UK expats returning home during the Middle East crisis have been warned that spending extra time on British soil could land them with a substantial tax bill.
Tax authority HMRC can disregard up to 60 days spent in the UK due to emergencies, but the threshold for what qualifies as exceptional is extremely high, according to experts.
There has been speculation that the government could effectively give exemptions to non-resident British nationals who exceed the permitted days spent in the UK due to the US-Israeli war with Iran. The limit varies between 90 and 183 days depending on a person's ties to the country, such as family, property or work.
With the current tax year ending on April 5, many people may already be close to their limit. If they are deemed to have spent too long in the UK, then employment income, investment income and other worldwide earnings could come under the HMRC microscope.
The government has been urged to clarify whether the UAE’s situation would count as exceptional circumstances.
Philip Swinburn, legal director at law firm Lewis Silkin, said many people would be “close to the line” in terms of the maximum number of days allowed in the UK.
He cautioned that applying for exceptional circumstances is usually considered on an individual basis and could take into account conditions such as whether a person left the UK at the earliest opportunity, or whether flights were technically available. He said that in previous instances where it was used, such as during Covid or when the Ukraine war broke out, travel had been impossible.
Flexibility needed
David Little, financial planning partner at wealth manager Evelyn Partners, said that while returning to the UK to be with family might seem like a safe move, it could come with hidden costs.
He told The National: “Up to 60 days spent in the UK can be ignored when calculating residency if an individual is unable to leave due to events beyond their control, such as war, civil unrest, natural disasters or sudden travel restrictions.
“Relief under this provision is, however, very narrow. Individuals must show the circumstances genuinely prevented them from leaving the UK and that they intended to depart as soon as possible. The devil is in the detail – are they genuinely prevented from returning to the UAE?”
He said officials may be considering temporary flexibility for those forced to return to the UK due to instability in the Middle East.
“No formal changes have yet been announced, meaning the current rules still apply. In simple terms, each day spent in the UK counts towards the residency conundrum,” he said.
HMRC told The National it appreciated that people are having to make decisions very quickly, “which is why there are long-standing rules in place, supporting the small proportion of expats who may find themselves short of days spent outside the UK this close to the end of the tax year, and could unintentionally qualify as UK tax resident”. A representative said: “The existing rules already take into account exceptional circumstances, such as people being affected by war, while following the basic principle that those living in the UK should pay tax in the UK.”
Record numbers of Britons have relocated to the Gulf in recent years, with the UAE one of the primary destinations. An estimated 16,500 millionaires left the UK in 2025 alone.
Around 300,000 British citizens live in the Gulf, with 160,000 registering their presence with the Foreign Office since war broke out. It meant they were given updates on the febrile situation in the region and the potential to secure a place on a repatriation flight.
Airspace restrictions meant those who first attempted to leave were likely to have flown from Muscat, while commercial services from the UAE have now resumed at limited levels.
The potential tax implications of leaving may not have been high in many people’s minds, but they could have costly consequences.
As instability disrupts life in the UAE, many British nationals are discovering that the UK’s Statutory Residence Test is far less forgiving than they anticipated, according to Claire Spinks, Global Head of Tax at Hoxton Wealth.
She warned that even a stay of a few weeks could be enough to classify a person as UK resident for the 2025/26 or 2026/27 tax year. For high-earning Dubai expats accustomed to zero income tax, the impact can be dramatic.
“People move to Dubai expecting a low-tax environment,” Spinks said. “But if they accidentally trigger UK residence, their worldwide income can suddenly fall back into the UK tax net.”
An executive based in Dubai earning £400,000 a year could face a UK tax bill of more than £160,000 if they inadvertently trigger UK tax residence.
There is a common misconception that the 60-day “exceptional circumstances” rule offers protection, she said, but HMRC’s interpretation is “often far narrower than people expect,” Ms Spinks said.
“While countries such as Iran and Iraq are currently subject to strict ‘no travel’ advisories, the UAE is presently classified under ‘all but essential travel’. Because the Foreign Office is not formally advising evacuation, HMRC is likely to count days spent in the UK towards the Statutory Residence Test, regardless of wider regional instability." The test “does not pause during periods of geopolitical tension”, she said.
Mr Little said the travel advice distinctions leave significant ambiguity over whether evacuations or safety-related returns from the UAE would qualify. He said: “Given the current situation with drone and missile strikes, time is of the essence regarding this rule complication, as those looking to exit will need HMRC clarity fast.”
Ms Spinks added that the real financial risk isn’t necessarily today, “it’s nine to 18 months down the line when tax returns are filed and claims for exceptional circumstances are reviewed”.
She suggested staying in a third country may be a wise move. “Where leaving the region becomes necessary, expats should not assume the UK is the only option,” she said. “In many cases, relocating temporarily to another country rather than returning to Britain could prevent accidentally triggering UK tax residence.”
The current rules
The UK’s Statutory Residence Test (SRT) is complex, and crucially determines whether someone is classed as a UK tax resident.
According to Mr Little, the simplest rule is that anyone who spends 183 days or more in the UK during a tax year automatically becomes a UK tax resident. However, there are caveats.
Below the 183-day threshold, residency depends on both the number of days spent in Britain and a person's "ties" to the country. These include having family in the UK, accommodation, or work.
For someone who has previously lived in the UK, tax residency can potentially be triggered with as few as 90 to 120 days in the country if they maintain multiple ties, which is common. Expats returning to the UK may qualify for split-year treatment – a resident portion and an overseas portion – which needs to be claimed via self-assessment.
Mr Little said that for globally mobile people, even a few extra days in Britain can have major consequences. “Becoming UK tax resident could mean that worldwide income and investment gains become taxable, not just UK-sourced earnings.
“Furthermore, for those who have left the UK and then sold assets, businesses or crystallised gains while non-resident – the current HMRC rules expect them to remain non-resident for five complete tax years. Returning to the UK, albeit unexpectedly, could trigger a very expensive tax liability with previous forgotten gains from a few years ago retrospectively falling under UK taxation on their return.
"Until HMRC issues any clarification, expats considering temporary returns should carefully monitor their UK days and ties, plan travel around thresholds, and file appropriate forms to claim split-year treatment where relevant.”
