Transferring money

the simple answer is yes you can still keep your accounts open in the UK - except for ISA'a as once you have permanently left the UK they have to be cashed/closed and moved to other accounts as part of the conditions. Further i would advise any investment savings you have or wish to have are opened and started before you leave. Make sure you have a number of selected uk accounts to use as once you have left it is very difficult to open one again as you can no longer prove a UK address etc etc.

as for transferring cash there is a anti money laundering limit daily of £10k......if you r that lucky LOL

I believe hsbc have a global account mechanism whereby your malta account and your uk accounts can be viewed together and can be linked for easy transfer and exchange of cash. These accounts are subject to conditions - usually of £50k invested or £25 per month.....they also do a help you move function too and can arrange for your new account(s) in malta before you get here and you simply just collect your card(s) from the nearest branch....

toonarmy9752 wrote:

- except for ISA'a as once you have permanently left the UK they have to be cashed/closed and moved to other accounts as part of the conditions.

Not true - you can continue ISAs, just cant add to them or move them

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/isa/faqs.htm#14

Q. What happens if I go abroad?

A. You can only open an ISA if you are resident and ordinarily resident in the UK for tax purposes (ask your Tax Office if you are in any doubt about this).

Crown employees, such as diplomats or members of the armed forces, who are working overseas and paid by the government are eligible to open an ISA. Their spouses or civil partners can also open an ISA.

If you start an ISA in the UK and then go abroad, you cannot continue putting money into the ISA (unless you are a Crown employee working overseas or the spouse or civil partner of a Crown employee working overseas). However, you can keep your ISA and you will still get tax relief on investments held in the ISA. When you return, you can start putting money in again (subject to the normal annual limits).

toonarmy9752 wrote:

as for transferring cash there is a anti money laundering limit daily of £10k......

its not a limit, but above 10K questions are more likely to be asked - however, if you were transferring 200K for a house, you don't need to transfer 10K a day for 20 days

if you mean physically bringing cash into Malta, then yes you need to declare sums over 10K in euros or equiv at the airport/port, but as long as you have a good reason its not a problem

Thanks for the info, we are hoping to transfer around 40 thousand or so, so I take it I could transfer this no problem? Maybe I should open up an HSBC account here and do it that way then? However I haven't heard brilliant things about HSBC in Malta, I had intended joining BOV  or are they not much better?

george - my bank told me this in writing themselves after one year....and had to move the cash - STATEMENT.

I have banked with hsbc in malta for over three years and have had no issues with them at all...and also have my accounts in uk to.

re closure of ISA's - thats your bank's policy, not the law - I know people who have continued holding ISAs 5 years plus after leaving UK.

"its not a limit, but above 10K questions are more likely to be asked - however, if you were transferring 200K for a house, you don't need to transfer 10K a day for 20 days! georgegozo

It IS a limit on the transfer being done yourself....as i do this and there IS a limit in place. maybe its law or just policy who knows!!!!!

never said it was law George  - only conditions.....where do you make this up.

that limit is a bank imposed limit not a legal limit

Seems to be a Maltese bank problem.

My brother sent me a much larger amount from his UK bank account to my German bank account last October after our mother passed away in the UK and her house was sold.

No questions and no problems !

And BOV or HSBC ? Both Maltese banks with typical Maltese problems .....

Cheers
Ricky

toonarmy9752 wrote:

never said it was law George  - only conditions.....where do you make this up.

you said "except for ISA'a as once you have permanently left the UK they have to be cashed/closed and moved to other accounts as part of the conditions" - it depends on the bank, but its not a blanket regulation - to tell someone they must close their ISAs as you said is wrong. There is nothing in tax law forcing you to close your ISAs

The 10K limit mentioned is a bank imposed limit from the sending side - there is no limit on receiving funds, although the larger the amount the more likely they are to ask questions. I've transferred sums in excess of 100K from a UK bank to Malta bank with no questions asked at all

again nobody said it was a legal limit - just an anti money laundering limit....whether it be bank imposed or otherwise...

You are taking your specific example of your bank, and generalising - your bank forced you to close your ISAs and won't let you transfer more than 10K, and from that tell others they will be in the same situation. Other banks don't necessarily do things the same way.

ok point taken

toonarmy's experience brings up an interesting point - if you have ISA's, before you leave the UK ask your bank what their policy is on ISA's if the account holder moves overseas. If its to force closure after one year (or whatever), look to move to another bank.

Another option is to give them a relative/friends address in the UK - you are allowed to hold ISAs if move overseas so you aren't doing anything illegal by doing so, unless this is precluded in their T&C.

[moderated]

sounds like a very very bitter and twisted person to me and i cannot agree with the comments made by boglarkasz

Hi

Is it costly moving money from the Uk to Malta.  We have a HSBC account in Malta and we are going to open an account in the UK.

depends how you do it - costs are

1. cost of transferring - electronic or cheque
2. cost of converting

We moved from France and had no problems transfering our house sale money to HSBC Malta. Also HSBC do not charge if you transfer money from UK ( pension etc) to a Euro account in Malta/ however they do charge if you transfer to sterling account in Malta (strange but true).
Terry

just a thought - if you intend to work here or not - taking adavantage of the local taxation - watch out about remitting too much per year....maybe George may know about this - a friend of mine who looked into and eventually getting state pensions paid direct here no problem but was advised not to remit more than the tax allowances i.e 9900euro.

yep, if you bring in more income into Malta than your tax free allowance, you are liable to tax in Malta, but not on capital or capital gains brought in, which are tax free for foreigners. However, you can offset tax already paid in the UK on that income

Once you have your account open in Malta, I suggest that you use a company called TORFX who deal with currency exchange and transfers. They are very helpful, no fees, no charges, and will get you the best exchange rate possible. We have used them several times particularly when we bought our apartment in Malta. If you wish to know more, just ask.

Caroline