Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Kimchifart]

I was here for three years, returned to the UK for a year and I'm going back again. During my time in Korea I only came back to the UK once for 6 weeks, but returned back about a month before the end of the tax year.

I've been reading online and the regulations seem really ill defined and liquid, they also seem to be in a state of upheaval at the moment and there is talk of us moving to the horrific US style and things about not having a UK driving license and not having an active UK bank account being essentially as well as the new 89 day rule (at least, I think it's new).

At the moment I'm a little concerned I might be getting the rules wrong and might end up being liable for back taxes.

Is it crucial to fill out the p85? Have any of you lot done it?

Also, is it possible to get back to the UK for stints longer than 89 days (I guess there's that average over four years right?)

Gah, doing my head in all this.

[Setaro]

Are you sending back your payslips to Her Majesty's Tax Office? If not, how do they even know where you are/what you're doing?

They can't tax you if they don't know what you're doing!

[Malislamusrex]

Don't declare anything.

[socialjeebus]

Seriously, don't bother with anything.

With all the job cuts going on in HMRC, etc you're only going to create more problems for yourself.

That said you might get asked questions about savings if you go and apply for the dole straight away.

I was in a similar position when I first went back, if you need to go to hospital however you will definitely be asked (they tried to charge me 120 quid for an appointment). I said I was jobless and in the process of claiming JSA (that got me out of that one).

However once I started a new job back in Blighty I did get a letter from HMRC saying there had been a shortfall (380 in my NI contributions - effectively for the years I was out of the UK, I was missing in action) which could affect my state pension, blah blah and giving me a few years (I think it may have been 4 or 5) to pay the balance.

That being said I didn't bother and since have returned here. You'll find that whilst the HMRC are concerned about your income, the DWP are much more interested in your savings & investments.

On a side note, are you going back to UK temporarily/permanently and will you leave any significant commitments here in Korea (spouse/kids, etc)?

If you are married here and plan to go back and claim JSA while you're home it might be difficult to claim JSA now they use the HRT (habitual residency test).

[Kimchifart]

[socialjeebus]

A tip for student loans. They are a pain in the arse, I was back for just under 5 years and within that managed to 'over' repay my loan then had to go through the pain in the arse of waiting for a refund to be processed. Find out exactly how much you owe when you start working.

One person over repaid by 96,000 quid (that's no typo - check the BBC story).

Other things to watch out for, tax codes when you start work and getting yourself on/back on the electoral roll.

[underworld9202]

If you *do* fill out a P85, is it OK to send it without the address of your employer (i.e. the Korean school) on it? I've heard they can take a while so I'm trying to get a jump start...

[Kimchifart]