Domicile is not residence and is a fairly specialist area. It is a uniquely British concept and broadly a person is born with their domicile of origin but that can be replaced by a domicile of choice.
By Michael Brooke
This can be quite a complex area but broken down it is perhaps easier to understand.
The first point to note is that to administer the UK estate for virtually everyone, probate in the UK must be obtained. This can be done in one of two ways:
- An English grant of representation has to be applied for. This is the normal process in the UK for obtaining probate.
A resealed foreign grant can be achieved which effectively avoids a fresh application and relies on the grant already made overseas. This is done under the Colonial Probates Act 1892 and, as the name suggests, only applies where the original grant was made in an ex-commonwealth country. Please check the Act for applicable countries. - The next point to establish is whether the deceased was UK domiciled or not. This is extremely important as UK inheritance tax applies to world-wide assets for a UK domicile but only UK situs assets for a non-UK domicile.
Unless the circumstances are very clear cut, for example where the deceased had a non-UK domicile of origin, great caution is required as HMRC will examine the evidence in great detail before accepting a domicile of choice as significant amounts of tax can be at stake.
There is a further complication if the deceased is UK domiciled in that the spouse exemption for a non-UK domiciled surviving spouse is restricted to £325,000. There are ways around this which may be sensible depending on the circumstances.
If, after this, we find ourselves with a non-UK domicile then all can be straightforward hereon in, albeit quite time consuming. There are different procedures to follow depending on whether the deceased left a will or not and whether the UK estate is movable or not. A translated and notarised copy of the will together with other papers and a statement of the law of the country of the deceased may be needed to support the application and the legal system in some jurisdictions can be quite slow (to put it mildly).
The next step
We are looking after several cases currently and are happy to discuss with the personal representatives in all time zones to see if we can help. Please get in touch for more information.
Next steps
Find out more about probate and estate administration
For more details about our range of probate services, please get in touch through the form or download our Probate services brochure.
Meet our probate specialists in Abingdon
We are highly experienced and licensed probate practitioners, licensed by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), a licensing body for probate.
As full members of STEP (Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners) our services include probate activities, will writing, estate planning, applications for grants of probate, the administration of estates and the administration of trusts. We can advise on and minimise tax liability on Inheritance Tax and taxes related to trusts and estates.
We have the experience to ensure that the management of the estate will be handled professionally and sensitively. To find out how we can help you, please fill in the form below to contact one of our probate advisors in Abingdon.
Our probate specialists are based in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, and we have 4 offices across Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Wiltshire, and look after probate, estate, trust and tax clients from all across the UK.
