Saving from overseas

binglebanglebongle

I am living out of the UK and have no plans to return in the near future. I have some money sitting in a Santander current account doing nothing, so what is the best place to put it? I'm sure I can safely put it away for a few years (maybe five).

The main thing that the account is being used for is my student loan repayments, so I will leave enough in there for that (pre 2005).

eskbanker

binglebanglebongle said:

I am living out of the UK and have no plans to return in the near future. I have some money sitting in a Santander current account doing nothing, so what is the best place to put it?

Best place will probably be the country you're now living in, rather than trying to open an account in the UK as an expat.

colsten

As a non-resident, you might find it difficult to open any UK savings accounts. You can try and see what happens. Don't expect to get rich though, interest rates are terrible, and goodness knows how much tax you would have to pay on any savings interest. https://moneyfacts.co.uk/savings-accounts/

kidmugsy

You could see whether ns&i would let you buy some Premium Bonds.

MDMD

kidmugsy said:

You could see whether ns&i would let you buy some Premium Bonds.

It depends where the OP is living- sone local laws don’t permit gambling. They could also be taxable in other locations

https://www.nsandi-adviser.com/assisting-overseas-clients

bostonerimus

If you are tax resident outside of the UK then owning UK funds might have nasty local tax consequences - where are you?

binglebanglebongle

Thanks to all that have replied. I will follow the advice and invest in my current country of residence. I was hoping to avoid the international currency transfer fees but its likely to be well below the tax incurred in the UK.

colsten

If you use a credible transfer service such as Wise, your transfer fees will be minimal. You obviously cannot escape the exchange rate, but you can make sure you get the best, by checking on monito.