What is the Temporary Repatriation Facility and when does it end?

The TRF lets former remittance-basis users designate pre-April 2025 foreign income and gains and bring them to the UK at a flat 12% (designations in 2025/26 and 2026/27) or 15% (2027/28). Designations must be made by 5 April 2028. For many former non-doms it is the cheapest clean-up window they will ever see.

How many days can I spend in the UK after leaving?

It depends on your ties. The statutory residence test combines day counts with ties (home, family, work, 90-day history). Depending on how many ties you keep, the safe ceiling can be as low as 16 days or as high as 182. An advisor models your specific ties before you commit to a travel pattern.

How much does advice for a UK exit cost?

London private-client firms typically charge several hundred pounds per hour, with full exit plans running into five figures. Zero Tax charges $449 USD for a strategy consultation with a written signed opinion, and quotes implementation separately.

Advisory · United Kingdom leavers

International tax advisor for UK leavers: what to look for (and what it costs)

Q: Does the UK have an exit tax?

Not a general one, but the temporary non-residence rules act like a deferred exit tax: if you return within 5 years, gains realized and certain income received while away become taxable on return. A UK exit is planned around the statutory residence test, split-year treatment and that five-year clock.

Zero Tax · Updated July 2026 · 8 min read

A London consultant moved to Dubai in June, kept his flat "just in case", flew back for client meetings twice a month and sold his company shares in November, confident he was gone. The statutory residence test disagreed: too many ties, too many days. HMRC taxed the whole year, gain included. Leaving the UK is not an address change. It is a test you either pass or fail, and the exam questions were published in advance.

Why UK exits got serious after 2025

The abolition of the non-dom regime in April 2025 turned the UK into a worldwide-taxation country for anyone resident, full stop. The replacement FIG regime helps arrivals (4 years of relief on foreign income and gains for new residents), not leavers. For those heading out, three mechanisms decide everything:

The statutory residence test (SRT). A mechanical combination of days and ties (home, family, work, 90-day history). It rewards clean breaks and punishes "commuter exits". Depending on your ties, your safe allowance can be 16, 45, 90 or up to 182 days; guessing which is not a strategy.
Split-year treatment. In qualifying cases the exit year divides into a UK part and an overseas part, so you stop being taxed on worldwide income mid-year rather than waiting for 6 April. Qualifying is conditional; sequencing the home sale, the new lease and the start of full-time work abroad decides it.
Temporary non-residence. The UK's deferred exit tax: return within 5 years and gains you realized while away (plus certain dividends and income) are taxed as if you never left. The five-year clock shapes when you can sell your company and when you can come home.

The window closing in April 2028: if you ever used the remittance basis as a non-dom, the Temporary Repatriation Facility lets you designate pre-April 2025 foreign income and gains and bring them onshore at 12% (designations in 2025/26 and 2026/27) rising to 15% in 2027/28, with designations closing 5 April 2028. Against alternative rates up to 45%, this is the cheapest clean-up most former non-doms will ever be offered. Leavers often forget the TRF applies to them too: designating before you go can be the difference between a tidy exit and a frozen offshore pot.

What a good advisor for UK leavers actually does

1. Models your SRT position before you move

Counts your realistic UK days, maps your ties, and tells you which band you must stay within, including the anti-avoidance day-counting traps (deeming rules, transit days, exceptional circumstances).

2. Sequences the exit year

Split-year eligibility, the right order for leaving employment, starting work abroad, disposing of the home, and the timing of dividends and bonuses so they fall on the right side of the line.

3. Plans disposals around the five-year rule

If a company sale or large gain is coming, the calendar of your non-residence has to cover it with margin. This single decision often dwarfs everything else in the plan.

4. Coordinates the destination

UAE, Portugal, Italy, Cyprus, Singapore: each pairs differently with UK-source income you keep (rent, dividends, pensions) via the relevant treaty, withholding rules and the destination regime. UK rental income stays UK-taxable; UK dividends generally become treaty business.

5. Handles what stays behind

The UK company you still own, ATED and non-resident landlord registration for property, national insurance, pension access from abroad, and inheritance tax: after the 2025 reforms IHT follows long-term residence rather than domicile, and long-term UK residents remain in scope for years after leaving (a tail worth mapping precisely for your dates).

Get your exit plan before you book the flight

Our AI co-founder models your ties, day budget, disposals and destination, free. If your case warrants it, the strategy consultation with a written signed opinion is $449 USD, implementation quoted per project.

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What the market charges in 2026

Provider	Typical pricing	Best for
London private-client firms	GBP 400-900 per hour; exit plans routinely five figures	Complex trusts, IHT-heavy estates
Global relocation boutiques	From $15,000-30,000 USD per plan	HNW who want end-to-end concierge
High-street accountants	GBP 1,000-3,000	Simple returns; rarely model SRT edge cases or treaties
Zero Tax	Free AI diagnosis; $449 USD strategy consultation with written signed opinion; implementation quoted per project	Founders and professionals who need the strategy nailed before spending on execution

Red flags when choosing your advisor

They talk about "183 days" without mentioning the SRT ties tables: the UK abandoned the simple day count in 2013.
They have no view on the five-year temporary non-residence rule and your planned disposals.
They never ask about the TRF window even though you were a remittance-basis user.
They sell the destination (a Dubai visa, a Portuguese NIF) before the UK side is modeled.
Nothing arrives in writing that another professional could audit.

Frequently asked questions

Does the UK have an exit tax?

No general exit tax, but the temporary non-residence rules tax gains realized during absences shorter than 5 years upon return, which works like a deferred one.

What is the TRF and when does it end?

A flat 12% (2025/26, 2026/27) or 15% (2027/28) rate to designate and repatriate pre-April 2025 foreign income and gains of former remittance-basis users. Designations close 5 April 2028.

How many UK days can I keep after leaving?

Between 16 and 182 depending on your ties under the SRT. Model it before committing to a travel pattern.

How much does a UK exit plan cost?

London firms bill hundreds per hour and five figures per plan. Zero Tax: $449 USD for the strategy consultation with a written signed opinion.

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Keep reading

Leaving the UK after the non-dom abolition: your realistic options Moving from the UK to Dubai: the complete tax playbook How much it really costs to change your tax residency

This content is informational and educational. It is not legal or tax advice. Verify current regulations and consult a specialist about your case before making decisions.