Telling HMRC you’re leaving

When you move to Australia you usually stop being UK resident for tax and become Australian resident instead. Getting the paperwork right on both sides stops you paying too much, or too little.

Tell HMRC you’re going

Are you still UK resident?

The Statutory Residence Test (SRT) decides your UK tax residence for each UK tax year (6 April to 5 April). In short:

• You are automatically non-resident if you were UK resident in any of the last 3 tax years and spend fewer than 16 days in the UK
• You are also non-resident if you work full time abroad, spend fewer than 91 days in the UK, and work more than 3 hours on fewer than 31 days in the UK
• You are automatically UK resident if you spend 183 days or more in the UK
• Otherwise the “sufficient ties” test looks at your UK family, home, work and days spent here

Long trips home in your first year can keep you UK resident. Count your days.

Split-year treatment

When you leave part-way through a tax year, the year is usually split into a UK-resident part and a non-resident part. You then only pay UK tax on foreign income for the time you lived here. You won’t get it if you live abroad for less than a full tax year before coming back, and other conditions apply.

UK income after you leave

• As a non-resident you still pay UK tax on UK income such as rent, pensions, savings interest and UK wages
• Non-residents don’t usually pay UK tax on the State Pension or interest on UK government bonds (gilts)
• You report UK income on a Self Assessment return with the SA109 form, sent by post or through software that supports it
• The UK and Australia have a double taxation agreement, so you can claim relief and not pay tax twice on the same income

How Australia taxes you

Unlike the UK, Australia’s tax year runs from 1 July to 30 June. You are usually Australian tax resident if you live there. The main tests are the “resides” test, the domicile test and the 183-day test.

See Tax file number and Australian tax.

ISAs and other UK savings

You can keep your ISA and it stays tax-free in the UK, but you can’t pay any more into it. Tell your ISA provider as soon as you stop being UK resident.

The UK tax break doesn’t carry over. Once you are an Australian resident for tax, you must declare your worldwide income, and the ATO’s list includes interest, dividends and capital gains on overseas assets. It makes no exception for income that is tax-free in the UK, such as income inside an ISA. If you are a temporary resident (most people on temporary visas), most foreign income and gains are left out. Take advice from a cross-border tax adviser.

What else to tell

• The Student Loans Company, if you are leaving for more than 3 months. If you don’t, you could build up arrears
• The Child Benefit Office. Australia is not on the list of countries where Child Benefit can usually continue
• Your bank, pension providers and investment platforms, with your new address