Hi, my partner and I are going to have an early retirement and would like to move to Spain. For the initial period until we know if we like Spain or not can we stay in Spain for 3 months then return to the UK for 3 months, then back to Spain for 3 months etc?...

yes you can - at least until May and her incompetent boobs of a cabinet figure out what Brexit is going to look like

Maybe, but be sure to spend less than six months of any one year in Spain. The authorities may or may not notice if you spend longer, but after six months (183 days) in any one year you would be liable for taxes in Spain.

If you are going to cut the time close, keep a detailed log of your time in and out of Spain, and a record of travel dates with tickets, so you can prove how long you are there. If you take a short trip into France or Portugal you could deduct days spent there.

Thank you

Thank you for your reply. Also I was wondering if we are fully retired and our only income is company pension which is taxed at source, and interest on investments how do I stand for taxes in Spain and the UK?

Once you move to Spain to live you tell HMRC and your pension providers that you have left the UK, then you are paid gross in the UK, and pay taxes on Spain. The only common exception is "government pensions" such as if you were a civil servant, local council officer, policeman, teacher, etc, which are necessarily taxed in the UK.


Note, it is where you are living that is critical, not which bank account you have your pension paid into - so you could still have your pension paid into an account in the UK and receive it gross and pay tax in Spain.

It's not quite that simple. You need to get a certificate of tax residence in Spain from Hacienda and send it to HMRC. Unfortunately, you will not get that until you have paid your first year's tax in Spain, which is paid in arrears so there will be a delay in the changeover. However, any tax paid in the UK can be deducted on your Spanish tax declaration until you get it sorted out with HMRC.

Thank you everyone X