Managing a bank account in the UK

Hi there, I have some money collecting dust in a UK savings account. The interest rate is pathetically low. I’m thinking of switching it to a building society with a higher interest rate (0.5-0.8%) but in order to do so, most building societies require that I am a UK resident. I’m not sure if I have officially declared myself a non-UK resident, but I definitely don’t have an address. I have a savings acocunt here but the interest rate is also very low (0.01%) I believe, and the £ isn’t too strong against the TWD that I want to transfer the money over here yet. Has anyone managed to put their money in a savings account in the UK without being a resident? Any ideas about what I should do with the money? An ISA is not an option because it’s more than an ISA will allow, and ideally I’d like to be able to withdraw at any time. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, cheers.

You can’t legally get an ISA whilst not being a tax resident anyway, so it’s not an option.

Without a UK address you are gonna have difficulties. If you have family you should see if you can use their address.

Freetrade is a good option if you want to invest into some funds but you’ll need a UK address. I invest in S&P500 or FTSE All World through Freetrade. Freetrade technically says you shouldn’t invest in their platform if you aren’t living in the UK anymore, but AFAIU it isn’t illegal to continue using it so I still do. I also asked what would happen if they found out you are still using it whilst abroad, and they said they’d just ask you to close your account, so no risk in my eyes.

If a friend or family member will let you use their address, do so.

Put money into an ISA or buy stocks and shares. I’ve been doing so for 10 years, and still have credit cards based in the UK. I pay them off in full every month.

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Yeah the address is crucial. I did not want to burden anyone with that. I also have some money sitting there. Next time I go there post pandemic I will move it. I called them from Taiwan and said I wanted my money out and to close the account. They said I had to pop into my local branch in the UK (WTF). I then tried to use my check book , but the bank in Taiwan said the check I used is for inside the UK only. I then used a check to pay my sister some money and so she can then pay me through Swift lol.
BTW nearly all my relatives are passed on and my sister is in her late sixties. They asked her lots of questions when she got the check, who is it from , why blah blah. Anyway still have a few thousands sitting there.

If you don’t live in the UK anymore, putting money into an ISA is fraud if I understand correctly. I believe if you already have money in the ISA when you leave the UK you can keep it there, but adding new money or opening a new ISA is a no go.

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Thanks for all the replies. I already invest in funds (ETFs and stocks etc) with Chinatrust here in Taiwan, but I don’t really want to move the money here right now because the exchange rate isn’t great. When I first moved here it was $65NTD to £1! I know that’s not going to happen again, but it still seems low at $38. I’ve been told that some building societies allow you to use their services if you’re not a resident or UK tax payer, so I’m looking into that at the moment. Rates are around 0.5-0.8% which isn’t great, but better than my current 0.01% at NatWest! I have family in the UK but using them is not really a feasible option. Real estate perhaps? Bitcoin? Grand National?! Hope everyone is safe and well

Get an Interactive Brokers account, transfer your GBP into the account, and purchase a GBP-denominated FTSE ETF.