Sfhflint

I moved to the US as a 9 year old but have been looking at moving back since I was 14. I am now 23 and believe I am now financially capable of moving back. I have been doing on and off research for years but don’t really know where to start when it comes to becoming a full-time UK resident again. If anyone knows where my best place to start or has any advice please let me know. Thank you

spouse of scouse

Hi and welcome to BE.

As long as you're a British citizen the only 'official' thing you need to move back is your British passport. Book your flight, land, and that's it.

The practicalities will take a bit more effort. Obviously, you'll need somewhere to live and enough funds to sustain yourself until you find work. As a British citizen, you'll be able to use NHS services immediately, so register with your local GP practice.

You will probably have already been allocated an NI number, I don't know how to check that but I'm sure someone else will.

There'll be others along who'll be able to give you further pointers and advice. Best of luck with your move.

SanDiegogirl

As said if you have a British passport there are no immigration issues to go through; you just buy your ticket and move over.
Again, you have to find a job and fund yourself while doing so.
You'll be eligible for the NHS
You'll have no credit history so expect to pay more for deposits etc, and finance plans.

Sfhflint

This is great news! I’ve been led to believe there would be a lot more admin involved. I’ll have to talk to my parents to see if I was ever issued a NI number. I think the majority of the work now will be on the US side. Thanks so much for your help.

durham_lad

Both of our children were in the same situation. We took them to the USA when they were aged 4 and 6 and they recently moved back in their late 30s. In both cases they did not have a NI number but it is extremely to apply for and get one. Our daughter did this completely online last year.

To check to see if you have a NI number or to apply for one you can go here.

https://www.gov.uk/lost-national-insurance-number

To apply for one you have to be resident in the UK and looking for work, as the NI number is only used to keep track of your State pension.

https://www.gov.uk/apply-national-insurance-number

Pulaski

I assume.

durham_lad

Thanks.

BritInParis

If your parents claimed Child Benefit for you then you should have been allocated a NINO but it is easy to obtain one if not as others have mentioned. Other than making sure you have a valid British passport moving back to the UK from overseas is essentially the same as moving within the UK. There is nothing you are legally required to do per se but registering to vote, registering with your local NHS GP and opening a current account should be top of your admin list.

Your two biggest potential headaches will be a lack of credit history which will initially affect your ability to rent a property and obtaining a UK driving licence should you wish to drive. You will be able to drive on your US licence for up to 12 months but after that you’ll need to pass a UK driving test in order to continue driving which is relatively a lot tougher than the average US state driving test.

Pulaski

This is very good advice, but I would add: get started on preparing for a driving test ASAP, with some lessons to teach you what you will need, as a UK driving test is highly structured, with a number of set-piece maneuvers, and nothing like a US test which AFAICT only requires you to not kill anyone

The reason to get started early is to leave time for several tests if necessary before your US licence validity runs out. The pass rate for driving tests in the UK is about 50%, whether it's your first test or your tenth, so there is about a 1:8 chance that you could fail three tests and need to take a fourth. IIRC you have to wait 30 days between tests.

durham_lad

Our daughter was freaking out a few months ago when she took her test. She kept getting texts from the driving authorities reminding her to have practiced with an instructor and that the pass rate at the Test Center was only 50%.

Pulaski

The pass rate at every test centre is only about 50%.

If there is any variability, it's not much.

durham_lad

I was agreeing with you and adding the fact that the dvla stress this statistic to the folks taking a test to encourage them to take lessons and practice hard.

Our daughter looked it up and there are many test centers with much higher pass rates, but none anywhere close to us. Alnwick, about 60 miles from us has a pass rate of 69%. Most however are in Scotland.

The 20 UK driving test centers with the highest first-time pass rates

• Peebles, Scotland - 78.1%
• Hawick, Scotland - 76.8%
• Kelso, Scotland - 75.8%
• Arbroath, Scotland - 73.2%
• Montrose, Scotland - 73.0%
• Kendal (Oxenholme Road), Scotland - 69.7%
• Forfar, Scotland - 69.5%
• Alnwick - England - 69.2%

https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/...-revealed.html

https://www.gov.uk/government/statis...by-test-centre

BritInParis

Without checking I would hazard a guess that those areas have some of the lowest traffic levels in the country. Easier to pass your test when you’re not worrying anyone else on the road.

Pulaski

So Scotland, Scotland, Scotland, Scotland, Scotland, .... and almost Scotland.

BTW I recognized you were agreeing with me and hadn't intended my post to suggest otherwise.

durham_lad

My thoughts as well.