The war involving Iran and other countries in the Middle East have raised concerns for expats living in the area who may be considering a temporary return to the UK. This article explains how travel disruption interacts with the UK Statutory Residence Test and when “exceptional circumstances” may allow certain days spent in the UK to be disregarded when determining tax residence.
Periods of geopolitical instability can force internationally mobile individuals to make difficult decisions quickly. Safety concerns, employer advice and travel disruption can lead people to reconsider where they live and work, sometimes with very little notice.
The war involving Iran and other countries in the Middle East have prompted many expats living in the Gulf region to review their plans. Some employers have allowed staff to temporarily relocate until the situation stabilises, while some families are considering returning to the UK for a period of time.
These situations raise an important question for people who normally live and work abroad: could returning to the UK unexpectedly affect your tax residence status? This is especially pertinent given the tax free living offered in places such as UAE and Qatar.
This article is provided for general information purposes only and does not constitute tax advice. Tax residence status depends on an individual’s specific circumstances and the application of the UK Statutory Residence Test can be complex. If geopolitical events or travel disruption affect your residency position, you should seek advice from a qualified tax professional before making decisions that could affect your tax position.
Over the past week, we have seen enquiries from individuals who live in the Middle East and are concerned that returning to the UK temporarily might cause their overseas income to become subject to UK taxation. Others have lived abroad for many years but are now considering a temporary or permanent return to the UK because of the evolving security situation in the region.
The concern in both cases is understandable.
The UK’s Statutory Residence Test (SRT) determines whether someone is treated as UK tax resident in a given tax year. For individuals who normally live abroad, spending more time in the UK than planned can potentially change their tax position.
The rules do include provisions for “exceptional circumstances”, which may allow certain days spent in the UK to be ignored if someone is prevented from leaving the country because of events outside their control. Situations such as war or civil unrest may potentially fall within this definition.
However, the rule is narrower than many people expect. The existence of geopolitical conflict does not automatically mean that days spent in the UK can be ignored.
Understanding how the Statutory Residence Test works, and how travel disruption is interpreted by HMRC, is therefore important for expatriates considering whether to return to the UK during periods of regional instability.
When conflicts escalate in parts of the world, the immediate concern for individuals and families is safety. People may decide to leave a region temporarily or employers may allow staff to relocate until the situation stabilises.
However, the impact of conflict on international travel is often more complex than many people assume.
Even when certain airspace closes or airlines suspend specific routes, global aviation networks typically adapt quickly. Airlines frequently reroute flights to avoid restricted airspace, sometimes operating longer routes through alternative corridors such as Turkey, Central Asia or southern flight paths over the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa.
As a result, travel between the Middle East and Europe may continue even during periods of regional tension, although journeys may take longer or require indirect connections.
This distinction can be important when considering UK tax residence rules.
The Statutory Residence Test focuses specifically on situations where someone is prevented from leaving the UK, rather than situations where travel becomes more difficult or where individuals feel safer remaining there.
When aviation disruption occurs in the Middle East, it does not affect every country in the same way.
Major aviation hubs in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Oman have generally continued operating international routes during periods of regional instability. Airlines frequently adjust flight paths to avoid restricted airspace and maintain connections with Europe and other parts of the world.
Passengers travelling through cities such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, Jeddah or Muscat may therefore still be able to travel internationally, even if journeys take longer or require indirect routes.
Qatar, with its major international hub at Hamad International Airport, is also often able to maintain international connectivity by rerouting flights when regional airspace restrictions occur.
However, disruption may affect certain locations more significantly depending on which airspace corridors are restricted.
Countries such as Qatar and Bahrain, which rely heavily on particular regional flight paths, may face more operational disruption if neighbouring airspace closes. In those situations, flights may be cancelled or suspended for periods of time.
This difference may be relevant when determining whether someone was genuinely unable to leave the UK.
The UK determines tax residence using the Statutory Residence Test, which considers a combination of factors including:
For many expats, the day count is one of the most important elements.
Depending on their UK ties, individuals who normally live abroad may only be able to spend a limited number of days in the UK before becoming tax resident.
In some cases the relevant thresholds may be 15, 45, 90 or 120 days within a tax year.
Unexpected travel disruption can therefore create concern if someone finds themselves spending significantly longer in the UK than originally planned.
