Contact

News & Insights

Income tax rise for British expats

The news adds further anxiety at an uncertain time for British expats following Britain’s decision to leave the EU.

Prime Minister Theresa May has recently attempted to create an amnesty deal for British expats living in EU countries whereby all EU migrants living in the UK (of which there are 3.3 million) would be able to remain here as long as British expats (1.2million) were able to stay in their respective countries. The deal was blocked by Angela Merkel, the Chancellor of Germany, and Donald Tusk, the President of the European Council.

Tusk’s response, which seemed to be an attack on the whole Brexit decision, was to state that the matter could only be resolved once Article 50 had been started. He added that “the decision about triggering Article 50 belongs only to the UK, which we fully respect”.

Mrs. Merkel voiced a similar stance, rejecting the Prime Minister’s attempts to instigate any kind of deal for expats before the formal commencing of Article 50.

It would appear, as Donald Tusk mentioned, that the quicker Article 50 is invoked, the quicker this time of worry will be resolved.

At such an unnerving time, professional wealth management advice has never been more valuable.

To stay up-to-date with all the current changes to QROPS and how British expats are being affected by Brexit, as well as to receive expert financial advice on your situation, contact the Blacktower team today.

This communication is for informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute, and should not be construed as, investment advice, investment recommendations or investment research. You should seek advice from a professional adviser before embarking on any financial planning activity. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the information contained in this communication is correct, we are not responsible for any errors or omissions.

Other News

Auto-Enrolment increases number of savers, but are they saving enough?

Piggy bankStatistics from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) have shown that a record number of savers are now members of workplace pension schemes.

The figures show that the proportion of employees who are contributing to a company pension has risen significantly in the five years since Auto-Enrolment (AE) began.

AE was introduced in 2012 and makes it compulsory for employers to automatically enrol all eligible employees into a pension scheme unless the employee actively opts out. An employee is eligible for AE if they are aged between 22 and the state pension age and have a salary of more than £10,000.

In 2012, prior to AE, 47 per cent of UK employees were enrolled on a company pension scheme. This figure has now risen to 73 per cent in 2017. In other words, there are over 9.5 million more people saving for their retirement than there were five years ago, and it’s mainly thanks to AE.

Read More

Spotlight On … Mark Hollingsworth – IFA

Mark HollingsworthHow / why did you get into your line of work in the financial services sector?

On leaving school aged 17, joining a bank or insurance company was a popular career choice. I spent 13 years with Standard Life, which also gave me the foundation to study and obtain advanced level financial services qualifications. I always wanted to further my career in the industry and to give direct client advice – this took me abroad in 1999 and I have never looked back since.

Read More

Select your country

Please select your country of residence so we can provide you with the most relevant information: