Am I taxed in the UK for the whole tax year in which I move to the UK?

Checked on 2026-10-25

Not always. If you are UK resident for the tax year you arrive in, the law treats you as resident all year unless your circumstances fit one of five arrival Cases, such as starting full-time work in the UK or making the UK your only home. Then the year is split into an overseas part and a UK part.

Key facts

What	The law says	Source
Default rule	If you are UK resident for a tax year, you are treated as resident at all times in that year	FA 2013 Sch. 45, para 2(3)
When a year is split	You are UK resident for the year and your circumstances fall within one of 8 Cases; Cases 4 to 8 cover arrival in the UK	FA 2013 Sch. 45, para 43
Case 4	Starting to have a home in the UK only: you were not resident the previous tax year, from a day in the year all your homes are in the UK for the rest of the year, and before that day you do not have sufficient UK ties	FA 2013 Sch. 45, para 47
Case 5	Starting full-time work in the UK: you were not resident the previous tax year, a 365-day period of full-time UK work starts in the year, and before it starts you do not have sufficient UK ties	FA 2013 Sch. 45, para 48
Case 6	Ceasing full-time work overseas: you were non-resident the previous year because you worked full-time overseas, and resident in one or more of the 4 tax years before that	FA 2013 Sch. 45, para 49
Case 7	You move to the UK to keep living with a partner who falls within Case 6	FA 2013 Sch. 45, para 50
Case 8	Starting to have a home in the UK: you were not resident the previous tax year, you get a UK home and keep it for the rest of the year and the whole next year, and you are resident for the next year	FA 2013 Sch. 45, para 51
What the split does	The year is split into a non-resident (overseas) part and a resident (UK) part	GOV.UK, UK residence and tax; HMRC, OWR guidance

What the law says

The statutory residence test works by whole tax years (6 April to 5 April). Paragraph 2(3) of Schedule 45 treats someone who is resident “for” a tax year as resident at all times in it. Part 3 of the Schedule relaxes this for a split year. Paragraph 40 says the relaxation works through special charging rules, and does not change your residence status for the year.

A year can only be split if you are UK resident for that year. So the first step is the statutory residence test; split year treatment only matters if the test makes you resident in the year you arrive.

The arrival Cases in plain terms

Case 4 fits someone whose only home becomes a UK home part-way through the year.
Case 5 fits someone who starts full-time work in the UK. The law measures full-time work over 365 days, with no significant breaks and at least 75% of workdays of more than 3 hours spent working in the UK.
Case 6 fits a returning UK resident who had been working full-time abroad. Case 7 fits their partner who moves with them.
Case 8 fits someone who starts having a UK home (not necessarily their only home) and keeps it for the rest of that year and the whole following year.

Cases 4, 5 and 8 also require that you did not have sufficient UK ties in the part of the year before the relevant day, with the day thresholds reduced in proportion to the shorter period.

What the guidance says

GOV.UK says that when you move to the UK, the tax year is usually split in two, so you only pay UK tax on foreign income based on the time you were living here. HMRC’s Overseas Workday Relief guidance says the overseas part of a split year is the part when you are charged to UK tax as if you were not UK resident. GOV.UK also says you will not get split-year treatment if you live abroad for less than a full tax year before returning to the UK, and that you need to state which split-year “case” applies in your Self Assessment tax return.

Whether you are resident at all: the statutory residence test (FA 2013 Sch. 45, Part 1).
Where the split falls: for Case 4 the overseas part is the part of the year before your only home becomes a UK home; for Case 5 it is the part before the 365-day period of UK work begins (FA 2013 Sch. 45, para 53). If more than one Case applies, paragraphs 54 and 55 say which has priority.

Sources

Finance Act 2013, Schedule 45, Part 1, para 2: residence for the whole tax year (legislation.gov.uk, revised text) checked 2026-10-25
Finance Act 2013, Schedule 45, Part 3: split year treatment, paras 39–51 (legislation.gov.uk, revised text) checked 2026-10-25
GOV.UK: Tax on foreign income, UK residence and tax (Your residence status when you move) checked 2026-10-25
HMRC: Globally mobile employees, Overseas Workday Relief (section 'OWR and split year') checked 2026-10-25

Change history

2026-10-25: Page created

This is general information, not legal advice, and Lumen is not a law firm. Rules change and offices differ: check the official sources above before you act. Found something wrong or out of date? Write to support@lumen.observer.