Litizi67 Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 My husband & I are planning to relocate back to the UK after 26 years in Australia. Will we be taxed on money we bring back to the UK,we have already paid tax on the capital in Australia when we were living & working here? Also,how does one begin to plan this move,we are now in our late 60's? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gbye grey sky Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 (edited) There is no tax on moving your money when you migrate to the UK. There are, though, tax implications in moving which you may be unaware of particularly in relation to Super which will be taxable income when UK resident. Some regular posters have made the move at a similar time of life and can guide you further. Is your question aimed only at the financial and taxation implications? Edited October 31, 2015 by Gbye grey sky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STEVEPEACOCK Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 I would say the same way as moving here, look for short term furnished accommodation then Open a bank account to transfer money, Buy a car & sort insurance & tax (Take Aussie no claims proof). Look for house (purchase or rent) wait for possessions or buy new. Probably worth taking proof of Aussie address, paid bills, bank acc'ts etc as many financial institutions require proof of past abode etc, Register with doctors & dentist. I'm sure the rest will come as you need it. Going back after 28 years seems a long time, what is your reason ? & good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chortlepuss Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 No tax. What a brave move after 26 years. I too would love to know your reasons (I intend to retire back to the UK too!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Litizi67 Posted October 31, 2015 Author Share Posted October 31, 2015 My husband & I came to Adelaide in 1989,we bought our 4 children with us then.Having worked hard for the past 26 years(I retired last Oct after nursing for 26 years here & 18 years in the UK) My husband left British Telecom in the UK but could not get a position here in Telstra so having to work at a job to enable us to educate the children & buy a house,we are now "empty-nesters"! Our children could not settle in Adelaide so when they finish Uni 3 went back to the UK & 1 went to Toronto.One son reurned last year but informed us they will be returning back to the UK after a couple of years. Adelaide is too far & we feel isolated! Plus we have friends & relatives there. We thought if we return to the UK(we have dual citizenship) we might see our children more often then once in 2-3 years?? Living in the UK will enable us to travel to the European countries we have always wanted to visit and they have direct flight to Toronto bypassing the USA. Seems crazy I know after 26 years but I guess as we have no ties in Australia now,so it is now or never for us. Thanks for your replies.We appreciate your comments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scuffythetugboat Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 (edited) There is no tax on moving your money when you migrate to the UK. There are, though, tax implications in moving which you may be unaware of particularly in relation to Super which will be taxable income when UK resident. Some regular posters have made the move at a similar time of life and can guide you further. Is your question aimed only at the financial and taxation implications? Why not cash in the Super before leaving Australia then invest the money in the UK? I will be. Edited October 31, 2015 by scuffythetugboat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gbye grey sky Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 Why not cash in the Super before leaving Australia then invest the money in the UK? I will be. Because you cannot if you have PR status I understand. Assume you are only on a temporary visa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 Because you cannot if you have PR status I understand. Assume you are only on a temporary visa. The OP is over 60 so could cash in their super any time with no penalties. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 My husband & I are planning to relocate back to the UK after 26 years in Australia.Will we be taxed on money we bring back to the UK? Also,how does one begin to plan this move,we are now in our late 60's? No, not if you move the money at the same time that you move. If you leave it in Australia for several months and transfer it later, you could get charged some tax as it would be viewed as a foreign currency investment and you'd pay tax on any profit from exchange rate movements. So easier to move it at the time! It's not possible to open a UK bank account from Australia. What we did was open an account with Moneycorp (if you join through PomsinOz you get free transactions). Then we transferred our money into a £ sterling account with them, and then when we got to the UK and opened a bank account, we transferred the money from Moneycorp into that account. All fee-free! They do ask you to set up an online account but if it's a big amount, once you've got the account set up then phone them and they'll help you organise it all. You need to use a third party like Moneycorp because if you transfer straight from bank to bank, the fees can be very high, and banks generally have much worse exchange rates too, so you can lose a lot in the transaction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 Some other things to put on your list: It's very unlikely you'll be able to secure a rental property before you leave Australia. Unless you can arrange to stay with friends, book a holiday apartment for a month, to give you time to house-hunt. If you're in your late 60's, I assume you're past the official retirement age and have already claimed the aged pension from Centrelink. If you haven't claimed it yet, you MUST claim before you leave Australia, even if you don't pass the assets test - otherwise you cannot be paid it in the UK, ever. If you are getting the Centrelink pension already, then when you leave the country it will reduce because you've lived in Australia less than 35 years. However when you get to the UK, you can apply to have your Australian residence up to the year 2000 only to count towards a UK pension - so be sure to take evidence of residence/work in Australia (e.g. work references) with you. You need to think about what you want to do with your super. If you convert it to a pension, then it will be taxed in the UK as part of your normal income. You may be better to cash it in and move it to the UK along with your other funds (in which case no tax is payable), then invest it in a UK pension or annuity of some kind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scuffythetugboat Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 Because you cannot if you have PR status I understand. Assume you are only on a temporary visa. I'm a citizen, once you pass your preservation age you can withdraw your super provided you retire from the workforce. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gbye grey sky Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 The OP is over 60 so could cash in their super any time with no penalties. Yes, sorry, forgot they said they were in their 60s. I would think though that you need to be pretty certain that you will not be returning to Oz as cashing in Super does burn a bridge a bit, tax-wise. Also if you invest it in a UK pension any annuity will also be deemed taxable income in the UK so not a massive advantage here (as would any Australian age pension). The OP does not mention their UK state pension entitlement but it will at least rise incrementally when living in the UK rather than be frozen which will be a help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest xmas lights Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 "No, not if you move the money at the same time that you move. If you leave it in Australia for several months and transfer it later, you could get charged some tax as it would be viewed as a foreign currency investment and you'd pay tax on any profit from exchange rate movements. So easier to move it at the time!" I've heard different theories on this. What if you emigrate and need to leave investments that haven't matured say fixed income bonds. Does this mean you have to pay tax once the investment matures and you repatriate the money? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 "No, not if you move the money at the same time that you move. If you leave it in Australia for several months and transfer it later, you could get charged some tax as it would be viewed as a foreign currency investment and you'd pay tax on any profit from exchange rate movements. So easier to move it at the time!" I've heard different theories on this. What if you emigrate and need to leave investments that haven't matured say fixed income bonds. Does this mean you have to pay tax once the investment matures and you repatriate the money? Yes, because by that time you'll be a UK resident and liable for tax on the profits. That's pretty clear - but the one thing I didn't think of, which a financial adviser pointed out to me, is that they could get you on it being a foreign currency investment as well. I'm not so clear as to when that would apply and when it wouldn't though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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