Moving abroad: what should I do with my UK home?

Selling gives you a clean break and cash to take with you, but it is an exit from the UK property market: buying back in later means paying whatever prices have done in the meantime, plus the costs of two transactions. There may also be capital gains tax considerations depending on how the property has been used and when you sell; the rules for people who move abroad are specific enough that it's worth taking proper tax advice before committing.

Leaving it empty feels like the low-effort option and is usually the worst one. Council tax remains due on an empty home. Many insurance policies restrict or void cover once a property has been unoccupied beyond a set period (often measured in weeks, and buried in the policy wording), so a burst pipe six months in can become an uninsured loss. An obviously empty house is also a security risk, and small problems (a leak, damp, a failed boiler) go unnoticed until they are big ones.

Letting it out means the property earns rent that can cover the mortgage, insurance and upkeep, someone is living in it and reporting problems, and the asset (and your place on the ladder) is still there when you come back. The trade-off is real: you become a landlord, with a landlord's legal obligations, and you'll be meeting them from another country. The rest of this guide is about doing that properly.

A standard residential mortgage assumes you live in the property. Before a tenant moves in, contact your lender and ask for consent to let: permission to rent the property out while keeping your existing mortgage. Lenders commonly grant it for a defined period, sometimes with a fee or an adjusted interest rate, which makes it a good fit for a posting or relocation of a few years.

If the move looks permanent, or the lender declines, the alternative is remortgaging onto a buy-to-let product, which is designed for rented property and typically assessed on the expected rent as well as your income. Which route is cheaper depends on your lender and circumstances, so ask for both figures in writing before you decide. Whatever you do, don't skip this step: letting without consent can put you in breach of the mortgage terms, and it can also invalidate your buildings insurance.

Leaving the country doesn't take your rent out of the UK tax net. Once you live abroad, the Non-Resident Landlord (NRL) Scheme applies: by default your agent (or your tenant, if you have no agent) must deduct basic-rate tax from the rent before it reaches you, unless you apply to HMRC with form NRL1 to receive it gross and declare the income through Self Assessment instead. Our NRL Scheme guide walks through how it works and how to apply.

Separately, tell HMRC you're leaving the UK. If you don't normally file a Self Assessment return, that's done with form P85, which also lets HMRC work out any tax refund due for the year you leave. And your new home country will usually want to know about the income too. Most countries the UK's expats move to have a double-taxation treaty with the UK, so the same rent isn't taxed twice in full, but you generally still have to declare it. A tax adviser in your country of residence can tell you exactly what to file and where.

Before the tenancy starts you need:

• A gas safety certificate (CP12), renewed every 12 months.
• An EICR (electrical safety report), renewed at least every 5 years.
• An EPC rated E or above for most lettings.
• Working smoke and carbon-monoxide alarms where required.
• A Right to Rent check on every adult tenant.
• The key terms of the tenancy in writing, given to the tenant before signing (required since 1 May 2026; it can be part of the agreement).
• Any deposit protected in a government-approved scheme within 30 days.

Each requirement, with links to the official sources, is covered in our compliance certificates guide. Do these before you fly: arranging a gas engineer from another timezone is exactly the kind of job that slips.

Self-managing from abroad is legal and cheapest, but you'll be arranging repairs, chasing rent and tracking renewal dates across timezones, and you still need a UK contact tenants can reach in an emergency. Traditional full management typically costs 12–18% of rent plus VAT. The honest breakdown is in our guide to what a letting agent costs. Flat-fee platforms like Cheerfulrent sit in between: a fixed monthly fee for rent collection, compliance tracking, screening and vetted tradespeople, while you keep the decisions.

Whichever you choose, set it up before you leave, and read our full guide to renting out a UK property while living abroad for how the pieces fit together once you're gone.

1. Get consent to let from your mortgage lender (or switch to a buy-to-let product).
2. Book the certificates: EPC (E or above), gas safety (annual) and EICR (5-yearly).
3. Switch your insurance from a standard home policy to a landlord policy, and tell the insurer you'll be living abroad.
4. Choose a deposit protection scheme so the deposit can be protected within 30 days of receipt.
5. Reference your tenant: credit, affordability and previous-landlord checks, plus Right to Rent.
6. File form NRL1 with HMRC to receive rent without tax deducted at source.
7. File form P85 (or note it in Self Assessment) to tell HMRC you're leaving the UK.
8. Set up the money: tenant's standing order into a UK account, and how rent reaches you abroad.
9. Name a repairs contact in the UK who can act on emergencies without waking you at 3am.
10. Give the tenant the key terms in writing before signing, and keep proof with the tenancy file.

Work through it top to bottom: consent and certificates take the longest lead time, and everything after item 5 can run in parallel during your notice period.