To move to a new place, means finding a new home too. There’s a few questions you should start by asking yourself to determine priorities:

1. Do you want to live alone or with roommates?
2. What is your budget?
3. What are your priorities in a place to live? Location? Outdoor space? Kitchen? Animal-friendly? Walk-up vs. larger building?

Rightmove is a great platform for finding places for yourself or a group of people you are looking to sign a lease with, while SpareRoom is a good platform for finding a place to move in with other people that is already solidified in a lease. OpenRent is another platform to look for flats, specific for private landlords to list their properties without the help of estate agencies.

When looking for a new lease, rather than filling a room, the market can move quickly. Quite often, properties listed online may not still be available once you reach out to visit the property. For this reason, it’s helpful to peruse rightmove for potential properties especially in advance of when you are ready to move. Usually, the market is available with properties about 3-6 weeks in advance.

Another good way to navigate the housing market is to reach out to estate agents. Landlords will typically list their properties with one (or multiple) agencies to help show their property. Estate agents are eager to get you to look at properties and eager to match a tenant with a landlord to get payment for their services. As a tenant, you do not need to pay an estate agent, but should know they can be very sales focused in trying to get you to sign a deal. Nevertheless, they are critical to the process.

Consider reaching out to some estate agents to describe what you are looking for, and then the estate agents will share potential properties for you to visit within your criteria. There are numerous estate agencies in London, but here are a few to get you started: KFH, Knight Frank, Foxtons, Marsh & Parsons, Winksorth, Savills, Westways, Chestertons, Hamptons, etc.

A few things which are normal in London, but perhaps not something you’ve experienced or dealt with in other places you’ve lived:

• Break clauses are written in most leases, to allow either the tenant or landlord to end the lease early with appropriate warning. For example, a 1 year lease with a 6 month break clause and 2 month notice means after 6 months, the tenant or landlord can give 2 months notice at any point after 6 months to terminate the lease
• Furnished vs. Unfurnished – maybe flats will be furnished providing basics like a bed, table and chairs, and a couch. The level of furnished can vary drastically, and may still require additional furniture to feel full. For unfurnished properties, some agencies can provide furniture rental options for those not interested in purchasing furniture for the property.
• Prices are often listed in price / week, but typically contracted for monthly lease payments
• 5 weeks rent is standard as a deposit
• Properties are available year-round, and not necessarily at the beginning of the month. Higher demand periods include August / September with a lot of students often requiring housing, and winter months usually having lower supply

Read more about the neighborhoods of London in my London Location Guide

5. Transferring starter funds

Assuming you’ll need some money to allow you to get started in your new home, you’ll likely consider transferring some initial funds over to your UK bank account.

Revolut or Wise – two companies with good opportunities to transfer money, between currencies and accounts. They both will charge fees if transferring from different bank accounts and require currency changes.

6. Moving your belongings

Depending on how much you plan to bring with you on your move, it could be you are able to bring most on a plane with you. However, for those who have more than a few suitcase of luggage, consider using a company like Send My Bag to ship your belongings overseas.

If you plan to ship your items, you should apply for Transfer of Residence relief. If approved, you’ll receive a Unique Reference Number to get relief on custom charges due on transferring your personal belongings into the country. The relief can be given within the first 12 months of moving to the UK.

Arrival

1. Move into your home

Welcome to London! At this point, you’ve packed your bags (or at least some of them) and moved to the UK. If you have already picked where you are going to live, you’ll be moving right into your new home.

If you have temporary housing organized for your arrival, then the fun begins now to explore where you may want to live. It’s especially nice to be able to walk around the neighborhoods and visit flats in person before signing a lease.

Fun Fact: The United Kingdom is a sovereign state made up of four countries: England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Island. It’s full name is “The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.” Great Britain is an island made up of England, Scotland and Wales. Northern Ireland is part of the island of Ireland which is comprised of “The Republic of Ireland” and “Northern Ireland”. Someone is considered British if they are from the island of Great Britain, or Irish if from the island of Ireland.

2. Apply for a National Insurance Number

A national insurance number is needed in the UK to help track contributions to your National Insurance and make sure your taxes are accurately recorded. Employers will also ask for this information.

To set-up a National Insurance number, find information on the UK gov website where you can apply online. It may take time to process so it is best to do this as soon as you’ve arrived in the UK. You are not able to do this in advance as it requires you to be in the UK to apply.

