Assistance with UK-Based Savings Accounts (Non-Resident)

gt94sss2

poseidon1 said:

madeiraboy said:

I am a British citizen living permanently in Portugal, and I currently hold  savings accounts in the Isle of Man and Guernsey However, since IOM and Guernsey are classified as a blacklisted jurisdictions under Portugal’s IRS rules, interest earned is taxed at 35%, which I want to avoid.  

I have access to a UK address for correspondence via my son’s address, and I am looking for alternative UK-based savings accounts where I can deposit and earn interest in GBP, while remaining compliant with tax regulations. Ideally, I am seeking:  

- Fixed-rate savings accounts or bonds with competitive interest.  

- Deposit protection under FSCS (Financial Services Compensation Scheme).  

- Easy-access GBP accounts for withdrawals and transfers.  

- Accounts open to non-resident UK citizens with a UK correspondence address. My current account is offshore IOM.

Could you provide guidance on eligibility requirements, account setup, and any tax reporting obligations? I appreciate any recommendations you can offer.  

I see from the article below the root of your current predicament-

https://www.portugalresident.com/jersey-to-end-banking-secrecy-for-eu-residents/

It won't be due to the Automatic Exchange of Information between international tax authorities which has been a thing for over a decade now

It's more to do with the fact that Jersey is on a list of countries Portugal consider "tax havens" so apply a tax rate of 35% from there rather than their "normal" 28%.

Andystriker

lr1277 said:

And if you do need to be on the electoral roll at an address, you will most likely have to pay council tax. Which feeds into the point made by @Mum161111.

What would happen if they got called up for Jury Service?

lr1277

Andystriker said:

lr1277 said:

And if you do need to be on the electoral roll at an address, you will most likely have to pay council tax. Which feeds into the point made by @Mum161111.

What would happen if they got called up for Jury Service?

No idea. But a good question. Speculating:
If they applied to be on the electoral roll as a resident of a foreign country I imagine they won’t be called.
If they applied from a UK address, they might do what other Brits do whenever they don’t want to attend jury duty, whatever that might be. Or they could tell the jury service people they have moved abroad permanently. But that might crimp their soft credit check chances.
Like I said, no idea.

Nebulous2

There is a lot of speculation here. The best thing to do, as far as I can see, is keep accounts when you leave.

I've a friend who has been overseas for about 7 years now. He kept a pay as you go SIM card for OTPs and sends a text every 3 months or so to keep it live. 

He has streamlined his bank accounts, but the ones left all know his overseas address and expect an accommodation address in the UK. They don't want to send cards etc overseas. He has been able to open savings accounts, including regular savers, with banks he already had an account with. He still has UK credit cards. 

Registering on the electoral roll as an overseas voter doesn't put you at risk of jury duty, or being asked to pay council tax, but my recollection is you have to vote in the constituency you were last resident - you can't choose to vote at the constituency of your accommodation address. 

chiang_mai

The residency issue is tricky but not always clear cut. If you have an address in the UK, especially a home that you own (but not necessarily live in full time), you can still be regarded as UK resident, especially if you file a UK tax return.

I have homes and active bank accounts in the UK and Thailand and file tax returns in both countries, I usually live year round in Thailand. I'm currently trying to sell UK shares in Aviva and Computershares Investors has now accepted that I can be UK resident for that purpose. I am also selling my UK home and will want to deposit the proceeds in the UK or offshore, which HSBC UK is happy for me to do. Ditto, Skipton International and others of its type will happily open offshore accounts for me, for the purposes of depositing funds such as mentioned. You may want to trawl through the lists of offshore UK banks to see which ones suit, there are quite a few on the web. It is not necessary, in my 20 plus years of experience on this subject, to be on the electoral role, in order to qualify as UK resident. I have rented out my UK home and am not on the electoral roll. But my UK bank, HSBC, will happily send me replacement cards to my Thai address, all they want to know is how to get in touch if they need to. 

An expat can easily become "resident" once again for NHS purposes, on the day of return to the UK. They can also be consistently "resident" for tax purposes, despite having not visited the UK for years. I wonder therefore which definition of residency individual banks use and whether or not the term is subjective. HL for example tells me I am not UK resident but if I wish to make certain types of transactions that require residency, I can do so when I return on holiday for 24 hours....the criteria in their case, is physical presence of a UK subject, on UK soil.

masonic

chiang_mai said:

An expat can easily become "resident" once again for NHS purposes, on the day of return to the UK. They can also be consistently "resident" for tax purposes, despite having not visited the UK for years. I wonder therefore which definition of residency individual banks use and whether or not the term is subjective. HL for example tells me I am not UK resident but if I wish to make certain types of transactions that require residency, I can do so when I return on holiday for 24 hours....the criteria in their case, is physical presence of a UK subject, on UK soil.

Probably they would need evidence from your credit report or physical documents (i.e. electoral roll, council tax, utility bill registered in your name). If you can provide the required proof of UK address, then that is probably as far as they'd go. There is also https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rdr3-statutory-residence-test-srt/guidance-note-for-statutory-residence-test-srt-rdr3#statutory-residence-test-srt

chiang_mai

masonic said:

chiang_mai said:

An expat can easily become "resident" once again for NHS purposes, on the day of return to the UK. They can also be consistently "resident" for tax purposes, despite having not visited the UK for years. I wonder therefore which definition of residency individual banks use and whether or not the term is subjective. HL for example tells me I am not UK resident but if I wish to make certain types of transactions that require residency, I can do so when I return on holiday for 24 hours....the criteria in their case, is physical presence of a UK subject, on UK soil.

Probably they would need evidence from your credit report or physical documents (i.e. electoral roll, council tax, utility bill registered in your name). If you can provide the required proof of UK address, then that is probably as far as they'd go. There is also https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rdr3-statutory-residence-test-srt/guidance-note-for-statutory-residence-test-srt-rdr3#statutory-residence-test-srt

I have been asked for copies of my UK bank statement, in order to prove my address and my UK passport to confirm my identity, those two things have normally sufficed. The Stat Res test however is mostly used for benefits purposes, I have never seen it used to confirm residency for commercial purposes, that's not to say it isn't somewhere. One of the big hinderances in the UK is that the rules need to cater to homeless people, who cannot always be expected to provide typical documentation or be on electoral or credit agency registers.