Leaving the UK checklist: what to do before you move

Work backwards from a realistic departure date

Use this checklist if you currently live in the UK and are preparing to live or work abroad. The 90-day sequence is a planning aid. Immigration, tax and insurance deadlines come from the relevant authority or provider. Start with the items that could change whether the move can happen.

Treat an unresolved work permission or insurance gap as a dependency to resolve before travel. A destination allowing visitors does not by itself answer whether you can work there.

Make four specific checks before changing your address

• Employer: get written agreement about where you will work, payroll handling and planned UK workdays. The company’s location alone does not describe where your duties occur.
• Home: record when it will cease to be available to you. If letting it, confirm insurance, lender requirements and who handles rent records.
• Healthcare: check destination entitlement and any period needing private cover. An EHIC or GHIC is not a general replacement for healthcare arrangements when relocating.
• Accounts: ask banks, brokers and pension providers whether they can service your new country and which tax-residence details they require.

Official reference: NHS planning healthcare when moving abroad.

For an existing ISA, tell the provider when you stop being UK resident. Non-residents generally cannot subscribe, subject to the Crown employee and spouse/civil-partner exception. You can normally keep the existing ISA and its UK relief; ask separately how the destination treats it.

Official reference: GOV.UK ISA rules abroad.

Choose the right HMRC route

If you do not normally file Self Assessment, HMRC directs leavers to P85, with relevant P45 parts if available. If you normally file, use the residence pages, SA109, with your return through a supported submission route. Working abroad full-time for a UK employer for at least a complete tax year is a specific case where P85 can also be required alongside Self Assessment.

P85 tells HMRC about the move. It does not replace checking residence under the Statutory Residence Test. Read the UK residency guide if your family, home or work will remain connected to the UK.

Official reference: HMRC: how to tell us you are leaving.

Example: a move with a retained flat

If the tenancy is delayed, the flat may remain available for longer than expected. If UK meetings increase, the workday record changes. Update both facts before relying on the original residence assessment. For ongoing rent, use the non-resident landlord explanation.

Your next step: choose three actions for this week

Write one action per line with an owner, due date, dependency and evidence of completion. For example: “Ask payroll to confirm how UK workdays will be recorded by Friday.” Keep a short unresolved-questions list alongside it.

If you have already moved, begin with what is overdue or uncertain: HMRC notification, return submission, rent withholding, coverage or unrecorded UK visits. Reconstruct dates from reliable records instead of guessing. Use the worksheet below privately; no account or upload is needed.