Should I Keep My UK Bank Account Open While I’m Abroad?

In answer to many an expat’s questions about UK versus offshore bank accounts, here’s a guide to the bank account information you need

If you’re moving abroad permanently or perhaps just on assignment for a few months or years you’re probably wondering whether you can keep your UK bank account open and operational.  Perhaps you’re aware that you can keep your account open but you’re wondering whether it will be of benefit to you.  Maybe you’ve heard that an offshore account would be better once you expatriate.

Your confusion may be compounded when you speak to other expats because there is seemingly actually no one definitive answer as to how you should proceed when it comes to banking when you live abroad!

But don’t worry, because all of your questions and concerns are answered in this straightforward guide to managing bank accounts when you’re living abroad.  We don’t claim to be experts unlike the banks out there trying to sell the benefits of their own particular bank accounts (!), but at the same time we do have plenty of pithy advice built upon the solid fundamentals of common sense and personal experience.

Should you keep your UK bank account open when you expatriate?

It can make a huge amount of sense to keep your UK personal bank account open and operational when you move abroad if you ever have even the tiniest inclination to one day return to live in Britain.  Ensure that you’re allowed to keep your account open once you move abroad – usually you are but I am sure there’s the odd bank out there which has issue with overseas account holders – and then even if you only keep a tiny amount on deposit in that account you will at least not have to go through the hassle of applying again for an account if ever you repatriate.  Applying for an account after you’ve lived outside the UK for many years can be very complicated indeed.  You come up against all sort of anti-money laundering issues, not to mention tonnes of required bureaucracy.  By retaining an account you avoid all of these hassles and you have some form of official presence in the UK when it comes to re-establishing your credit rating and so on.

You may well find that you still have financial obligations in the UK even after you move abroad.  Perhaps you have retained a property and have outgoings on that – alternatively perhaps you have a rental property that you earn an income from and your tenants need a British bank account to pay their rent into.  Either way a UK bank account could well be the best option for these sorts of transactions.

The only time it may make sense for you to close your UK bank account is if you are attempting to change your country of domicile from Britain to wherever you have expatriated to and taken up residency.  To change your nation of domicile is complicated and difficult and you should take advice before attempting to do so.  But ultimately you will have to prove you have severed all ties with the UK if you want to turn your back on your status of British domicile – therefore you are likely to be told to close your account.  As stated however, take advice before proceeding.

Do you need an offshore bank account?

Many people think an offshore bank account is the sort of account money is laundered through by millionaire tax evaders – when in reality an offshore bank account is a very simple tool for expats and those who have homes abroad or who travel overseas regularly and often.  A basic offshore bank account is nothing more than a personal account located somewhere other than in your former nation of domicile or your current nation of residence!  It’s an account that offers the holder the flexibility they need now that they live abroad for example.  It may allow you to transact in multiple currencies without being hit by ridiculous transaction fees, it’s likely to be an account you can access from ATMs all over the world, perhaps without fees, and it is also highly likely to be an account you can manage from anywhere in the world via the phone or over the Internet.

If you’re moving abroad and are likely to be paid in one currency and perhaps spend in another, or you’re moving abroad and your UK bank account won’t be ideal for your employer to pay into, or perhaps you’d prefer to keep your salary out of the UK and out of your new nation of residence, an offshore bank account can make perfect sense.  All banks are well aware that most expats nowadays require a basic and flexible offshore account – and so it can make a lot of sense for you to look at your options either before you move abroad or once you have relocated.