A UK IT contractor who moves to Ireland and works there full time will usually become Irish resident under Revenue’s day count tests and stop being UK resident under the statutory residence test. The 1976 UK Ireland treaty breaks any tie, and a separate UK Ireland social security convention decides where you pay contributions, with UK cover possible for temporary work of up to 24 months.
Tax investigation insurance from £108.75 a year (£9.06 a month).Pays up to £100,000 of your accountant's fees if HMRC opens an enquiry. No excess. Buy online in a few minutes.
Do you stay UK resident after moving to Ireland?
The UK statutory residence test is applied to each tax year. HMRC’s RDR3 guidance says you are automatically non resident if you spend fewer than 16 days in the UK in a tax year after being UK resident in any of the previous three years. You are also automatically non resident if you work full time overseas, spend fewer than 91 days in the UK and work more than 3 hours on fewer than 31 UK days. Spending 183 days or more in the UK makes you automatically resident. Full time overseas work means averaging 35 hours a week or more under HMRC’s sufficient hours calculation.
Frequent trips home make UK day counts important. If no automatic test settles your status, the ties test applies, which our statutory residence test guide explains. In the year you leave, split year Case 1 can apply if you were UK resident the previous year and are non resident in the following year because you meet the full time work overseas test. See split year treatment.
When does Revenue treat you as Irish resident?
Revenue says you are resident in Ireland for a tax year if you spend 183 days or more there in that year, or 280 days or more in total across that year and the previous one. You are not resident under the 280 day test in a year in which you spend 30 days or less in Ireland. A day counts if you are in Ireland at any time during it. You can also elect to be resident in the year you arrive if you come intending to be resident in the following year, and you must tell Revenue in writing.
Revenue’s rate chart for 2026 gives a single person without children a €44,000 band at 20%, with the balance at 40%. Universal Social Charge and PRSI come on top, so check with an Irish adviser.
Self employed people file Form 11. Revenue says the Pay and File deadline for the 2025 Form 11 is 31 October 2026, extended to 18 November 2026 if you pay and file on the Revenue Online Service. Preliminary tax for a year is due by 31 October of that year and must be at least the lowest of 90% of the tax due for that year, 100% of the previous year’s liability, or 105% of the liability two years back if you pay by direct debit.
Worried about an HMRC check? Tax investigation insurance pays your accountant’s fees if HMRC opens an enquiry or compliance check. Solar Protect cover pays up to £100,000 with no excess. It never pays tax, interest or penalties.
From £108.75 a year (£9.06 a month) for individuals, £117.57 for sole traders and £207.50 for companies and partnerships, including IPT and the £20 admin fee.
See my price in 2 questions or call 01795 841 310.
★★★★★ Rated 4.9 out of 5 on Trustpilot from over 160 reviews
Can you simply move and start working?
The UK government’s Common Travel Area guidance says British and Irish citizens can work in either country, including on a self employed basis, without needing permission. It does not change the tax or social security position.
What does the UK Ireland treaty say if both countries claim you?
The gov.uk Ireland tax treaties page lists the 1976 UK Ireland convention as amended by the 1998 Protocol and a synthesised text showing how the Multilateral Instrument modifies it. Article 4 deals with fiscal domicile. Under Article 4(2), an individual resident in both countries is resident where they have a permanent home available. If they have one in both, the test moves to where their personal and economic relations are closer, then habitual abode, then nationality, and finally mutual agreement between the two tax authorities.
Other articles to know are Article 5 on permanent establishment, Article 8 on business profits, Article 15 on employment, with Article 15(3) applying the employment rules to directors as if the company were the employer, and Article 21 on credit for tax paid in the other country. Our guides to how double tax treaties work and foreign tax credit relief explain how the credit works in practice.
Which country’s social security applies?
Ireland is in the EU, but gov.uk’s NI38 guidance says the UK also has a social security agreement with Ireland that can be used in certain circumstances. That is the Convention on Social Security signed in Dublin on 1 February 2019, which came into force on 31 December 2020. Under Article 9, you are normally covered by the legislation of the country where you work.
Article 10 keeps a posted employee in their home system if the work is not expected to last more than 24 months and they are not replacing another posted worker. A self employed person who normally works in one country and goes to do similar work in the other also stays in their home system if the work is not expected to last more than 24 months. Article 11 covers people working in both countries: employees are generally covered where they live if they do a substantial part of their work there. Our A1 certificates page covers the paperwork.
