Overseas employment (no presence in the UK)

HI, here are my situations: - Relocated to the UK on 5 Oct 2023 by BNO Visa, previously lived in Hong Kong. - Currently a tax resident in the UK. - Worked remotely in the UK for my Hong Kong employment from 5 Oct 2023 to 31 Dec 2023 under a Hong Kong employment contract. - The company has no presence in the UK, and the work performed was entirely unrelated to UK activities. I will declare the salaries from this Hong Kong employment as foreign income in my self-assessment. However, I am uncertain if these salaries are subject to National Insurance contributions in the UK. Requesting advice on steps to declare and fulfill any NI obligations.

Hi Tat Long Ching,
No, National Insurance will be due as you are not self employent.
You will need to show the income in sterling on your return under an employment page - the income only -  and then again on the foreign page to then claim the tax paid in Hong Kong as foreign tax credit relief.
Thank you, 

 

Thank you. I am a bit confused here. Is the National Insurance "will not be due" or "will be due" here.

Dear HMRC, I have the same questions. - I have BNO Visa - I have relocated to UK since Jan 2022 and worked for a Hong Kong employer (without UK presence) from May 2022 till now. - I become a tax resident in UK since 2022-2023 tax year. - I reported all my Hong Kong income through self-assessment. - I have applied for a PAYE account for a Direct Payment Scheme (DCNI) for paying my employee Class 1 National Insurance Contributions (NIC) for all my income from May 2022 till now. However, recently, my tax adviser told me that it is not mandatory for my situation with Hong Kong Employer (without presence in UK) to pay employee Class 1 National Insurance Contributions (NIC). May I clarify if a BNO visa tax resident but having overseas employer (no presence in UK) is liable for paying employee Class 1 National Insurance Contributions (NIC)? Or it is voluntary and not mandatory? Thanks!

Hi wingtax L,
If you could call our Employers: general enquiries they will be able to help you further with your query about National Insurance contributions in the UK.
Thank you.

Dear HMRC, I will relocate to UK from Hong Kong on the coming early October 2024, and will start the job to a HK company (no UK presence) from Nov 2024. Could you advise below if it's correct or wrong: 1. I need to setup NI account to pay the employee NI monthly 2. Because the HK job work salary will be required to pay the mandatory MPF (a kind of pension, 5% from monthly salary), should I use the salary before OR after the MPF deduction to fill as my monthly income to both employee NI and income tax? 3. I will be tax resident during the 2024-2025 and so need to fill the self-assessment in 2025 after 6/Apr/2025 4. As I'm not lived in UK for the whole tax year (6/Apr/2024 - 5/Apr/2025), so can I apply the "split-year treatment" for the tax self-assessment and report? 5. How to proof the HK company does not have "UK presence"? Thank you very much.

Hi Tat Long,
As per the previous NI tech reply, you will not be able to pay class 2 NICs as a SE person.
Depending on your circumstances you may need to set up as a direct payer scheme and pay both employer and employee NICs.
We suggest you contact the Employers: support for new employers for advise giving full details of your situation.
Thank you.

Hi Cherry

If you are working in the UK for a non-UK based employer who has no presence in the UK, you will need to set up a Direct Payment scheme to report your earnings. 
You will need to report the salary before the pension deductions when processing the payroll. 
You have an option to set up a scheme for tax and NI (DPNI) or just NI only (DCNI). 
If you set up an NI only scheme, then you will need to register for self-assessment also as you will need to complete a self-assessment return to declare your income for tax purposes. 
To set the scheme up please call HMRC Employer Helpline on 0300 200 3200. 
Information regarding what we would consider a place of business in the UK can be found at paragraph 4.5 of CWG 2  2024 to 2025: Employer further guide to PAYE and National Insurance contributions.

Thank you