The family tie under the statutory residence test

Q: Which relationships count?

Paragraph 32(2) lists three relevant relationships: Spouse or civil partner, unless you are separated. Separated means separated under a court order, by deed of separation, or in circumstances where the separation is likely to be permanent. A partner you live with as if you were a married couple or civil partners. HMRC says it uses the same principles as for tax credits to decide whether people are living together, and that a couple can be living together in the UK, overseas or both. Your child under 18. HMRC says at RFIG22330 that this means your natural or adopted child, and does not include a stepchild unless you have adopted them. The relationship only has to exist at some point in the tax year. A marriage that ends in permanent separation part way through the year can still give a tie for that year if the spouse was UK resident.

You have a family tie for a tax year if, at any time in that year, your spouse or civil partner (unless you are separated), a partner you live with as a couple, or your child under 18 is UK resident. A child does not give you a tie if you see them in person in the UK on fewer than 61 days in the year, and a child who is only resident because of UK schooling is treated as non resident for this purpose if they spend fewer than 21 days in the UK outside term time.

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Where does the family tie fit in the statutory residence test?

The family tie is one of the UK ties used in the sufficient ties test, which decides your residence when none of the automatic tests settles it. Paragraph 31 of Schedule 45 to the Finance Act 2013 lists the ties: family, accommodation, work and 90 day ties for everyone, plus a country tie if you were UK resident in one or more of the previous three tax years. Each tie you count must be of a different type, so a UK resident spouse and a UK resident child together still give only one family tie.

The family tie is defined in paragraph 32, with special rules in paragraph 33. HMRC’s guidance is at RFIG20530, RFIG20540 and RFIG22310 to RFIG22330 in the Residence and FIG Regime Manual. HMRC stresses that a family tie does not on its own make anyone resident. It counts alongside your other ties and your UK days, using the tables explained in our statutory residence test guide.

Which relationships count?

Paragraph 32(2) lists three relevant relationships:

Spouse or civil partner, unless you are separated. Separated means separated under a court order, by deed of separation, or in circumstances where the separation is likely to be permanent.
A partner you live with as if you were a married couple or civil partners. HMRC says it uses the same principles as for tax credits to decide whether people are living together, and that a couple can be living together in the UK, overseas or both.
Your child under 18. HMRC says at RFIG22330 that this means your natural or adopted child, and does not include a stepchild unless you have adopted them.

The relationship only has to exist at some point in the tax year. A marriage that ends in permanent separation part way through the year can still give a tie for that year if the spouse was UK resident.

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How is the family member’s own residence decided?

The other person must be UK resident for the year in their own right, applying the statutory residence test to them. Paragraph 33(2) stops a circular result: in deciding whether your family member is UK resident, you ignore any family tie they have only because of their relationship with you. In HMRC’s example at RFIG22320, a couple each spend 140 days in the UK, neither was resident in the previous three years, and each has an accommodation tie. They would each be resident with two ties, but the family tie each gives the other is ignored, so each has one tie and neither is resident.

This works best when you look at the family as a whole. If your spouse is clearly resident on their own facts, for example because they live and work full time in the UK, you have a family tie. If their residence also depends on ties, work out their position first without counting you.

What is the 61 day rule for children?

Paragraph 32(3) says a child under 18 does not give you a family tie if you see the child in the UK on fewer than 61 days in total in the tax year. A day counts if you see the child in person for all or part of it (paragraph 32(4)). Days you spend with the child outside the UK do not count. If the child turns 18 during the year, you only look at the part of the year before the birthday.

HMRC’s example at RFIG22330 is a father who spends 70 days with his 15 year old daughter, but 21 of them at his home in Paris and 14 in Spain. Only 35 days were in the UK, so he has no family tie. The 61 day count cannot be reduced or extended by exceptional circumstances (RFIG22230).

What are the special rules for children in UK education?

Many families abroad send children to UK boarding schools, and those children are often UK resident because of the time they spend here. Paragraph 33(3) and (4) treat a child as not UK resident, for the purpose of deciding whether you have a family tie, if the child:

is under 18
is in full time education in the UK at any time in the year
is UK resident for the year but would not be if the time spent in full time education here in term time were disregarded, and
spends fewer than 21 days in the UK outside term time.

Full time education means at a university, college, school or other educational establishment in the UK. Half term breaks and other breaks during term when teaching is not provided count as term time (paragraph 33(6)); HMRC adds inset days as an example. In HMRC’s example a 14 year old whose parents live in Dubai spends 10 days of her summer holiday on a school trip to Scotland and 7 days of Christmas with friends in London. That is 17 days outside term time, so her parents have no family tie through her, even though she is UK resident herself.

The rule protects parents, not the child. It does not change the child’s own residence.

What does a worked example look like?

Illustration only. Raj was UK resident until he moved to Singapore in 2024. In 2026 to 2027 he spends 100 days in the UK. His former wife, from whom he is permanently separated, lives in the UK with their 12 year old son. Raj has a work tie but no other ties apart from a possible family tie.

Scenario	Days seeing son in the UK	Family tie	Ties	Result at 100 days
A	55 (plus 20 in Singapore)	No	1	Not resident
B	61	Yes	2	Resident

As a leaver with 91 to 120 UK days he needs two ties. His former wife gives no tie because they are permanently separated. The 20 days with his son in Singapore do not count towards the 61.

What mistakes do people make?

Assuming a trial separation ends the tie. Only a court order, a deed or a separation likely to be permanent counts.
Thinking a family tie needs the family to live in the UK. A partner living with you abroad who is UK resident still gives a tie.
Counting days with children abroad towards the 61 day limit, or forgetting that part days in the UK count.
Treating a stepchild as a child for the tie when they have not been adopted.
Overlooking half term and inset days, which count as term time for the 21 day test.
Not keeping a diary of days spent with children in the UK, which HMRC’s record keeping guidance at RFIG21930 specifically mentions.

The family tie also interacts with the deeming rule, which needs three ties, and with split year treatment for partners of people moving abroad to work. For the wider picture of leaving the UK, see moving abroad and tax.

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Reviewed by Christine Anderson, Broker, Solar Protect. Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Part of Accountapedia, the Solar Protect guide to UK tax and accounting. This page is general information, not personalised advice.