Are you being transferred overseas by your current UK employer or thinking of starting a new career abroad? If so, you’ll need to ascertain whether or not you’ll still be liable to pay UK tax.

By demonstrating that you are a non-UK resident for UK tax purposes, your employment income for work performed overseas won’t usually be liable to UK tax.

Once abroad, most countries will generally regard you as a non-UK resident where you work full-time overseas throughout the tax year as long as you don’t take any significant breaks from overseas work, you spend less than 91 days in the UK in the tax year and the number of days you work for more than three hours in the UK is less than 31.

Before leaving, it is highly recommended that you consider your split year tax rules and make a note of what records you should maintain. Complete a P85 form and notify HM Revenue and Customs of your departure.

A tax refund will often occur if you are in employment and leave the UK halfway through the UK tax year, breaking your UK residence. Social Security (National Insurance) can help reclaim any amount owed to you although you may have to pay social security contributions on your employment income, whether in the UK or overseas.

The new country where you are working, the period you intend to work there for and whether you are sent on a temporary assignment with your existing UK employer or not, are all factors that can affect where contributions are payable. Depending upon your circumstances, it may be possible for you to remain within the UK national insurance system and avoid paying overseas social security overseas, either using EU legislation or a reciprocal agreement that the UK has with your new country of residence.

Where EU rules or reciprocal agreements do not apply, consideration can be given to paying voluntary UK national insurance contributions to ensure an entitlement to a state retirement pension and certain other UK social security benefits are not compromised.

Should you decide to let out your property whilst working overseas, any resulting profit could be subject to UK tax and will be calculated by deducting allowable expenses from gross rents. Separate rules apply where rent is paid to landlords who are abroad for six months or more but in this situation, either your tenant or your letting agent will legally be obliged to withhold basic rate tax from the rent payable to you as well as transfer it to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) on a quarterly basis.

You will also be entitled to continue to claim a UK personal allowance in tax years throughout which you are regarded as non-UK resident for UK tax purposes provided you qualify as a British and EEA national and a citizen of the Commonwealth.

PSS International Removals can help ensure that you receive the maximum taxback refund or expenses that you may be entitled to. It’s well worth seeing what you might be owed, as the initial application only takes minutes and in 2014, the average refund for PSS clients was £1,005!

Anyone working in the UK is entitled to earn a tax-free allowance of £10,000 (2014/15 tax year) but Pay As You Earn (PAYE) tax is deducted on the assumption that the you will work the full 12 months, so the benefit of this tax-free allowance is spread over 12 months when determining monthly tax deductions. However, if you work less than 12 months in a tax year then you are entitled to claim back the PAYE tax that you have overpaid. You will also be entitled to a tax refund if you have worked under the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) system.

You may make a tax claim at any time during the financial year if you are leaving the country to travel for an extended period of time, to return home, or to emigrate, or if you have already left before the tax year has finished. What’s more, you can make a tax claim for previous years (up to four years ago), at any time.

At PSS, we aim to secure the maximum return for you in the shortest period of time and also operate on a ‘No Rebate, No Fee’ basis with commission only being deducted when the tax rebate is secured. We will also ensure that you are refunded the maximum amount possible through reviewing previous years’ tax deductions and arranging additional repayments where applicable. The amount refunded will depend entirely on your personal circumstances.

Ready to see how much tax back you’re owed with PSS?

Complete this form to get started, call 0203 137 1794 or

Here are some additional resources worth reading:

Overseas country tax guides

HM Revenue and Customs

National insurance-booklet NI38