French PM makes expat tax regime commitment

Time is fast approaching for UK taxpayers and expats with UK tax obligations to ensure they meet the 30 September 2018 deadline laid down by HMRC for the declaration of all UK tax liabilities on overseas income and assets that fall under the auspices of the Requirement to Correct (RTC) legislation, Finance (No 2) Act 2017.

Non-compliance, even if it is inadvertent, has the potential to be met with uncompromising penalties, so anyone who is any doubt about their tax obligations regarding offshore investments – if you have expat regular savings or wealth management concerns outside of the UK – should contact their financial adviser immediately as a matter of urgency.

The penalty for most breaches is 200% of the tax that has been avoided. However this may be reduced to 100% depending on the taxpayer’s perceived level of compliance. That said, the minimum is 150% in cases where disclosure has been prompted by HMRC. Larger non-disclosures may be punished by further penalty of 10%

When you move abroad to a popular expat destination, whether that’s to France, Italy, Spain, or Grand Cayman, good wealth management is key to ensuring you’ll enjoy your life abroad to the fullest.

Proper financial planning should ensure you have enough saved for retirement, but some people are always looking for ways to boost their pension pots. One of the key methods used by many expat retirees to accomplish this is by owning a UK property and renting it out.

However, expats who rely on rental profits from buy-to-let properties back home for a steady stream of income may face issues thanks to new tax changes, which apply to all landlords letting out UK property regardless of where in the world they themselves reside.