Buying property in cash - Gift from abroad

propertyrental

What on earth is an early inheritance? Has someone died and the deceased person's Estate is being distributed before the Grant of Probate (or equivalent in whichever country)?

Either it's an inheritance received from a deceased's Estate, or it's a gift, (or a loan).

Proving the source of funds from overseas is obviously more difficult than UK money, and solicitors have to do due diligence to ensure the money was not earned from drugs, people trafficking, Russian mafia or the like (though Russian oligarchs seem to have no problem buying up London property....)

But it's up to the solicitor to decide how to do this and what to accept.

Socrates1982

Keep_pedalling said:

There is no such thing as an early inheritance, it is a gift.

Its both. Google it, it comes up. 

propertyrental

Socrates1982 said:

Keep_pedalling said:

There is no such thing as an early inheritance, it is a gift.

Its both. Google it, it comes up. 

Oh well, if god google says it's both then it must be true!

In reality 'inheritance' as a term can be used informally/loosely to refer to a parent's assets (which may or may not subsequently be passed on) or formally/legally when referring to assets which actually are passed on following death and probate.

The assets referred to in the informal sense above may have been spent prior to the death, or may be swallowed up by IHT or suchlike.

In this scenario the legal definition is required. It's a gift. Describing it as anything else just muddies the waters.

Socrates1982

propertyrental said:

Socrates1982 said:

Keep_pedalling said:

There is no such thing as an early inheritance, it is a gift.

Its both. Google it, it comes up. 

Oh well, if god google says it's both then it must be true!

In reality 'inheritance' as a term can be used informally/loosely to refer to a parent's assets (which may or may not subsequently be passed on) or formally/legally when referring to assets which actually are passed on following death and probate.

The assets referred to in the informal sense above may have been spent prior to the death, or may be swallowed up by IHT or suchlike.

In this scenario the legal definition is required. It's a gift. Describing it as anything else just muddies the waters.

To clarify my google comment: google pulls up legal websites that mention early inheritance / gifts. I'm not going to get bogged down in the semantics but I understand what you are saying. cheers. 

WellKnownSid

I don’t think the sticking point is the gift or the bank account, I believe the issue is “conveyancing solicitor”

I doubt anyone recommended by an agent or online conveyenZers-R-us type outfit is going to cut the mustard. The OP simply needs to find a firm willing and able to handle the gift which has been routed via overseas channels. Overseas bank accounts are not just the preserve of terrorists and money launderers - millions of Brits live abroad and they have an overseas bank account perfectly legitimately.

Why not start with the firm the parents used when they first bought overseas? Is there a pre-existing relationship there? Is there a firm with a local presence in that market?

Bookworm105

Socrates1982 said:

Bookworm105 said:

money from abroad is obviously more "sensitive" in terms of the solicitor owing a duty to "the govt" as (unpaid) enforcer of the money laundering regulations. That is a requirement of their professional body. It is non negotiable.

That said it is down to the individual solicitor to decide what level of evidence meets his expectations of how to show he has diligently done what he is supposed to do, ie make sure it is not dirty money being washed in a UK property deal . 

ok thank you. This sounds a bit more positive now. I know my friends family and they are very humble and decent people. I guess as long as she can discuss with the solicitor why it is they wont accept foreign statements and explain her situation in a bit more detail, she can demonstrate its not dirty money. 

a bank statement on its own does not "prove" the source of the money in the account.

"We" are familiar with UK bank accounts so "know" if we are looking at a "current" account sourced by say monthly job earnings (payslips and/or the name of the employer can be "easily" checked), or a savings account sourced by transfers from elsewhere, with the elsewhere also being checkable. Therefore, to an extent, a UK bank statement can be taken at face value.

Not so simple with a foreign account, especially if in a red flag tax haven territory

AskAsk

Bookworm105 said:

Socrates1982 said:

Bookworm105 said:

money from abroad is obviously more "sensitive" in terms of the solicitor owing a duty to "the govt" as (unpaid) enforcer of the money laundering regulations. That is a requirement of their professional body. It is non negotiable.

That said it is down to the individual solicitor to decide what level of evidence meets his expectations of how to show he has diligently done what he is supposed to do, ie make sure it is not dirty money being washed in a UK property deal . 

ok thank you. This sounds a bit more positive now. I know my friends family and they are very humble and decent people. I guess as long as she can discuss with the solicitor why it is they wont accept foreign statements and explain her situation in a bit more detail, she can demonstrate its not dirty money. 

a bank statement on its own does not "prove" the source of the money in the account.

"We" are familiar with UK bank accounts so "know" if we are looking at a "current" account sourced by say monthly job earnings (payslips and/or the name of the employer can be "easily" checked), or a savings account sourced by transfers from elsewhere, with the elsewhere also being checkable. Therefore, to an extent, a UK bank statement can be taken at face value.

Not so simple with a foreign account, especially if in a red flag tax haven territory

Banks in the UK also do rigid money laundering checks on deposits, so the solicitors will be more assured that it isn't fraudulent money, as the bank should have already dealt with that when it was deposited. 

Foreign banks may not be regulated in this sense and so money deposited in foreign banks may not have been through any vetting process.

It is also easier to forge foreign bank statements as the solicitors can't easily call the bank to check, or even know what they should look like!

Money crossing international boundaries are always going to be scrutinised.  It may be easier if the money is given before the house purchase, then it becomes the OP's savings.  But as to how long it needs to sit in his savings account before he can call it his savings, I do not know.