Cost of Living in the UK, Entering UK

UK Cost of living:

Accommodation : £400 - £1200 p.m. Fully furnished available. (for an independant living, with family. Shared accommodation for families are also available. This usually includes boarding, electric, water, kitechen utilities (oven, cooking range, gas supply) and bathroom (washing machine), where cleaning is offered once a week only.)

Also need to consider the initial deposit that you would be required to pay to the letting agent for the accommodation, which is usually 1.5 months rent. The deposit is returned once your letting tenure (usually 6 or 12 months) is over and you vacate the house ( in the condition that was rented out to you). The letting agent may charge you a nominal fees for the services that he offers you, which can be in the range of 20%-40% of you rent.

Council Tax : £70 - £150 p.m. It is mandatory and collected by the local authority on a monthly or a early basis. (If you stay alone you can claim a discount of upto 20%.) Age of the building, insulation etc. decide how much you pay to the Council. This is utilised for schooling, security and waste management in your locality.

Gas/Electricity : £60-£100 p.m. (usualy higher during the winter months, from October to March) . If you rent a flat, you may not receive any gas connection (to avoid any accidents) and is not legal to procure one. Cooking in kitchen and heating is done using the electric connection, which can be expensive compared to gas.

Usually payable monthly or once in 3 months. You can choose the energy supplier based on the price and plan that suits you best. Some of the famous electric suppliers in UK are : e-On, Scotttish Power, British Gas, npower, Southern Electric etc.


Communication : Telephone / cell / broadband / landlines: £30-£70 p.m. (BT, O2, Orange, Virgin, T mobile, Vodafone & 3 are some famous communication providers in UK.)

News papers cost 60p to £1 daily. (The Times, Daily Telegraph, Daily Mail & Gaurdian are some of the prominent printed dailies.). Books and periodicals can be accessed via the local libraries. Buying theme can be quite expensive.

Water : £50 - £70 p.m. ( Anglian water etc.)

Food : £200 - 300 p.m. (for a family of 2 adults and a child), can be less by upto 50%, if staying alone in an accommodation.) Tesco, Sainsbury's, Morrison's & ASDA, which are major retail outlets of UK.

Travel : £50 - £120 p.m. (Taxis in UK can be quite expensive, they can cost £1 a mile to £3 a mile, in London, due to high congestion, they charge based on time.)

Check out National Express &
The Train Line for your bus & train travels in UK.
London Underground / Tube.

The cost of cars in the United Kingdom can also be significantly higher compared to getting them from their places of origin like Germany and Italy. A decent used (7-9 yrs. old) family car can cost upwards of £600. Having an International Driving License (with longer validity), working spouse with a driving license can help reduce the cost of car Insurance by half.

Driving in UK: Visitors with a foreign licence may drive in the UK provided their licence is valid for more than 12 months from the date of entry into the UK.

If you wish to continue driving after this period, you will need either to exchange your foreign licence for a British licence or to obtain a provisional UK licence and pass a UK driver’s test before the 12 months is up.

A provisional licence is the equivalent to the learner’s licence that you need to obtain before you can go for your driver’s test. To apply for your provisional driver’s licence, contact the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) directly at:

Email: drivers.dvla@gtnet.gov.uk
Website: www.dvla.gov.uk


Leisure : £20 - £your limit. p.m. (Sky, connections for cable etc.) A movie ticket can range abywhere between £4.6 to £10 per show. While theatres/ live stage shows are a rage in the UK ( esp. London.), costing anyweher between £10 to £100 each.

Taxi between Heathrow and Central London: £40-£70.

Currency: National currency is the British pound (sterling) (GBP), with one hundred pence to each pound. Notes are issued in the value of £50, £20, £10 & £5. Coins to the value of £2, £1, 50p, 20p, 10p, 5p, 2p, & 1p.

Value Added Tax (VAT) is @20% which is payable on most retail purchases. Most baby items are exempt from this VAT. VAT is refundable on electronic goods purchase if you are returning withing 6 months of your purchase. You can claim your VAT at any of the UK exit ports.  ( e.g. Heathrow etc.)


