UK company director living abroad
A directorship is the strand with the most threads still attached. None of it stops you leaving — all of it needs planning.
You can stay a director of your UK company after you leave, but manage it deliberately: your own-company dividends are UK-source, UK board meetings are UK workdays (a work tie and UK-source income), director NIC can keep running, and the 5-year rule explicitly claws back close-company distributions. Company residence (central management and control) is a separate, high-stakes question (HMRC RFIG20560; HS278, 2026; 2026/27).
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Are your own-company dividends still UK-taxable?
Dividends from your own UK company are UK-source income even when you are abroad — they never become "foreign" just because you have left. As a non-resident they are usually disregarded income (the tax is capped — see UK dividends and savings when non-resident), but the disregard is a trade-off against the personal allowance.
Do UK board meetings count as UK workdays?
Yes. Every day you do more than 3 hours of work in the UK, including a UK board meeting, counts towards the 40-day work tie (HMRC RFIG20560) and is UK-source employment income. Stack up enough and you can raise your tie count and break a full-time-work-overseas position. Plan board attendance against your UK day budget — and count nights.
Why does the 5-year rule hit directors hardest?
Could your company itself be UK-resident?
Where your company central management and control actually sits can make the company UK-resident regardless of where you live — a question separate from your own residence. This is genuinely high-stakes and fact-specific.
Salary or dividends from abroad?
An indicative, UK-side-only comparison — honest that your country of residence taxes you too.
Common questions
Can I stay a director of my UK company if I live abroad?
Yes — but manage it deliberately. Your own-company dividends stay UK-source, UK board meetings are UK workdays (a work tie and UK-source income), director NIC can keep running, and the 5-year rule claws back close-company distributions. Company residence (central management and control) is a separate, high-stakes question. (HMRC RFIG20560; HS278, 2026; 2026/27.)
Are my UK company dividends taxable after I move abroad?
They stay UK-source income. As a non-resident they are usually “disregarded income” so the UK tax is capped — but only if you forgo the personal allowance against other UK income. And if you return within five years, the temporary non-residence rule taxes close-company distributions in your year of return. (HMRC HS300, 2026; HS278, 2026; 2026/27.)
Do UK board meetings make me UK tax resident?
Each day you do more than 3 hours of work in the UK — including a board meeting — counts towards the 40-day work tie and is UK-source income. Enough UK board days can add a tie and break a full-time-work-overseas position, so plan attendance against your UK day budget. (HMRC RFIG20560; 2026/27.)