Fixed savings joint account if one holder is non-UK resident?

Greenmeadow25

Hello, does anyone happen to know if it is possible to open a fixed savings joint account if one of the account holders lives in Spain? The account holders would be father & son (both are UK citizens). The money is from the father's UK house sale proceeds and the son is the non-resident.

Thanks for any advice.

Ayr_Rage

Probably not possible, asking the bank would be the best way to get an answer.

Greenmeadow25

Ayr_Rage said:

Probably not possible, asking the bank would be the best way to get an answer.

Thanks. Yes, I tried that but they could not help via email, only in person (I am in Spain) or by phone (I only have WhatsApp which they do not use).

wmb194

Greenmeadow25 said:

Ayr_Rage said:

Probably not possible, asking the bank would be the best way to get an answer.

Thanks. Yes, I tried that but they could not help via email, only in person (I am in Spain) or by phone (I only have WhatsApp which they do not use).

Just go through an online application and see what happens: you can always cancel before the end. It’s likely to be a no-go though.

Greenmeadow25

Ok, thank you

born_again

Could be a case that Spanish tax also would need to be paid on interest.

Is there any reason this needs to be a joint account?

Might be better to get power of attorney set up for son, & leave it as a sole account for father.

ppp123

Worth noting the non-UK resident may also have local tax reporting on any interest if it’s joint, which can complicate things.

friolento

You could try an offshore account, e.g. from Skipton?
https://www.skiptoninternational.com/offshore-savings-accounts/

Greenmeadow25

born_again said:

Could be a case that Spanish tax also would need to be paid on interest.

Is there any reason this needs to be a joint account?

Might be better to get power of attorney set up for son, & leave it as a sole account for father.

The interest would go to my father. We were thinking of a joint account for right of survivorship, to avoid the lengthy probate process down the road (not to avoid inheritance tax as my father's estate would be within the threshold anyway).

Greenmeadow25

ppp123 said:

Worth noting the non-UK resident may also have local tax reporting on any interest if it’s joint, which can complicate things.

As my father would receive all the interest, this should hopefully not be an issue. I assume the bank will report this to HMRC (the fact that the interest goes to my father).

Greenmeadow25

friolento said:

You could try an offshore account, e.g. from Skipton?

As the funds are from my father's UK house sale proceeds and the fact that he lives in the UK, we were hoping to use a high street bank, although it is proving more difficult than expected 🤔