Working abroad: UK Income Tax, split years and non-doms

Working abroad can take you out of UK Income Tax entirely, or leave you taxable in both countries, depending on how long you go, how many days you come back and how the move is structured. This guide covers UK residents going overseas and people arriving in the UK from abroad, including the changes that ended the non-dom regime in April 2025.

Leaving the UK to work abroad

The full-time work abroad test

You are automatically non-resident for a tax year if you:

• work full-time overseas (an average of at least 35 hours a week, with no significant breaks) throughout the tax year
• spend fewer than 91 days in the UK in the tax year
• work in the UK for more than three hours on no more than 30 days

As a non-resident, you are not taxed in the UK on pay for work done abroad. You remain taxable on UK income such as rent from your UK home; see Income Tax for non-UK residents.

If you do not meet this test, the other parts of the Statutory Residence Test decide your status, based on days spent in the UK and ties such as family, accommodation and work.

Split-year treatment

In the tax year you leave, you would normally be resident for the whole year. Split-year treatment can divide it, so that you are taxed as a UK resident only up to the day before you start full-time work abroad. Conditions include meeting the full-time work abroad test for the period from the start of the overseas work to the end of the tax year. A similar rule applies when you return.

Coming back within five years

If you were UK resident in at least four of the seven tax years before you left, and you return within five years, some income and gains received while abroad, such as gains on assets you owned before leaving and certain dividends from close companies, can be taxed in the year you return. Plan large disposals carefully if your stay overseas may be short.

National Insurance while abroad

National Insurance depends on where you work and on agreements between the UK and the other country:

• EU, EEA and Switzerland: if your UK employer posts you there temporarily, usually for up to two years, you can stay in UK National Insurance with an A1 or certificate of coverage.
• Countries with a social security agreement, such as the USA, Canada and Japan: similar arrangements may let you stay in UK National Insurance.
• Other countries: if your employer is in the UK and you were living in the UK before the posting, you normally pay Class 1 National Insurance for the first 52 weeks.

To protect your UK State Pension while abroad you may be able to pay voluntary contributions, but the rules tightened from 6 April 2026: voluntary Class 2 is no longer available for periods abroad for employees and most self-employed people, and the conditions for Class 3 changed. See voluntary National Insurance contributions.

Coming to work in the UK

Residence from day one?

If you arrive to work full-time in the UK, you may be resident under the full-time UK work test or the 183-day test. Split-year treatment can make you non-resident for the part of the tax year before you arrived, so earlier foreign income is not taxed.

The end of non-dom status

Before 6 April 2025, UK residents who were domiciled abroad could use the remittance basis, paying UK tax on foreign income and gains only if they brought them into the UK. From 6 April 2025:

• domicile is no longer relevant to Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax
• the remittance basis has been abolished
• Inheritance Tax is based on long-term residence instead of domicile

The 4-year foreign income and gains regime

New arrivals who were non-resident for at least ten consecutive tax years before arriving can claim, for their first four tax years of UK residence, not to pay UK tax on foreign income and gains, whether or not they bring them to the UK. Claiming costs the Personal Allowance and the Capital Gains Tax annual exempt amount for that year. See tax on foreign income.

Overseas Workday Relief

Employees who qualify for the 4-year regime can also claim Overseas Workday Relief on pay for work done outside the UK in those years. From April 2025 the relief:

• is available for up to four tax years
• no longer requires the earnings to be kept outside the UK
• is capped at the lower of £300,000 or 30% of qualifying employment income a year

Double taxation

If you are taxed in both the UK and another country on the same income, a double taxation agreement usually gives one country the main right to tax and requires the other to give credit. Where there is no treaty, the UK still gives unilateral credit for foreign tax on foreign income. Keep evidence of foreign tax paid, as you will need it to claim.

Practical checklist before you go

• Count your UK days carefully each tax year and keep travel records.
• Check whether you meet the full-time work abroad test, and how many UK workdays you can have.
• Tell HMRC you are leaving, usually through your Self Assessment return or form P85 if you are leaving employment.
• Decide what to do with your UK home: letting it brings in the Non-Resident Landlord Scheme.
• Check your National Insurance position and State Pension record.

Frequently asked questions

Do I pay UK tax if I work abroad for a year?

If you work full-time abroad for a complete tax year, spend fewer than 91 days in the UK and work in the UK on no more than 30 days, you are normally non-resident and your overseas pay is not taxed in the UK.

What is split-year treatment?

A rule that divides the tax year in which you leave or arrive into a UK part and an overseas part, so you are only taxed as a UK resident for the UK part. You must meet specific conditions.

Does non-dom status still exist?

Not for Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax. The remittance basis ended on 5 April 2025 and was replaced by the 4-year foreign income and gains regime for recent arrivals.

Do I still pay National Insurance if my employer sends me abroad?

Often yes, for a limited period, depending on the country and whether there is a social security agreement with the UK.