A permanent move is not temporary work, so plan for Irish PRSI. If you want to keep a UK contribution record, note that from 6 April 2026 voluntary Class 2 for periods abroad was removed for most people, and new Class 3 applicants need ten years of UK residence or qualifying contributions.
What happens to your UK limited company and IR35?
HMRC’s International Manual says a company incorporated in the UK is UK resident, and a company is also UK resident if its central management and control is here. If the company is also resident in a treaty country and the tie breaker awards residence there, it becomes treaty non resident. The 1976 convention text gives a dual resident company to the country where its place of effective management is situated, so a sole director running everything from Cork needs to look at this, along with Irish permanent establishment risk. See company residence and permanent establishment risk.
On IR35, HMRC’s Employment Status Manual says a worker who is not UK resident and is working outside the UK is unlikely to be chargeable to UK tax or National Insurance, and if not chargeable the off payroll rules will not apply. Where a medium or large client has no UK residence and no UK permanent establishment, Chapter 10 does not apply and your company should consider Chapter 8. Our page on IR35 when the client is overseas covers mixed cases.
| Point | Position |
|---|---|
| UK automatic non residence | Fewer than 16 UK days, or full time work overseas with fewer than 91 UK days and fewer than 31 UK work days |
| Irish residence | 183 days in the tax year, or 280 days over two years with more than 30 in the current year |
| Treaty | 1976 convention as amended by the 1998 Protocol, plus MLI synthesised text |
| Tie breaker | Article 4(2): permanent home, closer personal and economic relations, habitual abode, nationality, mutual agreement |
| Social security | UK Ireland convention: home cover for temporary work of up to 24 months |
| Right to work | Common Travel Area: no permission needed for British citizens |
| Irish band 2026, single person | €44,000 at 20%, balance at 40% |
How might this work for a contractor?
Illustration only. Tom, a data engineer, runs a UK limited company with one UK client. He takes a 10 month project for an Irish client and rents a flat in Dublin while keeping his UK home. He expects to be in Ireland for about 200 days in the Irish tax year, so he is likely to be Irish resident. He may still be UK resident because he keeps his UK home and spends many days there. With a home in both countries, the treaty question becomes where his personal and economic relations are closer. Because the work is temporary and under 24 months, he looks at staying in UK National Insurance under the convention, and takes Irish advice on how his company income is taxed.
What should you check before you go?
- Count UK days and UK working days for the year you leave and the year after.
- Count Irish days against the 183 and 280 day tests, and decide whether to elect.
- Read Articles 4, 15 and 21 of the treaty on gov.uk.
- Decide whether the convention’s 24 month rule can keep you in UK National Insurance.
- Check where your company’s decisions are made and whether it has an Irish fixed place of business.
- Recheck IR35 on every contract.
- Diary the Irish 31 October Pay and File date and take Irish advice.
HMRC can open a check into a return after a move abroad, and the accountant’s fees for dealing with it can be insured through tax investigation insurance. See also HMRC enquiries after moving abroad.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a visa to work in Ireland as a British citizen?
No. The Common Travel Area guidance says British citizens can work in Ireland, including as self employed, without permission.
Can I be resident in both countries in the same year?
Yes. Each country applies its own test, and the treaty tie breaker in Article 4(2) then decides where you are treated as resident for treaty purposes.
How long can I stay in UK National Insurance while working in Ireland?
Under Article 10 of the UK Ireland convention, temporary work expected to last no more than 24 months can stay in the UK system, for both posted employees and the self employed.
If HMRC opens a check into your return, tax investigation insurance pays your accountant’s fees. Solar Protect cover pays up to £100,000 with no excess; it never pays tax, interest or penalties. Read how our cover works or get a quote.
Sources
- GOV.UK: Guidance note for statutory residence test srt rdr3
- GOV.UK: manual page RFIG20150
- GOV.UK: manual page RFIG21040
- www.revenue.ie: Resident for tax purposes.aspx
- www.revenue.ie: Index.aspx
- www.revenue.ie: Index.aspx
- www.revenue.ie: Preliminary tax.aspx
- GOV.UK: Common travel area guidance
- GOV.UK: Ireland tax treaties
- GOV.UK: 1976 uk ireland double taxation convention as amended by the 1998 prot
Reviewed by Christine Anderson, Broker, Solar Protect. Last reviewed 6 November 2026. Part of Accountapedia, the Solar Protect guide to UK tax and accounting. This page is general information, not personalised advice.