RFIG22320 | Statutory Residence Test (SRT): supplementary guidance: Family tie: Concept of family tie: The importance of a family tie

If an individual’s UK residence status cannot be determined by the automatic UK tests or the automatic overseas tests of the SRT, they will need to refer to the sufficient ties tests (see RFIG20500 onwards).

The sufficient ties test sets out a number of defined connection ties that need to be considered to determine an individual’s residence.

Family tie is one of the UK ties. An individual will have a family tie for a tax year if at any time during the year they have a relevant relationship with another person, who is resident in the UK for the same year.

Satisfying the family tie test will not, on its own, make someone conclusively UK resident. It is a factor that, in combination with other ties and the amount of time an individual spends in the UK, contribute towards determining if they are resident in the UK in any 1 tax year.

An individual can only have a family tie if they have a relevant relationship with someone who is resident in the UK. In deciding whether or not that other person is resident in the UK, the family tie that they have with the individual by virtue of that relevant relationship can be ignored for the purposes of the SRT.

Example

George and his wife Mary both spend 140 days in the UK, (a fewer number of days than the 183 day threshold in the automatic UK test). Neither of them was resident in any of the 3 previous tax years. Under the sufficient ties test they will each be resident if they have 2 or more ties.

Both George and Mary have an accommodation tie. They also have a relevant relationship to each other, because they are man and wife. Therefore, if they had a family tie they would both be regarded as resident in the UK. However, because the family tie only exists because of their relevant relationship, the tie can be ignored.

As each of them only has 1 UK tie, neither of them is UK resident in that tax year.