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Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) - Travel (750) - Nairaland

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Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 3) / Living In Canada/Life As A Canadian Immigrant Part 2 / Living In The Uk/life As A UK Immigrant (2) (3) (4)

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Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by Estroller: 3:20pm On Dec 05, 2022
CheesyTee:


Next time, call HMRC directly. I recently realised I was overtaxed for 8 months at my new job. I called HMRC and provided them the right tax code, and was refunded almost 2k.

You should know your tax code and all these information are on the HMRC page, down to calculating your tax payment for the year.

I have friends that overpaid tax and got refunded (without contacting HMRC) after the tax year.

It's a bit different when you are contracting (self employment) as you can choose to work through your own Ltd company or as a sole trader and pay your tax via self assessment where accountants can play around the rules in your favour using tax efficient measures to keep your tax liabilities low.

1 Like

Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by semmyk(m): 3:25pm On Dec 05, 2022
Abeg, when is Nadhim Zahawi (CP) 'deploying' the military to help ease disruption caused by public sector strikes? I just dey ask ni o. grin
"If unions chase wage increases in line with or above inflation, ... you will embed inflation for longer and hurt the most vulnerable, ... The war in Ukraine has led to very high inflation rates ... We’re looking at the military" ... ...

1 Like

Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by semmyk(m): 3:34pm On Dec 05, 2022
While the Elders come out of their council meeting, let's quickly chip in for them
Simple response: dependent have right to work.
I shall soon update with previous responses

peacenaija:
Hi Elders,
Can a dependent on a skilled worker visa work a normal Job without requiring sponsorship?
Regards
[UPDATED]
dduchess90:
... ...
Here's the link for you to read on
https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa/your-partner-and-children
Cheers
semmyk:
While the Elders pronounce, let's quickly chip in. One would have thought that the info is straightforward. However, typical, the gov.uk is 'silence'!!! https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa/your-partner-and-children

No. They don't need sponsorship.
No. They must have their 'right endorsed' in their BRB. This is straightforward and by default.
Yes. It is okay they click on eligible to work.

Official position: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1098055/Dependent_family_members_in_work_routes.pdf

[Update] just noticed Koonbey 'straight to the answer' response.
koonbey:
Yes. As a dependent you have unlimited right to work any job/any skill level including self employment and voluntary work, (except the usual restrictions on working as a doctor or dentist in training or as a professional sportsperson/coach).
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by dustydee: 3:35pm On Dec 05, 2022
CheesyTee:


Next time, call HMRC directly. I recently realised I was overtaxed for 8 months at my new job. I called HMRC and provided them the right tax code, and was refunded almost 2k.

You should know your tax code and all these information are on the HMRC page, down to calculating your tax payment for the year.

I have friends that overpaid tax and got refunded (without contacting HMRC) after the tax year.
It wouldn't have worked. This is about tax efficiency and savings not refund. My accountants should have told me what to take or do to reduce my tax liabilities.

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Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by dustydee: 3:38pm On Dec 05, 2022
Estroller:


It's a bit different when you are contracting (self employment) as you can choose to work through your own Ltd company or as a sole trader and pay your tax via self assessment where accountants can play around the rules in your favour using tax efficient measures to keep your tax liabilities low.
@CheesyTee
This.
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by rayralph(m): 3:41pm On Dec 05, 2022
japhethGold:
Thanks for the enquiry,

You may not have to pay UK taxes on foreign income if your permanent home is NOT in the UK.

Let me quote the section of the tax law here - "UK residents who have their permanent home (‘domicile’) outside the UK may not have to pay UK tax on foreign income"

So the question is, where is your permanent home?

Permanent home is defined by the UK Tax law as the country your father considered his permanent home when you were born.

I hope this helps.


Cheers. Thank you

1 Like

Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by kode12: 3:48pm On Dec 05, 2022
dustydee:

Let me save this by quoting it. Dashed HMRC money when I was contracting until I realised after almost 3 years that I could have saved a lot more. To make matters worse, I paid the accounting firm thousands yearly for the priviledge.

I am not understanding. Do you mean, you were paying tax consultants and they still allowed you to pay all that excess tax?
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by starboychan: 4:05pm On Dec 05, 2022
Hello fam,

I hope una dey okay. Abegi e get one matter I need contribution on top . Please see below scenario;

Student visa expires : May 2023
Tier 2 job offer start date date : sept 2032 .


Question is how can this fellow remain in Uk without having to take post study for 2months before switching to skilled work visa.

