Question 1

Do I still pay UK tax if I move to Thailand?

Accepted Answer

Often, yes. Moving does not end UK tax by itself. The Statutory Residence Test decides your status for each tax year, and 183 or more UK days makes you automatically resident. Once you are non-resident the UK still taxes UK-source items: rental profits, gains on UK property and most UK pensions. Thailand then applies its own rules, taxing residents on Thai-source income and on foreign income remitted there. We settle the UK position first, then map each income stream against both countries.

Question 2

Will Thailand tax my UK pension?

Accepted Answer

It can, and the treaty gives less protection than people expect. The 1981 UK-Thailand Double Taxation Convention has no pensions article. UK government-service pensions are taxable only in the UK, but private, personal and company pensions are not treaty-protected, so UK tax often continues and Thailand can in principle tax what you remit. The UK State Pension is also frozen in Thailand, with no annual increases. We handle the UK side and work alongside a qualified Thai adviser on the remittance position.

Question 3

I live in Thailand and let out a flat in the UK. What do I have to file?

Accepted Answer

A UK Self Assessment return every year. The rental profit stays within UK tax regardless of where you live. Without HMRC approval your letting agent or tenant must deduct basic-rate tax from the rent. We apply on form NRL1 so you receive it gross and settle the tax through the return instead. If you later sell, the disposal must be reported within 60 days of completion, even where no tax is due. Thailand may also tax rent you remit there, with treaty relief against being taxed twice.

Question 4

I am moving to the UK from Thailand. What should I sort out before I arrive?

Accepted Answer

Your arrival date. If you were not UK resident in any of the three previous tax years, fewer than 46 UK days keeps you automatically non-resident. Above that, the automatic UK tests, home test included, precede the ties test. Arriving part way through a year, one of the five arriver split-year cases may limit UK tax on foreign income to the UK part of the year. After at least ten consecutive non-resident years, the four-year FIG regime may be open to you. We map the dates before you move.

Question 5

How much does a UK tax return cost if I live in Thailand, and can you do it all remotely?

Accepted Answer

Non-resident and expat tax returns are £550 fixed, agreed in writing before any work starts. Personal tax returns start from £350 and complex returns from £750, and advisory or project work is quoted as a fixed fee upfront. There is never an hourly rate. Everything is handled remotely, with year-round support and direct access to the adviser, so living in Thailand changes nothing about how the work is done. Start with the free 30-minute clarity call.

A Chartered Tax Adviser for the UK side of a life in Thailand

Handled for you, end to end

Guides for Thailand, if you want the detail first

Moving to Thailand from the UK: the 2026/27 tax guide

Portugal vs Dubai vs Thailand: tax for UK leavers 2026/27

Leaving the UK: a tax guide for people moving abroad

UK Statutory Residence Test (SRT) Explained

Split-Year Treatment Explained: UK Tax in the Year You Move

NRL1 Form, NRL2 and Non-Resident Landlord Tax on UK Rent

Double Tax Relief UK: How to Avoid Being Taxed Twice

Expat Self Assessment: UK Tax Returns from Abroad

Run your own numbers, before we speak

UK Statutory Residence Test Calculator

Split-Year Treatment Case Finder & 5-Year Trap Checker

Relocation Comparison

Fixed fees, agreed in advance

What this work costs

Honest answers, before you book

UK tax advice, wherever you are moving

Start with a free clarity call