Non-dom tax regime abolished: what’s next?

Published on 11th March 2024Author: Fiona Clark - Partner

In a move that has swept away a system that has existed in some form since the late 1700s, the Chancellor announced yesterday that the non-dom tax regime will be abolished with effect from April 2025. A residence based regime will take its place.

The proposed regime is intended to put the UK on a competitive footing with other jurisdictions that offer tax advantaged regimes for new residents from overseas. There is full relief from UK tax for foreign income and gains (FIGs) that new arrivals receive in their first 4 years of residence. This contrasts with the 'lump sum' regime in Italy, for example, where new residents pay a fixed sum of EUR100,000 per annum on all overseas income. However, the proposed 4 year tax advantaged period is not as long as some had been hoping for.

When previous changes to the non-dom tax regime were introduced in 2008, 2015 and 2017, there were extensive consultations with the professions before the measures were finalised. In this instance, it is notable that there is only a limited consultation to be held in relation to proposed IHT changes.

It is important to keep in mind that a General Election will have to take place before these measures are due to come into effect. We don't, as yet, have any detail of the regime Labour is proposing for non-doms if elected. We are also awaiting draft legislation concerning the new proposals announced on Budget Day.

It would be sensible for non-doms to contact their advisers now to review their position and consider possible action to be taken. However, it would seem prudent to wait at least until we have sight of draft legislation, a date for the election and details of Labour's proposals, before doing anything especially regarding setting up or dismantling offshore structures.

In the meantime, the main elements of the proposed regime are:

Individuals coming to the UK from overseas will not pay tax on their foreign income and gains (FIGs) for their first four years of UK residence, as long as they have not been resident in the 10 consecutive years prior to their arrival. This is subject to a claim and the decision of whether or not to claim can be made on a yearly basis for those first four years.
From the start of the fifth year of UK residence, they will pay tax in the UK on their worldwide income and gains in the same way as a UK domiciled resident would currently.

Transitional provisions will apply as follows:

Transitional provisions will apply to non-doms moving from the remittance basis to the arising basis on 6 April 2025 so that, for 2025/26, those individuals will pay UK tax on only 50% of their foreign income - this provision does not apply to foreign gains.
Non-doms who have previously used the remittance basis prior to 6 April 2025, and are not UK domiciled or deemed domiciled at that point, can rebase personally held assets to their value as at 5 April 2019. The reasons for choosing that as the rebasing date are not known.
There will be a Temporary Repatriation Facility (TRF) for 2025/26 and 2026/27 under which previous remittance basis users will be able to elect to remit income from those remittance basis years at a special reduced rate of 12% rather than the usual income or gains rates. This only applies to personal income or gains and not to income or gains matched with offshore trust benefits received in remittance basis years.
Offshore trust protections, which effectively allow income and capital gains to roll up within the trust without being subject to UK tax until distribution to UK resident beneficiaries, will no longer apply. Trust income and gains arising, and income and capital gains matched to offshore trust distributions, will be exempt from UK tax for the first four years of residence. From the fifth year, FIGs arising in settlor interested offshore trusts will be taxed on UK resident settlors as they arise. Pre-April 2025 income and gains will only be subject to UK tax when matched to a distribution to a UK resident beneficiary.
IHT will also move to a residence based regime where new residents will become subject to IHT on their worldwide assets once they have been resident in the UK for 10 years, a 10 year 'tail' would apply. A consultation is to be held on the IHT reforms, in contrast to the other measures announced above.
It has been confirmed that non-UK assets settled into a trust by non-UK domiciled settlors prior to 6 April 2025 will remain outside the scope of IHT, so there is an opportunity for non-doms to settle offshore trusts prior to April 2025 to benefit from longer term IHT protection even if the current beneficial income and capital gains regime is lost.