Transfering funds to the UK to buy a house and tax implications.

Hi there, In 2021 while working for a US public company from my home country remotely, I sold my stocks and transferred the money to my home country. Then I transferred this money to another bank in my home country where I bought physical gold. The gold is now in a bank vault. In 2024 I moved to the UK with the Tier-2 skilled worker visa. I want to buy a house in the UK. I plan to return the physical gold to the first or the second bank depending on which one provides the best conversion rate and then transfer the funds to my UK bank account. In my home country I didn't pay tax for the stock sales as there was a special tax amnesty law around 2021 which I benefited from. Not sure if this information is relevant, still wanted to share it. https://vergiport.com/blog/turkey-introduced-a-new-tax-amnesty I would like to understand if bringing this money to the UK could have a tax implication. What documents may I need to provide to HMRC if they need to review anything? Thank you for you help in advance.

To add some more detail, while working for this company remotely from Turkey I was a contractor and for monthly payments I was invoicing an intermediary company located in Ireland. Those invoices were taxed and taxed were paid on my home country. The stocks I earned while working over years was brought to Turkey with the tax amnesty law in 2021 as I mentioned earlier.

Hi,

As you were resident in Turkey and paid tax there on your self employment, you would not be taxed on this income in the UK, if you were to transfer it to the UK.  If you dispose of those stock while you are resident in the UK, there could be a capital gain tax liability.

Thank you.

Thank you very much for the answer. I have one follow up question. As I mentioned on the initial question, I will need to return the physical gold to the bank in Turkey and there need to convert it to GPB before transferring to the UK. Will I have be liable for capital gain tax for selling this gold in the UK? If I am liable how the CGT be calculated?

I asked ChatGPT on what I should be liable for paying CGT and it returned this answer. Could this be correct? ===== Selling Gold after Moving to the UK: If you sell the gold after becoming a UK resident, the gain from the sale may be subject to UK CGT. The gain would be calculated based on the difference between the selling price and the value of the gold when you became a UK resident.

Hi,

If you are a UK tax resident and you dispose of foreign assets, then you must declare the disposal in a Self Assessment tax return. If you dispose of foreign assets for more than you acquired them for, then you have a gain, which is taxable in the UK. You will need to calculate the pound sterling value of the assets at the time of acquisition and disposal, using a just and reasonable exchange rate in use at the times in question. For your convenience, there are exchange rates here:

Exchange rates from HMRC in CSV and XML format

and for older rates here:

Foreign exchange rates and spot rates: 1 January 1989 to 31 March 2009

You are free to use any of the supplied rates or one of your own choosing. 

Thank you.

Hi, Thank you for your reply. During the time I acquired the gold I wasn't a tax resident. We have become tax resident in the UK in 2024. May I ask if you could please share the relevant doc explaining the tax should be calculated based on the gain between the acquisition time and the disposal time and not between the time we become the tax resident and the disposal time? The gain while I wasn't tax resident should be taxable in the home country (this looks more reasonable to me as ChatGPT suggested the same). How UK is able to claim tax for a gain that happened while we weren't a tax resident?

Hi, We have moved to the UK at the end of March in 2024 and I work full time for a company with a skilled worker visa. Before this date I didn't visit to the UK in the last 10 years or more and actually I was never a tax resident here. If I sell the gold in July or August in 2024 should I be considered an UK tax resident when that transaction happens? I think there is a 183 days rule to be in the UK for a person who wasn't a tax residence in the previous three years. I suspect I may not be an UK tax resident at all. Could you please clarify this? I really appreciate your help.

Hi ,
 

Your residence is based on the actual tax year and if the gold is sold in the year you are UK resident then capital gains is due here  . Thank you .

Hi u954243,
You pay tax on the gain in the country you are resident in at the time the asset is sold -
CG25100 - Effects of residence and domicile: temporary residence.
Thank you.