gnasher80

Hi,

I have just joined after finding this fab board on google.

My dad is returning to the UK from South Africa and I am trying to understand what needs to be done. I have been searching government websites etc but just can't seem to find (or understand) the answers.

The questions I have in particular are:

1) my dad was born in the UK & has always had UK passport. Does he need to complete any VISA or certificate to return back to UK? He has been away for for over 10 years apart from odd holidays back. He will be retiring here and therefore not looking for work.

2) how can he transfer his money back to the UK? Does he have to pay any tax on this money (even though he paid tax in SA)?

3) Is it possible for him to buy a property in the UK, whilst he is still in SA? Or does he have to be in the UK to buy?

Any other info you think would be helpful, will also be greatly received.

Thank you!

robin1234

Hi gnasher80 & welcome!

Sounds like your father is a British citizen, so he just needs to arrive in Britain and go through immigration control just as he would when arriving on holiday! No visa or other paperwork needed, except a current British passport. (Once he's in the country he'll gradually need to get his portfolio of British id together so he can register with the doctor, get his bus pass etc. Deeds to the house or rental agreement, bank statements & utility bills, UK driving licence with new address on it, community tax, etc. etc...)

He should be able to transfer his money bank to bank or however else he wants to do it. Shouldn't be taxable etc. as it is post-tax funds..

Why doesn't he rent or stay with friends or family when he first comes over, then buy at his leisure after looking at properties in person? As far as I know, there is nothing to prevent a person purchasing a property from abroad, but he'd need to get someone to act for him & there is the possibility of making a hasty choice of property which he might regret later...

Jerseygirl

What Robin said.

It is possible to purchase UK property without setting foot in the UK. Everything can be done via the internet and mail/courier service. The purchaser is required to send their UK PP to the solicitor acting for him...this is to prove ID. AFAIK there is no way of getting around this as it's an anti-terrorism government rule.

dunroving

... also, if purchasing a house with a mortgage, terms may not be as good for someone living overseas (even with the intention to return).

Definitely rent before you buy, add me to the list!

- and look into a foreign exchange company like XE.com - they are often less expensive than bank exchange rates.

Panhandle

Your father wont have to pay tax on funds transfers, also like dunroving metioned, transfer you fathers funds via a forex broker, like the one mentioned or ozforex, you will save a considerable amount, they are both safe and secure.

Pom_Chch

Check out torfx and Moneycorp for money transfers. I have just transferred some money from UK abroad and got a much better deal than what my bank was offering. I decided to go with torfx in the end. Their exchange rate was not quite as good as Moneycorp but torfx seem to charge less fees so the deal worked out better. I found torfx to be offer a bit more of a personal service too.

gnasher80

Thanks everyone - that has been really helpful!

Silly question (sorry), but when/how should he transfer money? I am assuming he can only open a bank account when he gets here, so how does it work? Or is it possible to transfer money to a family members bank account here in UK before he gets here. I can't figure out the logistics of doing it??

ex brummy

Hi

Previous posters have answered most of your questions but just wanted to add another source for foreign exchange. We used Exchange4free to transfer our SA funds to UK but we still had our own bank account here. We did ours through our Financial Advisor. If your Dad is in a SA pension fund there should be a FA working for the fund who can advise and help him.

I hope all works out well for him and I do agree with other posters that he should rent or stay with friends/family and look at areas first before buying.

We came back to retire here after thirty years in SA and it went quite smoothly, don't really have any issues except the worst summer in a hundred years and the rain has really got to me but hope I'll get over it eventually.....

Good luck to your Dad.

mikelincs

He really need to transfer direct to his own bank, using a relatives bank just MAY cause problems later. There are some banks that will allow you to open an account while out of the UK, but you will have to do an internet search or hope that someone comes on who can tell you which one. One way round is to bring in the maximum cash allowed, and then open an account with that, then transfer the rest.

robin1234

He can open an account at an offshore bank in Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man. For instance, LTSB or Nationwide which also operate as high street banks in the UK. Then, when he's established in the UK, he can easily transfer the funds to the UK division of the same bank, or of course any other bank.

Or do what mikelincs says, would work too..

johnh009

Be aware that exchange control still exists in SA. However, there is an emigration allowance of R4 million per individual and R8 million per family unit. Any more than this, may need to be moved on a gradual basis prior to leaving.


http://www.cashkows.com/foreign-exch...uth-Africa.asp

gnasher80

Thanks - was not aware of this. There seem to be so many little things here and there that need to be done/considered.

All help is greatly appreciated.