Client returning to the UK
Returning to the UK can create a narrow planning window.
A client who has lived abroad may hold overseas investments, pensions, retirement accounts, property, business interests and cash accumulated across several jurisdictions.
Some decisions are easier to consider before UK residence resumes.
Josh Clancey works alongside tax advisers, lawyers, accountants and other professionals where a client's return to the UK creates wider financial-planning decisions around pensions, investments, retirement and internationally held wealth.
Pre-return planning should start before the client becomes UK resident
The first step is usually to establish when UK residence will begin under the Statutory Residence Test.
That is a tax-advice question rather than a financial-planning one.
Once the expected residence position is established, the client's financial arrangements can be reviewed in context.
Areas that may need attention include:
- overseas investment accounts
- UK pensions
- foreign pensions and retirement accounts
- cash held overseas
- existing UK ISAs
- property
- business interests
- beneficiary arrangements
- retirement income
- currency exposure
- the client's expected long-term residence
For eligible returners, the post-2025 Foreign Income and Gains regime can also materially affect the planning.
Common planning areas when a client returns to the UK
Eligibility for the FIG regime
A qualifying new resident can potentially claim relief on eligible foreign income and gains during their first four tax years of UK residence after at least 10 consecutive tax years of non-UK residence.
Overseas investments
The client may hold investments that were appropriate while living abroad but become inefficient, restricted or unsuitable after UK residence resumes.
International pensions and retirement accounts
A returning client may have UK pensions alongside 401(k)s, IRAs, foreign occupational pensions or other retirement assets.
Temporary non-residence
Where a former UK resident returns after a relatively short period abroad, certain income or gains realised while non-resident can potentially fall back into UK taxation under the temporary non-residence rules.
Inheritance tax
The post-2025 IHT regime is based on long-term UK residence rather than domicile.
A client's previous UK residence history can therefore be important when they return.
Existing UK pensions
Returning to the UK can be a useful point to review how existing pensions fit with the client's other international assets and retirement objectives.
Questions to ask before the client returns
When will UK residence begin?
The answer should be determined under the Statutory Residence Test rather than assumed from the physical moving date.
Has the client been non-UK resident for at least 10 consecutive tax years?
That is fundamental when assessing potential eligibility for the FIG regime.
What foreign income and gains does the client expect after returning?
The nature and timing of those amounts may affect whether a FIG claim is relevant.
What investments does the client currently hold?
Existing portfolios should be reviewed before assuming they remain appropriate for a UK resident.
Has the client realised significant gains while overseas?
Temporary non-residence rules may need to be considered where the period abroad was relatively short.
What pensions or retirement accounts were accumulated overseas?
These may require coordination with UK pensions, future retirement income and specialist tax advice.
What is the client's UK residence history for inheritance tax purposes?
The post-2025 residence-based IHT regime makes prior residence history an important part of the analysis.
Useful resources for advisers working with UK returners
The Professional Adviser's Guide to UK Returners
A broader guide to the main financial-planning issues that may need to be addressed before and after a client's return to the UK.
UK Returner Pre-Arrival Checklist
A practical checklist covering investments, pensions, residence, cash, property and other arrangements that may need attention before arrival.
The Professional Adviser's Guide to UK Residence, the FIG Regime and Inheritance Tax
A broader professional resource covering the interaction between UK residence, the post-2025 FIG regime and the residence-based IHT framework.
The FIG Regime and Investment Planning for UK Returners
A focused technical brief on the financial-planning implications of the four-year FIG regime.
The UK Statutory Residence Test for Internationally Mobile Clients
A technical brief covering the residence framework relevant to internationally mobile clients.
Client Moving Country Checklist
A practical checklist for identifying financial arrangements that may need review when residence changes.
The FIG regime changes the planning landscape for some returners
From 6 April 2025, the old remittance-basis regime was replaced by the residence-based Foreign Income and Gains regime.
A qualifying new resident can claim relief on eligible foreign income and/or foreign gains arising during their first four tax years of UK residence after at least 10 consecutive tax years of non-UK residence.
Claims are made annually.
A client does not have to claim in every eligible year, but unused years cannot be carried forward beyond the original four-year period.
Where relief applies, qualifying foreign income and gains can generally be brought to the UK without an additional UK tax charge.
That can make the timing of the return, realisation of gains and restructuring of overseas investments particularly important.
The tax adviser should establish eligibility and advise on claims. Josh's role is to incorporate that position into the client's wider investment and retirement strategy.
Temporary non-residence and inheritance tax both need separate consideration
A returning client should not assume that all income and gains realised while abroad are automatically outside UK tax.
HMRC's temporary non-residence rules can bring certain income and gains back into charge when a former UK resident returns after a period of non-residence of five years or less, subject to the detailed statutory conditions.
Inheritance tax also now operates under a residence-based framework.
For the current regime, long-term UK residence can continue to matter after departure, while a person who returns after 10 consecutive tax years of non-residence resets the 10-out-of-20-year residence test used for long-term residence.
These are separate analyses.
The relevant tax adviser should establish the client's tax position, while the financial plan considers pensions, investments, liquidity, retirement and beneficiary arrangements around it.
When should the referral happen?
Ideally, before the client returns to the UK.
That allows time to review:
residence timing
FIG eligibility
overseas portfolios
pensions and retirement accounts
cash and currencies
potential temporary non-residence issues
inheritance-tax exposure
future retirement structure
Once UK residence has resumed, some planning opportunities may be narrower.