3. Banking (more on this)

Once you open a bank account, you will be given a Debit card with a pin code. Unlike in places like the US, you will never be asked to sign for payment and instead may be asked to enter your pin code for verification. While a debit card is helpful for accessing your bank account, it does not provide any perks similar to traditional credit cards.

Consider opening a credit card shortly after arriving. Unlike the US, there are not as many perks and point opportunities to bank credit cards (i.e. Barclays) in the UK. Thus, it’s likely you will turn to American Express to open a credit card as they offer credit cards with perks and points with spend. It is important to note that there are places in Europe that will not accept AMEX and thus you may be forced to use a debit card or different credit card.

The credit limit you are provided is usually much lower in the UK than in the US. It will take time to build your credit. Credit can be built in the UK via:

• Paying bills on time such as utilities, household bills, etc.
• Living in the same place for 1+ years
• Being on the electoral roll
• Using secured credit cards

4. Open a phone plan

There are a variety of providers for phone plans in the UK, with a few big ones including: BT, O2, Three, and Vodafone. BT is a very good provider and one I can personally recommend after having issues with Vodafone in London (along with horrible customer service).

Fortunately, phone plans tend to be more affordable in the UK than in US for those Americans moving to London. It’s also easier to open a single person plan.

Depending on your needs, there will be a variety of options. Items to consider include quantity of data and international usage with specific attention on places you plan to travel and will be using your phone.

You will get a new phone number starting with +44. When setting up your device, you’ll have an option between a physical SIM card and an E-Sim. At this time (2025), it’s important to note that newer iPhones purchased in the US often do not have a place for a physical SIM Card. Thus, if you are using an iPhone from the US, you will likely need to opt into the eSIM option.

If keeping another phone number, you can set up Dual Sim on your phone. This allows there to be more than one phone number on the device. Within the settings, you will prioritize the number to use as default for phone calls and data, and this can be changed when traveling as required.

Whatsapp is a common messaging app used in Europe to communicate. Download the app and attach your UK number for easy messaging with people.

5. Set up broadband

Broadband (high speed internet) is one you’ll want to organize once you know your move-in date. Broadband companies include BT, Sky and Virgin. You’ll select a package with the company which works for you. Depending on the property you are moving into and the location, will impact if an engineer needs to visit the property to establish the broadband connection.

Since an appointment could be required, sometimes people have to wait a few weeks to get broadband set up after moving in. For this reason, it’s best to look into this once you have move-in plans to cut down on the potential wait time.

6. Set up council tax, water, and energy payments

Direct Debit is a common way to set up utility and other recurring payments in the UK. You’ll enter your Account Number and Sort Code and define a schedule for payments to be made from the account. Thus, the payments are scheduled and made automatically as required.

Council tax – a tax paid to your local authorities for services like rubbish collection, police and fire services, town councils, etc. There is a 25% discount given to individuals who live by themselves, but this will need to be applied for in order to receive the discount. The amount of council tax will differ by borough and there are 32 boroughs (+ the city of London which is not technically a borough). Find your local council to register for council tax. If you ever move within the borough or leave the borough, you will need to update the information for your council.

Water – visit Thameswater to register for an account and set-up direct debit payments to pay for water. If your flat has a water meter, you’ll pay for exact usage, but if not then you’ll pay an amount based on where you live and size of your propert.

Energy – there are different provider options for electric and gas including British Gas, EDF, E.on and Octopus Energy. You can check on rates at various companies to find the best plan for you. You will likely pay fixed amounts each month, but then be requested to provide a gas meter and electric meter reading. This then checks your actuals to see if you are in debit or credit of your payments. Meters can be found in different locations depending on the property, so best to ask the landlord where this can be found.

6. Set up TV Tax

A TV Tax must be paid by those who have a TV in their flat, and specifically watch or record live programmes or use any BBC programmes including the BBC iPlayer. The fee is around £175 / year and helps to fund the BBC keeping it ad free. If you do not have a TV in your flat, you can register for a TV tax exemption.

Getting Settled

1. Register with a GP in your neighborhood

The UK offers public healthcare to all residents. In order to get access to the public healthcare, it’s imperative you register with a local GP where you will be given a NHS number. You will change GPs if you move locations, as the intention is to have a GP within close proximity to where you live.

Look up GPs in your neighborhood (try googling your post code of GPs near you). Fill out a form online or call the GP and ask if they are accepting new NHS patients. If the answer is no, there will be other options in your neighborhood.