Thanks in advance
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by dustydee: 4:13pm On Dec 05, 2022
kode12:


I am not understanding. Do you mean, you were paying tax consultants and they still allowed you to pay all that excess tax?
Yes. In fact there was one time I asked if I could claim a certain expense, the accountant said ultimately I am the director and the final decision lies with me but then added a caveat which I interpreted as "you shouldn't be doing this" but I later found out it was perfectly legal.
I used one of those "big" accounting firms online partly because they were recommended by my agency then plus I did not want HMRC wahala.
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by dustydee: 4:16pm On Dec 05, 2022
starboychan:
Hello fam,

I hope una dey okay. Abegi e get one matter I need contribution on top . Please see below scenario;

Student visa expires : May 2023
Tier 2 job offer start date date : sept 2023 .


Question is how can this fellow remain in Uk without having to take post study for 2months before switching to skilled work visa.

Thanks in advance
One way is to put in the Tier 2 application by May and another way is to ask the company to move your start date to May.
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by starboychan: 4:37pm On Dec 05, 2022
dustydee:

One way is to put in the Tier 2 application by May and another way is to ask the company to move your start date to May.


The application can’t be put in May because they can only issue cos 3months to start date .

The start date cannot be change as it’s a structured graduate program
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by japhethGold: 4:40pm On Dec 05, 2022
THE UK TAX FILING SEASON 2022

Tax season in the UK is the period of time in the year where ALL residents who are taxpayers are required to declare their incomes and submit their tax returns with the Her Majesty Revenue and Customs (HMRC). The season for filing taxes for 2022 has commenced in October 31st 2022 and will end on 31st January 2023. So make sure you file your taxes whether you are in full time employment or self employed.

The benefits of filing your taxes are huge.
1. You have the opportunity to claim the personal allowance of GBP12,570 each year,
2. you can claim some reliefs such as interest you have paid on mortgage loans you have taken to acquire apartment, which means you are effectively transferring all mortgage interest to the government while you are repaying only the principal of your mortgage loan, and
3. You are complying with the tax laws and avoiding paying late penalty charges. i.e GBP100 for first week.

You can do the filing online on HMRC website but if your incomes are not straight forward, it is better to get a tax consultant handle it for you to avoiding exposing yourself to high tax risk.

Let me know if you need help with your taxes. Also, follow me on Tiktok @japhethjev1 for daily tax and finance tips that can save you fortunes in the UK. My advice on Tiktok is to help Black immigrants navigate taxes and manage their finances better in the UK.

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Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by japhethGold: 5:17pm On Dec 05, 2022
Yea, this is just the basic thing to do. But the HMRC are not magicians hence they will not be privy to some of your personal costs and transactions that should have given you the deep tax credits and refunds. So whatever HMRC gives to you as tax refunds is just the basic amount. If you get a good tax accountant and sit down with him for just 1 hour to discuss your transactions and makes a retunr to HMRC based on these, your refunds could be mind blowing.

I always advise that if your transactions - jobs and businesses and incomes and property all combined are getting complicated, it is time to get a tax consultant because if you do not, then you will see yourself paying close to over 50% of your incomes to HMRC every year when you should have may be paid 30% legally, and save more.

CheesyTee:


Next time, call HMRC directly. I recently realised I was overtaxed for 8 months at my new job. I called HMRC and provided them the right tax code, and was refunded almost 2k.

You should know your tax code and all these information are on the HMRC page, down to calculating your tax payment for the year.

I have friends that overpaid tax and got refunded (without contacting HMRC) after the tax year.
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by dustydee: 5:39pm On Dec 05, 2022
starboychan:



The application can’t be put in May because they can only issue cos 3months to start date .

The start date cannot be change as it’s a structured graduate program
Surely the start date can be changed. May be the change cannot be for months but certainly it can be.
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by semmyk(m): 6:24pm On Dec 05, 2022
https://www.nairaland.com/7267459/uk-student-visa-tier-4

0zi0:
hello nairalanders,
i have gotten my cas and i’m about to go for my tls appointment in a week or so. my problem is that i was refused a canadian study permit in october bc “the details in my application are not consistent with a temporary stay” and i’m worried my uk visa would be denied. like my dad has the bank statement and all, speaking of if i use the same bank statement i used to get my cas to apply for my visa is that ok? like i don’t know how the 28day mark works. but i asked someone and they said that as long as i use the same bank statement i used for my cas w/o withdrawal from it that it’s okay. but i can’t help but worry bc i don’t want another refusal.
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by courage54(m): 7:01pm On Dec 05, 2022
OGs in the house.. please help a brother in making a career decision. I just came into the UK on a student visa. Wifey is the student while I’m the dependent. I was a banker back in Nigeria with 8 years banking experience, but sincerely I don’t want to go back to banking. Please what other career options do I have as a former banker.

1 Like

Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by dustydee: 7:25pm On Dec 05, 2022
japhethGold:
THE UK TAX FILING SEASON 2022

Tax season in the UK is the period of time in the year where ALL residents who are taxpayers are required to declare their incomes and submit their tax returns with the Her Majesty Revenue and Customs (HMRC). The season for filing taxes for 2022 has commenced in October 31st 2022 and will end on 31st January 2023. So make sure you file your taxes whether you are in full time employment or self employed.

