GBW

I've lived outside the UK for a very long time but now, for some bizarre reason, I'm thinking about moving back. I left the UK in 1989 and other than a 2-year period when I studied for an MSc in 2000 in Bournemouth, I've not lived or work there. I currently live in Berlin.

I have family in the UK (brothers, sisters) but I have no other ties--no bank account, no residential address. My wife is German, which thanks to Brexit, is also another administrative complication (and a question for another forum). We're looking to buy a small house (without mortgage) and move to the UK within a few years once the kids have finished their education. But even without a mortgage we'd still need to work (and want to work). Does anyone have any experience or knowledge of the kind of legal, administrative and financial pieces we need to put in place before moving back? To repeat, I have no financial or administrative track record in the UK. Thanks.

SanDiegogirl

First things first... are you a Brit with a British passport?

durham_lad

We moved back to the UK from the USA after 29 years there but we were retired and did not need to work. We also bought a house with no mortgage a few months after moving back as we had rented first while sussing out exactly where we wanted to live.

In 2017 our son moved back and he needed to work, and also had no presence in the UK including no NI number as he was only 4 when we moved out to the USA. He was able to move in with us while he found a job and bought a house, no mortgage which makes it easier as he had no credit record either. He lived with us for almost 3 months.

Our daughter was in a similar situation when she moved back in 2022 with regards no UK bank or credit history, but she continued to work remotely for her US employer so didn’t have to find a job. She also bought a house with no mortgage, and in fact is buying a 2nd house close by which she plans to rent out. She should close the purchase in 5 days time so fingers crossed on that. She was able to open a Wise borderless account from the USA with a UK style account and routing number plus debit card which worked great. Once here she opened a UK bank account, and again she stayed with us for 3 months while she completed the purchase of her house. We worked with her in her house search and the one she liked best my wife and I went back for a second visit with her on video FaceTime so she could have a good look herself and meet the seller.

GBW

Yes, I'm born and raised in the UK. My kids are dual citizens German/English and my wife is German.

GBW

Yes, I'm born and raised in the UK. My kids are dual citizens German/English and my wife is German.

SanDiegogirl

So basically YOU could move to the UK without any legal, administrative etc bureaucracy issues to go through, except to find yourself accommodation, get yourself a job, bank account, doctor etc - taking into account that without any credit history and employment history in the UK you will be starting from scratch and might not be eligible for the benefits that someone with history would have.

You would need to sponsor wife for a spouse visa.