Free guide
Leaving the UK: tax, NI and your home
Tell HMRC, protect your State Pension and decide what happens to your home. Pick your situation.
What’s your situation?
5 situationsChanged on 6 April 2026: You can no longer pay cheap voluntary Class 2 National Insurance for time abroad. Class 3 now needs 10 years of UK residence or contributions, up from 3. If you applied for 2024/25 or 2025/26 by 5 April 2026, the old rules may still apply.
Moving for a full-time job
Most people who move for work become non-resident through the third automatic overseas test.
| Full-time work abroad | An average of about 35 hours a week, with no significant break |
| UK days | Fewer than 91 in the tax year |
| UK work days | Fewer than 31 days with more than 3 hours of UK work |
| The year you leave | Split-year treatment (Case 1) can make you non-resident from the day after you leave |
Keep a diary of UK days and UK work days. Working on a trip home counts.
Sources: GOV.UK: tax residence; HMRC manual: third automatic overseas test; HMRC manual: split year Case 1.
Your UK checklist
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| Before you go | Tell HMRC: form P85 if you don’t file Self Assessment, or the residence pages on your return. |
| Before you go | Check your NI record and State Pension forecast. Decide whether to pay voluntary Class 3 |
| Before you go | Tell your GP, bank, pension providers and the Student Loans Company |
| First year | Stop paying into ISAs. You keep them, tax-free |
| Every year | Count your UK days. Register as an overseas voter (renew every 3 years) |
What you keep and what stops
| Item | After you move |
|---|---|
| ISAs | Keep them; no new payments |
| UK pensions | Keep them. Tax relief continues for up to 5 years in limited cases |
| State Pension | Paid, but frozen in the UAE |
| NHS | No longer automatically entitled |
| Child Benefit | Stops |
| Voting | Yes, as an overseas voter; the 15-year limit ended in 2024 |
| Driving licence | You can’t put a foreign address on it. Swap to a UAE licence once resident |
Before you commit: the regional situation. Conflict involving Iran has disrupted flights across the Gulf in 2026. The FCDO does not advise against travel to the UAE but asks people to be ready for disruption. Read the FCDO travel advice (last updated 24 July 2026).
Questions people ask
Sources: GOV.UK: tax if you leave the UK; GOV.UK: ISAs if you move abroad; GOV.UK: voting when abroad; GOV.UK: licence address; NHS: moving abroad.
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