The benefits of filing your taxes are huge.
1. You have the opportunity to claim the personal allowance of GBP12,570 each year,
2. you can claim some reliefs such as interest you have paid on mortgage loans you have taken to acquire apartment, which means you are effectively transferring all mortgage interest to the government while you are repaying only the principal of your mortgage loan, and
3. You are complying with the tax laws and avoiding paying late penalty charges. i.e GBP100 for first week.

You can do the filing online on HMRC website but if your incomes are not straight forward, it is better to get a tax consultant handle it for you to avoiding exposing yourself to high tax risk.

Let me know if you need help with your taxes. Also, follow me on Tiktok @japhethjev1 for daily tax and finance tips that can save you fortunes in the UK. My advice on Tiktok is to help Black immigrants navigate taxes and manage their finances better in the UK.
Are you suggesting a private person can claim interest on a mortgage? Never heard this before. If that's the case then need to find me an accountant. Can it be claimed retrospectively?
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by kode12: 7:26pm On Dec 05, 2022
dustydee:

Yes. In fact there was one time I asked if I could claim a certain expense, the accountant said ultimately I am the director and the final decision lies with me but then added a caveat which I interpreted as "you shouldn't be doing this" but I later found out it was perfectly legal.
I used one of those "big" accounting firms online partly because they were recommended by my agency then plus I did not want HMRC wahala.

Wow, can you imagine. What a waste, they need to sue the stupid accountant and firm.
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by Ogbaba123: 8:10pm On Dec 05, 2022
You can apply any time before your current visa expires, any time.

Pogracious:
Hi Ancestors

I have just finished my msc degree and am preparing for visa renewal,but someone said I should apply 28days before expiry or just some days before brp expiry is okay.

Kindly advise which is advisable at this point

TIA
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by Peerielass: 9:52pm On Dec 05, 2022
japhethGold:
I am the The CPA Guy- a chartered accountant here in the UK

@japhethjev1 on tiktok to listen to these tips.

Hello, can I ask which professional accountancy body you belong to and how many years UK tax experience you have?

1 Like

Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by AlphaUno: 11:02pm On Dec 05, 2022
vanod:
House Good morning,

Pls I arrived UK A week ago on a work visa, before coming my company where to make accomodation available for me, on getting here i discovered the accomodation is within the facility where I work, and I have booked paid for flight for my family to come over.

The initial plan was when I get here I will look for an accomodation before they coming, but is becoming increasingly hard everyday getting a house in Glasgow, they just have 10 days from departure date.

Can you guys pls advice me, either to push the ticket further to January, Cancel and get refund or use Airbnb if they eventually come.


Your pocket determines quite a lot in this regard - airbnb or flight ticket refund.
Do not house-hunt in desperation and under pressure, you might end up paying ‘mortgage deposit’. cool
If you network aggressively thru friends, colleagues, church or mosque members, you would get a place soon.
I will say take your time to cross your Ts and dot your Is during the hunt, so you won’t make avoidable mistakes like the property energy efficiency, molds, neighbourhood, proximity to schools with ratings etc


NB : ….schools with good ratings etc

1 Like

Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by lightnlife: 11:04pm On Dec 05, 2022
Thanks.

Sadly, Sendwave and WorldRemit are only payment gateways. They don't have the facility to receive.

Solumtoya:


There are a lot: Sendwave, WorldRemit, etc

Thanks, Amara.

My best bet is something around this route. I know I can receive into my Naija USD without much hassle. This UK condition tight.

Amarathripple0:

This is what I usually do and even did a few days ago. The money is paid from the US to my Naija FX account and then I transfer the dollars to my FX changer (via GTB) in exchange for Naira at the black market rate and either buy pounds from another FX changer (I send him Naira and he sends Pounds to my Barclays) or I use Lemonade, depending on whose rate is better. The rate from USD to Pounds is very similar to the exchange rate from USD to Naira to Pounds. I’ve found that the latter rate is sometimes better. I hope this makes sense.

1 Like

Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by Ayowolebami(f): 12:45am On Dec 06, 2022
courage54:
OGs in the house.. please help a brother in making a career decision. I just came into the UK on a student visa. Wifey is the student while I’m the dependent. I was a banker back in Nigeria with 8 years banking experience, but sincerely I don’t want to go back to banking. Please what other career options do I have as a former banker.

Depends on the skill set you have and the kind of jobs you can transfer them to. A bank is a large corporation with various fields. Someone in audit department for instance can decide to move to an audit firm after years in bank while someone like a cashier might find it hard or be limited to transfer whatever skill set they have into another company without probably acquiring additional skills. Still doesn't change the fact that both worked for years in the bank. You're in the best position to make the decision in this case tbvh...