Visit Office of National Statistics for economic releases on UK

Some Lastminute help, You can check lastminute, for a host of deals and bargains on Hotel, flight & accommodation in the UK.

Cost saving tips in UK:

There are host of websites which compare prices across various segments of the market from food, to cars to insurance to clothes. e.g. MySupermarket.co.uk can come handy, which compares prices across different websites. Gocompare for Insuarance etc.

Security:

It was in London where Big Brother ( also a famous reality show on TV ) was coined, owing to high number CCTVs ( Close circuit cameras, close to 600,000, highest in the world ) in public places, for security of the people. It is said an average person is captured 200 times by the cameras in London, making it one of the highest in security in the world.


Accommodation in UK

Have you found accommodation in the UK yet? If you are looking for a place to stay for the first couple of weeks after your arrival, we have a few sites for you to visit and on which to find accommodation.

• If you are sociable and who would like to meet people from all over the world, then why not stay in a hostel/backpackers lodge? They are inexpensive and will know all the great places to visit and clubs to go to, and there will be lots of lots of people to enjoy these activities with you. Click here to find a hostel.

• The YMCA also provides accommodation for people travelling to the UK. You can use them as a support base for the beginning of your stay. Have a look at what they can offer you by clicking here.

• Want to share a flat? Have a look on the Gumtree advertising website if you would like to organise a room for yourself in a flat share before you leave. There are many rooms available all over the UK.

Finances:

Taxation: One of the important things that you need to know, what is the tax that you will need to pay if you earn in UK. It ranges from 20% to 40%, depending on the income bracket you fall into. Also needed is to contribute for National Insurance that can be 10-11% of your gross income. ( Your employer also pays equal amount as NI for you.).

If you from a country that the UK has a double taxation avoidance treaty, then you may need to pay your tax only in one country. At the end of the financial year ( i.e. April to March) you are issue a P60 form, which has details on your employment and the tax you have paid in the last financial year. This is issue by the HMRC.

Bank Account: There are various prominent banks in UK vis-a-vis HSBC, Lloyds TSB, ICICI Bank, Barclays, NatWest etc, who offer easy ways of opening a bank account. Usully needing your passport and address proof in the UK top open the account.

Credit Card: Credit cards may not be easy to avail of, as it depends on your credit worthiness and your roots in the UK. Ideally anyone who has been living in the UK for more than 3 years. Experian is one of the reputed & trustworthy names doing the credit Checks and providing vital information about your background. (having details on your address, loans, credit cards, employment, voting status, direct debit mandates etc.) Typical rates vary from 16% APR to 39% APR.

Loans: (Home Loans, Personal Loans, Mortgages) As is the case with Credit Card, securing loans too require excellent background and credit rating. However, unsecured Loans are also available but at exhorbitant interest rates, which can go upto 140% p.a., where you re-pay them weekly.

Entering UK & Customs

Entering UK for temporary or permanent residence? You can import personal belongings duty & tax free. Any duty or tax due depends on where you came from, where you purchased the goods, how long you’ve owned them. No restrictions exists on goods purchased tax and duty paid in another EU country, however, there are limits for goods like tobacco, beer & wine.

Every port or airport in the UK use a system of red & green ‘channels’. Red means you have something to declare and green that you have nothing to declare (i.e. no more than the customs allowances, no goods to sell and no prohibited or restricted goods). If you’re certain that you have nothing to declare, pass through the ‘green channel’, otherwise take the red channel.
Customs make random checks on people going through the green channel and there are stiff penalties for violation of the rules.
If you need to pay duty or tax, it must be paid at the time the goods are brought into the country. Customs accept cash (sterling only); personal cheques supported by a cheque guarantee card; MasterCard, Visa and, at some ports and airports, Switch debit cards. If you’re unable to pay on the spot, customs keep your belongings until you pay the sum due, which must be paid within the period noted on the back of your receipt. Postage or freight charges must be paid if you want the goods sent to you.
Your belongings may be imported up to six months before, but no more than one year after your arrival, after transferring your residence. They mustn’t be sold, lent, hired out, or otherwise disposed of in the UK (or elsewhere in the EU) within one year of their importation, without first obtaining customs authorisation.
If you’re shipping your personal belongings (which includes anything for your family’s personal use – such as clothing, cameras, television and stereo, furniture and other household goods) – unaccompanied to the UK, you must complete (and sign) customs form C3, obtainable from your shipping agent, HM Customs and Excise (see address below) or www.hmce.gov.uk, and attach a detailed packing list. If you employ an international removal company, they handle the customs clearance and associated paperwork for you. Any items originally obtained in the UK or within the EU can be brought into the UK free of customs and excise duty or VAT, provided:

