Getting ready to leave the UK and move to Canada
 

Hi all,

I recently activated/declared permanent residency and have returned to the UK. We are targeting end of August this year to move to Toronto. As such, I'm starting to think about the various tasks I need to do before we leave the UK. Is there a checklist posted on the forum at all?

The tasks I've noted so far are:

- Notify HMRC that we are leaving the country
- Notify local council
- Get medical records / determine what is needed for prescription medication to continue in Canada
- Determine and make voluntary contributions to maintain state pension

Is there anything else I need to do, or should consider doing before we leave?

Additionally on our move to Canada, is there anything else other than the below I need to do immediately i.e.

- Get social security number
- Exchange driving licence
- Register for healthcare

Many thanks in advance for your help and advice!

Re: Getting ready to leave the UK and move to Canada
 

https://britishexpats.com/wiki/Departure_To_Do_List_(UK_to_Canada)

https://britishexpats.com/wiki/Arriv...Do_List-Canada

HTH.

Edit: for some reason the first link isn't working, no idea why, have copied and pasted it several times! But you can either search the Wiki for it, or there is a link to it at the bottom of the second article (which is working fine).

Re: Getting ready to leave the UK and move to Canada
 

Thanks christmasoompa that is awesome!

Re: Getting ready to leave the UK and move to Canada
 

Wow! Thanks a very comprehensive list.
One thing that I thought of recently - couldn’t see it on list but it may not be relevant - is to get a valuation of your house, if you own it, at the time you leave, for tax purposes.

And I carried a file of paperwork I really didn’t want to lose - like birth and marriage certificates, house insurance and wills etc. We moved over 10 years ago so less was readily available on line but I found it comforting having copies or originals of certain things with me, rather than in a container somewhere in the Atlantic.

Re: Getting ready to leave the UK and move to Canada
 

Twitcher1958 regarding the valuation of the house for tax purposes; apologies if this is a silly question but is this with regards to paying income tax in Canada in our first year living there? We own our house and will be putting it up for sale very soon.

Re: Getting ready to leave the UK and move to Canada
 

It's for capital gains tax purposes I believe.

Good ideas Twitcher1958 , the Wiki can be edited by all so feel free to add them if you get a mo, that would be super helpful.

Re: Getting ready to leave the UK and move to Canada
 

Yes - that was my thinking. There are tax implications for us, for example - we still have a house in the UK after 10 years and there will be Canadian tax implications when we sell, based against the base value of when we moved. I don’t think it’s the same if you sell relatively quickly but something you should investigate. I’m sure someone else with more relevant knowledge than me will comment.

Re: Getting ready to leave the UK and move to Canada
 

Determining and making contributions to enhance your UK state pension (it will "maintain" itself without contributions so long as you have at least 10 years of contributions) is something that you can only do after you have left the UK, well the making contributions part at least, so I would recommend moving that task over to your "Things to do after you arrive (non-urgent)" list.

It won't hurt you at all to wait 6 months, or even several years, before you contact the DWP International department, so I'd definitely leave that alone while you pack, move, and deal with establishing yourself after you arrive.

Re: Getting ready to leave the UK and move to Canada
 

Thanks Pulaski and fair point indeed. If you don't mind me asking, are you making contributions? If so, how easy was this to setup and maintain? Were there any considerations or implications that you would call out?

Re: Getting ready to leave the UK and move to Canada
 

We did this a couple of years ago - as Pulaski says, you don’t need to do something before you leave and you can go back about 6 years. If you’re eligible for Class 2 contributions, as we were, that’s well worth it as it’s about £160 pa compared to £750 or so. You start the process by getting a pension forecast which determines which years are missing contributions. We have found HMRC extremely helpful to talk to about this once you’re in a position to act.

https://www.gov.uk/voluntary-nationa...-contributions

Re: Getting ready to leave the UK and move to Canada
 

Yes I am, Class 2. I send them a cheque every year, after they mail be a bill/ reminder, as I still have a bank account in the UK.

I think that Twitcher has most of your questions covered, but I originally phoned up the DWP International help desk, and asked to make Class 2 contributions, and they sent me a small form to apply, which was very easy to complete. I hear that it can all be done on line these days, but do be aware that you have to apply for Class 2, and if you don't you will likely just be put on Class 3 by default. If I understand the rules correctly, being allowed to contribute Class 2 hinges on working both "immediately" before you left the UK and immediately after you left the UK i.e. in your new country of residence.

I am not sure how "immediately" gets interpreted, but I think the issue can bite a woman who was a stay-at-home-mum in the UK before she left, and/or after she leaves the UK, as well as anyone who was unemployed before they left. So even if the plan is to become a SAHM for a few years after emigrating, it might make sense for a mother to take a job in the short term, just so she can qualify for Class 2 - once you're on Class 2 that's it, it is never AFAIK reassessed.

Re: Getting ready to leave the UK and move to Canada
 

The relevant form is CF83

Re: Getting ready to leave the UK and move to Canada
 

Push the pensions centre for Class 2 N.I. contributions, you need 35 years of contributions to get the full state pension (granted you're likely have several years left to contribute yet!) You should know that UK state pensions in Canada are 'frozen' - please see and consider joining the Canadian Alliance of British Pensioners (CABP) - you do not need to be a pensioner to join! www.britishpensions.com , membership is only $25p.a. and it's a pressure group to get pensions unfrozen - they will also give you any help on what you need to do pension wise.