1 Like

Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by deept(m): 1:39am On Dec 06, 2022
dustydee:

Are you suggesting a private person can claim interest on a mortgage? Never heard this before. If that's the case then need to find me an accountant. Can it be claimed retrospectively?

If you live in a 3 bed house and you use one of the rooms for your business, you can claim 33% of the interest on your mortgage as deductable.

Ps. Not an accountant or tax consultant but me done research on what and what is deductable as I'm looking at towing self employment line. Do your DD to confirm

3 Likes

Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by Luchiano54: 2:12am On Dec 06, 2022
Please, how do I contact you? I sent an email here.
japhethGold:
THE UK TAX FILING SEASON 2022

Tax season in the UK is the period of time in the year where ALL residents who are taxpayers are required to declare their incomes and submit their tax returns with the Her Majesty Revenue and Customs (HMRC). The season for filing taxes for 2022 has commenced in October 31st 2022 and will end on 31st January 2023. So make sure you file your taxes whether you are in full time employment or self employed.

The benefits of filing your taxes are huge.
1. You have the opportunity to claim the personal allowance of GBP12,570 each year,
2. you can claim some reliefs such as interest you have paid on mortgage loans you have taken to acquire apartment, which means you are effectively transferring all mortgage interest to the government while you are repaying only the principal of your mortgage loan, and
3. You are complying with the tax laws and avoiding paying late penalty charges. i.e GBP100 for first week.

You can do the filing online on HMRC website but if your incomes are not straight forward, it is better to get a tax consultant handle it for you to avoiding exposing yourself to high tax risk.

Let me know if you need help with your taxes. Also, follow me on Tiktok @japhethjev1 for daily tax and finance tips that can save you fortunes in the UK. My advice on Tiktok is to help Black immigrants navigate taxes and manage their finances better in the UK.
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by Ticha: 5:42am On Dec 06, 2022
vanod:
House Good morning,

Pls I arrived UK A week ago on a work visa, before coming my company where to make accomodation available for me, on getting here i discovered the accomodation is within the facility where I work, and I have booked paid for flight for my family to come over.

The initial plan was when I get here I will look for an accomodation before they coming, but is becoming increasingly hard everyday getting a house in Glasgow, they just have 10 days from departure date.

Can you guys pls advice me, either to push the ticket further to January, Cancel and get refund or use Airbnb if they eventually come.

Holiday lets are coming into the winter period where most shut down and have reduced occupancy. Find all the holiday lets in your area using AIrbnb, VRBO and Booking.com. Message them all, state how much you can pay (rule of thumb is to half their daily rate) and offer at least a 3 month occupancy. That takes you to March when bookings start coming in again and enough time to find a long term let.

If any have their name in their listing details, google the name - some maybe have a google pin which would give you the address, website, phone number etc and you can approach them direct.

7 Likes

Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by Phil46: 7:29am On Dec 06, 2022
Good morning All,

I will be using Egyptair from Nigeria to the UK this month and would like to be sure on the following.

I will have 12hr 5min stop in Cairo

1. Do I need transit visa?
2. Is any covid process (test, card, vaccination) required?
3. Is yellow fever test required?

Someone just told me about the covid card and I would like to be sure if that's true.

Thanks
Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by Peerielass: 8:50am On Dec 06, 2022
Luchiano54:
Please, how do I contact you? I sent an email here.

You really need to tread carefully here, this is a public forum for people to share personal experiences and not intended for professional advise. If you need the services of an accountant or tax consultant, you can find one local to you using the ACCA, ICAS, ICAEW, ATT directory. UK tax laws are particularly complex and requires significant technical knowledge which can only be acquired through practise and regular exposure to complex cases. No offence intended but I do not think that someone who has spent less than two years in this country will have the requisite technical know how required for this line of work.

There’s also a reason why most accountants don’t advertise their services. Potential clients find them and not the other way round,

5 Likes

Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by dustydee: 9:44am On Dec 06, 2022
deept:


If you live in a 3 bed house and you use one of the rooms for your business, you can claim 33% of the interest on your mortgage as deductable.

Ps. Not an accountant or tax consultant but me done research on what and what is deductable as I'm looking at towing self employment line. Do your DD to confirm
Yes but I was asking for someone who is a staff and not a contractor. My understanding of his/her post is that you can claim interest back from HMRC, which caught my attention but I want to know the caveats or limits of that statement.

1 Like

Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by deept(m): 10:09am On Dec 06, 2022
dustydee:

Yes but I was asking for someone who is a staff and not a contractor. My understanding of his/her post is that you can claim interest back from HMRC, which caught my attention but I want to know the caveats or limits of that statement.

You could go on gov.uk. there could be something for people who work from home as staff.

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