Tax refund and ILR

[wasabiiro]

I have a question about impact that Tax return may have on ILR, although my situation is slightly different.

I am on Tier 2 visa, my employer sent me to work abroad for a short period of time (7 months) and paid taxes both in UK and another country on my behalf. Now my employer wants to claim back some of my UK taxes and I am concerned that this may compromise my eligibility for ILR. Do my concerns have any ground?

[cs95tdg]

I am on Tier 2 visa, my employer sent me to work abroad for a short period of time (7 months) and paid taxes both in UK and another country on my behalf. Now my employer wants to claim back some of my UK taxes and I am concerned that this may compromise my eligibility for ILR. Do my concerns have any ground?

What's the reason for your employer wanting to claim back the taxes? I've never heard of an employer ever doing this. If there has been an over-payment of taxes, it's generally upto the employee to claim this back at the end of the tax year by contacting HMRC directly. Either way if your employer does do what you mention, you will need to be prepared to explain the background around this with supporting documentation from your employer at the time of your ILR application, if any questions are raised.

Additionally, it's interesting that you mention 7 months as a short term. If it was a continuous absence then, it would go beyond the 90 day threshold for a single absence.

[wasabiiro]

As I understand, the reason for claiming UK tax back is that my employer paid tax on my behalf in another country. My application is required for the employer to get this tax return, but it is supported by one of the big 4 accountancy firms so I do not know all the details. They just asked me to fill in a few online forms, but I decided to step back and think a little bit what it means for my future ILR application.

I never spent more that 90 days outside UK. I was effectively rotating back and forth.

[wasabiiro]

What's the reason for your employer wanting to claim back the taxes? I've never heard of an employer ever doing this.

I recieved a clarification this week which reads "Your Tax Return has been prepared on the basis that you were regarded as Resident and Ordinarily Resident in the UK, and non-UK domiciled."
Apparently, domicile means home country of one's family at the time of the birth and childhood. I was born and raised outside UK hence I'm non-UK domiciled.

[ShaniaS]

A reviled credit product, refund anticipation loans or tax refund loans, was killed off last year via regulatory measures. It was supposed to stop people borrowing against their tax refunds. However, numerous slightly different goods offering the same thing are alive and well. A personal finance can help you pay for things until your tax refund gets here.