Your UK tax residency status determines how much of your worldwide income and gains are subject to UK tax. Before 2013, residence was determined by a complex mix of case law. The Statutory Residence Test (SRT), introduced in Finance Act 2013, provides a clearer framework — though it remains complex in practice.
Why Residence Matters
UK residents are generally liable to UK income tax and Capital Gains Tax on their worldwide income and gains. Non-UK residents are only liable on their UK-source income and (since 2015 for residential property and 2019 for commercial property) on UK property gains. Getting your residence status wrong can mean paying too much tax — or not enough, which HMRC will pursue.
The SRT: Three Steps
Step 1: Automatic Non-Residence Tests
You are automatically not UK resident if: you were not UK resident in the previous 3 tax years and spend fewer than 46 days in the UK in the current year; you were UK resident in at least one of the previous 3 tax years and spend fewer than 16 days in the UK; you work abroad full-time (at least 35 hours per week averaged) with no more than 30 days of UK work and fewer than 91 days in the UK total.
Step 2: Automatic Residence Tests
You are automatically UK resident if: you spend 183 or more days in the UK; you have a UK home (and no overseas home) and spend at least 30 days there; you work full-time in the UK for at least 365 days.
Step 3: The Sufficient Ties Test
If you are not automatically resident or non-resident, you assess UK ties: family tie (resident spouse or minor children in the UK); accommodation tie (you have accessible UK accommodation); work tie (work in UK for 40 or more days); 90-day tie (you spent 90+ days in the UK in either of the previous 2 tax years); country tie (if previously resident — the UK is the country in which you spend the most days). The more ties you have, the fewer UK days before you become resident: 16–45 days with 4 ties means resident; fewer ties permit more days without UK residency applying.
Split Year Treatment
If you arrive in or depart from the UK during a tax year, split year treatment may apply — dividing the tax year into a UK resident period and a non-resident period. This prevents double taxation in the year of arrival or departure. Split year cases must be reported on your Self-Assessment return.
Domicile
Domicile is a separate concept from residence. Your domicile of origin is typically your father's domicile at birth. It can only be changed with strong intent. Non-UK domiciled individuals living in the UK may have been able to use the remittance basis — paying UK tax only on foreign income and gains remitted to the UK. However, the non-dom remittance basis rules are being abolished and replaced from April 2025, so take specialist advice if relevant.