Once you’ve successfully registered with a GP for the first time, you will receive a NHS number.

2. Buy a Railcard

Railcards give travelers up to 1/3 off the fare for many train journeys. They are especially targeted at people between the ages of 16 – 30 . A railcard typically costs about £30 – £40. For those living in London and using trains (even a little), a railcard quickly pays itself back.

Visit the UK Railcard website to learn more about different railcards.

Make sure you purchase a new railcard each year, as they do expire. Additionally, you may be asked, at anytime when traveling on a train ticket with a railcard, to show your railcard. To make sure you can do this, download the railcard phone app and prepare your railcard.

3. UK Taxes

The tax year in the UK runs from 6 April to 5 April. If you are employed by a company, your company will register you with HMRC (His / Her majesty Revenue & Customs) where you will be assigned a tax code. The tax code is important as it designates how much money comes directly out of your paycheck.

For self-employed individuals, you will need to register with HMRC and file a self-assessment to file your taxes.

Check for the most up to date information on the UK Government website

Tax rates in 2025 are as follows. The first £12,570 is tax free, however, for every £2 over £100,000 you make, the tax-free amount is reduced by £1. Thus, if you make £125,140 or more, the tax free allowance is completely gone and you will need to pay tax on it.

Band	Taxable income	Tax rate
Personal Allowance	Up to £12,570	0%
Basic rate	£12,571 to £50,270	20%
Higher rate	£50,271 to £125,140	40%
Additional rate	over £125,140	45%

4. Look ahead at your Tax Planning

For US citizens, you will need to also file US taxes since the US globally taxes its citizens. Fortunately, there is a tax treaty between the US and the UK. Since the UK taxes are higher than the US, you will rarely owe in the US. However, you will always need to file taxes in the US.

Since the tax calendars are different, it creates challenges in filing the taxes. Personally, I opted to pay specialized tax accountants to support me in completing my US taxes as an expat and can recommend Expat Tax Professionals.

Some key information:

• Deadline – all expats have a 2 month extension, but can apply for a longer one if required
• Federal taxes need to be filed every year
• State tax requirements differ by US state
• A tax accountant is recommended as they will help determine the optimal way to file your taxes
• Since US and UK are on different calendars, accountants have to estimate the amount you pay in some areas but will do this by looking at your income / pay statements.
• There are two key ways to file your taxes
  • FTC – Foreign tax credit
    • This ultimately compares the taxes you paid in another country against the taxes you would owe in the same financial state in the US. If you paid more in the other country, you will owe nothing. If you paid less in the other country, you will be taxed the differences to the US.
    • It is expected you file this way for countries with comparable tax structures to the US
    • Permitted to invest into a Roth IRA still in the US
    • Taking the credit usually makes financial sense because the amount reduces your actual tax bill instead of just lowering your taxable income. The tax break reduces the double tax burden that would otherwise arise if you were taxed on the same income twice.
    • Helpful Link: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/foreign-tax-credit.asp
  • Foreign Earned Income Exclusion
    • This option excludes $130k (value is subject to change each year) from your earned income and will not be taxed AT ALL. You then pay tax only on your total income minus $130k so the total value of your earned income is reduced
    • It is expected you file this way for countries with lower or no taxes. In these places, filing with the FTC would require you to pay taxes as if you lived in the US, whereas this option permits part of the earned income to be fully excluded from taxes
    • Not permitted to invest into a Roth IRA if you do you do not make ($130k  + $7000) where $130k is the maximum value you can exclude from taxes and $7000 is the maximum value of the Roth IRA
    • The reason for the above is because this option ultimately does not recognize the first $130k of income, and you must contribute earned income to your Roth IRA. This is important for people who make under the threshold because the outcome between the two ways of filing may otherwise be the same
    • Helpful Link: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/foreign-earned-income-exclusion.asp

• FBAR
  • Report of Foreign Banking and Financial Accounts
  • Form is required if you have any foreign bank accounts which exceed $10k USD at ANY point throughout the year (be sure to check FX fluctuations as well if on the cusp)
  • Helpful Link: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/report-of-foreign-bank-and-financial-accounts-fbar
• Watchpoints I was advised to be careful on as an expat which can make taxes excessively more complicated
  • Purchasing property
  • Some foreign investments
  • UK ISA (often not even allowed for US citizens)