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Broadly speaking, an individual’s residence position in the UK is based
on the number of days that they spend in the UK.
The Pre-Budget Report announced that the way in which days spent in the UK
are calculated would be changed from 6 April 2008.
The calculation method has been changed again from 6 April 2008. Rather than
counting days of arrival and departure in the UK, the test of whether a day
will count will be if the individual is resident in the UK at midnight.
There has also been a relaxation of the rules regarding passengers who are
in transit in the UK. This new rule, also applicable from 6 April 2008,
allows passengers to change terminals, airports and modes of transport. If a
person is in transit and does not spend time doing other activities, for
example holding a business meeting, then that day in transit in the UK will
not be counted as a day of residence.
Our view
The changes in the rules regarding the method of counting days in the UK
and for people in transit are positive. For those frequent travellers
who use the UK as a hub for international travel, the relaxation of the
transit rules may be particularly advantageous. The rule changes will
also mean that certain business people, who are genuinely not living in
the UK, are not brought within UK residence by holding a number of
business meetings in the UK per year on a regular basis.
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