Overview

You may need to pay UK Income Tax on your foreign income, such as:

  • wages if you work abroad
  • foreign investment income, for example dividends and savings interest
  • rental income on overseas property
  • income from pensions held overseas

Foreign income is anything from outside England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Channel Islands and the Isle of Man are classed as foreign.

Working out if you need to pay

Whether you need to pay depends on if you’re classed as ‘resident’ in the UK for tax.

If you’re not UK resident, you will not have to pay UK tax on your foreign income.

If you’re UK resident, you’ll normally pay tax on your foreign income. But you may not have to if your permanent home (‘domicile’) is abroad.

Reporting foreign income

If you need to pay tax, you usually report your foreign income in a Self Assessment tax return. But there’s some foreign income that’s taxed differently.

If your income is taxed in more than one country

You may be able to claim tax relief if you’re taxed in more than one country.

If you’ve not yet paid tax on the foreign income, you may need to apply for a certificate of residence to prove you’re eligible for relief.