• Any customs duty, excise duty or VAT was paid and not refunded when they were exported from the UK (or the EU in the case of customs duty).

• They were in your private possession and use in the UK before they were exported.

• They haven’t been altered abroad, other than necessary repairs.

• They’re brought back within three years. (This is a condition which Customs & Excise normally waives if the previous three conditions have been met).

The personal belongings you’re allowed to bring into the UK duty and tax free depend on your status, as shown below.

Visitors or Students Resident Abroad

If you’re a visitor, you can bring your belongings to the UK free of duty and tax provided that:

• All belongings are brought in with you and are for your use alone.

• They’re kept in the UK for no longer than twenty four months.

• You don’t sell, lend, hire out, or otherwise dispose of them in the UK.

If you’re unable to export your belongings when you leave the UK, you must apply to the nearest Customs and Excise Advice Centre for an extension.

In addition to the above, students attending a full-time course of study in the UK, can permanently import their clothing and household linen, study articles and household effects for furnishing their accommodation.

Moving or Returning to the UK

If you’re moving or returning to the UK (including British subjects) from outside the EU, you can import your belongings free of duty and tax provided you’ve lived at least 12 months outside the EU. Your possessions must have been used for at least six months outside the EU before being imported. Tax & duty must have been paid on all items being imported (this isn’t applicable to diplomats, members of officially recognised international organisations, members of NATO or British forces and their spouses, and any civilian staff accompanying them). Articles must be for your personal use, must be declared to customs, and you mustn’t sell, lend, hire out, or otherwise dispose of them in the UK (or elsewhere in the EU) within 12 months, without customs authorisation.

People with Second Homes in the UK

If you’re setting up a second home in the UK, you can bring normal household furnishings and equipment with you free of duty and tax if you usually live in another EU country. If you’ve lived outside the EU for at least 12 months, you can import household furnishings and equipment for setting up a second home free of duty, but not free of added tax (VAT), which is levied at 17.5 per cent.

To qualify, you must either own or be renting a home in the UK for a minimum of two years, and your household furnishings and equipment must have been owned and used for at least six months. Articles must be for your personal use, must be declared to customs, and mustn’t be sold, lent out, hired out, or otherwise disposed of in the UK (or elsewhere in the EU) within 24 months without authorisation from Customs and Excise. If furnishings and effects for a second home in the EU are imported unaccompanied, customs form C33 must be completed.

Further Information

Information concerning customs regulations is contained in a number of booklets, called Notices. They cover personal belongings, household effects, private motor vehicles and people moving to the UK after marriage (Notice 3); pleasure craft or boats (Notice 8); inherited goods and vehicles (Notice 368); antiques (Notice 362); and motor vehicles, boats or aircraft from elsewhere in the EU (Notice 728).

Copies of the notices listed above can be obtained from customs offices or downloaded from www.hmce.gov.uk. The primary source of further information is the Customs and Excise national advice line 0845-010 9000 (or if telephoning from abroad +4420-8929 0152). Email and postal enquiry addresses for your local area can be found by using a search feature on the website. The principal address for written enquiries in London is HM Customs and Excise, Thomas Paine House, Angel Square, Torrens Street, London EC1V 1TA. Customs and Excise can also provide detailed information regarding the importation of special items.