loans, credit cards, mortgages). So, some banks would not want the business at all, while other banks that think you will come back to the UK and want to be first in line to get your profitable business at some point in the future, might be totally happy with it.

The fact your new residence will be Ireland rather than Iran will make it more likely that they'll be happy to have you as a customer. But probably if your current account is going to cost them a lot in interest and perks, they would be less happy and point to the T&Cs about requiring UK residence.

Probably a longer reply than you wanted, but as you haven't mentioned what account it is at what bank and what are the circumstances of your move, we can only generalise.

The shorter response to "Does anyone know if I can keep my savings and bank account open in the UK when I'll no longer live here?" is:

"Yes, your bank. What did they say when you asked them?"

oliver2345

Thanks for your help.

brasso

Existing accounts should be OK but when I moved abroad, the bank reduced my credit card limit for instance (which wasn't a problem).

The key advice is to open all the accounts you think you might need before you go because you won't be able to open them afterwards. Same goes for ISAs. You can keep existing ISA accounts but you can't top them up after you move so if you have money to put into an ISA for this tax year, do it before you go.

If you have a SIPP or other personal pension you can pay in £2,880 per year for 5 years after you leave. This will still get topped up by 20% by the state, so worth thinking about opening a SIPP and doing that. It's free money (though you can't get it out until you are 55).

tigerspill

oliver2345 wrote: »

Hello,

I'm moving to the Republic of Ireland soon. Does anyone know if I can keep my savings and bank account open in the UK when I'll no longer live here?

Thank you for your help.

There are banks have both UK and ROI branches. For example the Ulster Bank.
I have held accounts both north and south of the border without any problem.

eastcorkram

As others have said, Shouldn't be an issue. I moved to Ireland, and then lived and worked there for nearly 20 years. During all of that time, I had accounts in both the UK and Ireland ( with only one Irish address). I have now moved back to England, and still have the same accounts open.