This is more relevant towards the end of the tax year (March) when people are reaching their limit of allowable days in the UK to avoid becoming a UK tax resident.
The Statutory Residence Test recognises that there may be situations where someone cannot leave the UK because of circumstances outside their control.
In these cases, certain days spent in the UK may be ignored if they arise because of exceptional circumstances that prevent the individual from leaving the country.
Examples that may potentially qualify include:
However, several important conditions must normally be met.
The circumstances must be outside the individual’s control and must genuinely prevent the person from leaving the UK. The individual must also intend to leave as soon as the situation allows.
There is also a strict limit to the relief available.
A maximum of 60 days per tax year can be disregarded under the exceptional circumstances rule. Any additional days will still count when calculating UK tax residence.
Many taxpayers assume that any disruption automatically qualifies as exceptional circumstances but in reality, the threshold is much higher.
The key requirement is that the situation must prevent the individual from leaving the UK, not merely make travel inconvenient or expensive.
Examples that may not qualify include:
HMRC has historically taken a strict interpretation of these rules and several tribunal cases have emphasised the importance of clear evidence.
For example, if someone living in Dubai was visiting the UK and planned to return to the Middle East but flights were suspended due to escalating conflict with Iran, those additional days in the UK may potentially qualify as exceptional circumstances, but only while it was not possible to leave the UK when flights to alternative destinations continue to be available.
During periods of geopolitical uncertainty, families may understandably decide to return to the UK temporarily if they feel safer there.
However, from a tax residence perspective this decision alone does not necessarily qualify as exceptional circumstances.
The key requirement remains that the individual must be prevented from leaving the UK.
If flights are still operating, alternative routes exist or travel remains possible through another jurisdiction, HMRC may conclude that the individual was not prevented from leaving the UK.
In that case, the days spent in the UK will still count towards the individual’s tax residence position, even if travel disruption made returning abroad more complicated or expensive.
Where travel disruption occurs, individuals may need to consider alternative travel arrangements rather than assuming the exceptional circumstances rule will apply.
For example, if direct flights are unavailable, it may still be possible to:
The availability of alternative routes can influence how HMRC views whether someone was genuinely prevented from leaving the UK.
This does not mean individuals should take unnecessary risks or travel through unsafe areas. Safety should always be the primary concern. However, the existence of viable travel routes may affect whether the exceptional circumstances rule applies.
A useful precedent occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thousands of internationally mobile individuals were stranded in the UK due to lockdowns and travel restrictions. HMRC confirmed that these situations could qualify as exceptional circumstances, but the 60-day limit still applied.
This means someone who was stuck in the UK for several months could still accidentally become UK tax resident.
We also saw from the Covid-19 period that those entirely reliant on the full-time work overseas test could not work in the UK during a period of exceptional circumstances as it remained important to not create a significant break from overseas work in the year of more than 30 days.
The same principles would apply in the case of geopolitical conflict.
Where travel disruption genuinely prevents someone from leaving the UK, documentation will usually be critical.
Individuals should retain evidence showing that they attempted to leave the UK but were unable to do so.
Examples may include:
Without this documentation, it may be difficult to demonstrate that exceptional circumstances genuinely applied.
If you normally live abroad but travel regularly to the UK, the ongoing conflict in the Middle East highlights several important planning considerations, especially going into the new UK tax year.
If your day limit is 90 days, it may be wise to plan for fewer visits in case the situation deteriorates further.
Unexpected travel disruptions can quickly alter your position, record your days and know what “a day in the UK” means in real terms.
Evidence will be crucial if you need to demonstrate exceptional circumstances, you must keep all emails and documentation connected to your delay.
The interaction between exceptional circumstances, UK ties and split-year rules can be complex, especially for people who normally live abroad and manage their UK tax residence carefully. The war in Iran and wider conflict in the Middle East is unlikely to be resolved quickly.
Returning to the UK unexpectedly, or getting stuck in the UK, may create unintended tax consequences if the additional days spent in the UK trigger residence under the Statutory Residence Test.
Understanding how the exceptional circumstances rule operates, and keeping appropriate records where travel disruption occurs, can help reduce uncertainty during periods of international disruption.
Trying to navigate this alone can become stressful and where circumstances are unclear or travel plans change unexpectedly, taking professional advice may help ensure that temporary decisions do not create unintended long-term tax consequences.
