jrance1975

Hello,

I'm moving back to England next year after ten years in the US and I have a couple of questions. Firstly, about credit. Obviously we'll have no credit in England. I have a job already (I'm an author with a UK publisher) but we're going to need to buy a car when we get there. We'll have the money to buy a car outright, but it would be better if we got a loan. Is there anyway you can get a loan if you have an address and a job, but no credit history as you've just moved back?

Secondly, I have two young children and the older one will be 5 and starting school. We aren't moving until June, so what should I do straight away when I get there (or before) to get her into school?

Lastly, is there a check-list of things you need to do when you get back? I probably sound a bit unprepared and I probably am, but I left England in my twenties and never owned a house or drove a car, so all of the 'adult' stuff I have to do now I never did and my wife is American, so she has no idea either.

Any help is always appreciated. Thanks so much.

Cheers!

Snap Shot

Credit. That's a tough one. You could ask at the car dealer's if they offer finance to purchase a vehicle. Just use your instinct or intuition. There's a number of finance companies in Britain that will loan money if you don't mind paying their interest rate. Ask at the banks too, regarding a loan, you could be pleasantly surprised. As your salary is being paid into an account, you could refer to that when requesting a loan. I understand pay day loans are bad news i.e. ridiculously high interest rates and they don't really want you to pay back the principal sum. If you are living in rented accommodation in Britain, that can be considered a credit risk. Could you ask your boss for a credit reference regarding a loan ? Or/and your landlord.

School. I don't have kids, however, here's my best guess: Approach the school you want and ask if you child could start in June. Explain what your circumstances are. It might be less stress to let your children acclimatise without having to start at a new school, new uniform, new timetable etc. However, they could start to make friends prior to the school holidays starting. Otherwise the summer might drag. British school terms end in late July. You probably remember this !

Other stuff. Voters roll, contact the local authority of where you will live and ask how to be put on the voters roll. This will help to identify you re: credit, school places etc.

Car, tax disc is proof you've paid the road tax for the vehicle and should be displayed in the bottom right or is it left, of the interior of the windscreen. These are checked at random by the police who have the power to impound and crush your car if this has not been paid. Car insurance is mandatory. Speak to your US car insurance company before you come to UK. I understand Americans can't get car insurance in Britain. I don't know how that works for you. However, you will need proof of your car insurance, i.e claim history for your prospective British car insurance company as this will affect your premium. M.O.T. is the acronym for Ministry of Transport. It's the annual document required for your car to prove the vehicle has had basic safety checks. You will need to book your car into a garage that provides M.O.T.'s. If your car fails it's M.O.T. you will need to pay to get things put right and then get the M.O.T. done on the car. You will need to show your M.O.T. and I think car insurance documents to get the tax disc that can be purchased at the Post Office or on-line.

National Insurance Number - this is required so that you are in the system. Your income tax is deducted, any government benefits you could claim. It might be relevant for Child Benefit claims too. Do you have reference of your N.I.No. ? Ask at the Job Centre in your local town where you will be living in Britain how you request a N.I.No. Or, Google it.

Get registered at a Doctor's, a dentist etc.

This is not an exhaustive list, it's just a few things to help get into the, 'system' in Britain.

mikelincs

First things are, get on the Electoral roll, just ring local authority and ask for the form,, get family registered with GP, get a bank account. Credit checks always involve checking the electoral roll, tells them you are a resident of somewhere. A utility bill, electricity, gas, council tax, water is always a useful document as it has name and address on. If you are renting, then the rental agreement is useful as well. Your wife and children will need to get NHS numbers, the local Health centre should organise this. Children are already British citizens, so your birth cert and thiers together will help if they want to check.

roaringmouse

You can fill in details online and print out the form from this Electoral Commission website

brits1

Hi,

We did not have any credit ratings either after nearly 13 years overseas and we have had no problems. We opened a bank account whilst overseas, when we looked at rental homes the agent just asked for references and to be fair we did not need anything where we needed a credit check as we have no bought anything on H.P etc but our friends have and they also did not have any problems, like other have mentioned when back in the UK join a local GP etc. Good luck

jrance1975

Thanks so much. How do I go about opening a bank account from overseas? This would probably be really helpful?

dunroving

If you have HSBC where you currently live you could open an HSBC account there. Then they will open an HSBC account in the UK. At least, other people have reported they did this without any problems.

If you don't like HSBC, after you have been back a while you could open an account with another bank.

[Edited to add: It is not straightforward to open a UK bank account when you don't live here - I think it's something to do with new money-laundering regulations. Some people have managed it, though]

lf1

We opened one in Canada with HSBC. They arranged to open an UK account including debit and credit cards based on our Cdn credit history. It made it very easy to transfer Cdn fund to Sterling. I still use the accounts and plan to keep the Cdn one open so that Cdn pensions (when that day comes) can paid into the Cdn fund account.

I second getting a copy of your claims history from your insurer. The more information, in your favour, that you can provide an insurer the better. In addition, I would recommend getting a copy of driving record (lists convictions, speeding tickets etc or lack thereof) from the appropriate authority. I provided both of these documents to my insurer in the UK and they made a big difference, especially as Imwas driving on a foreign licence. Most of the online insurers are not interested in insuring foreign licensed drivers.

I'll assume you have a US driving licence. If is, so you will need to take written & road tests in the UK. You can drive on your US lic. for 12 mths. I am not an expert on the US v UK DL, so if I have posted something incorrect, hopefully someone else will be along to correct me.

Best of luck with your move.

jrance1975

Cheers, so very useful