November 9, 2026
Thinking of selling your business and moving to Jersey? We explore what the UK Budget 2026 could mean for your plans, from tax considerations to the options available for relocating to the Island.
The Chancellor’s Budget on 28 October 2026 changed three things that matter to anyone selling a business or living off investment income. Each applies from 6 April 2027 and still needs legislation in Finance Bill 2026-27. The Founders’ Relief detail is under technical consultation until 30 November 2026, so its conditions may change.
From 6 April 2027, only £500,000 of lifetime gains will qualify for the 18% BADR rate; gains above that are taxed at the 24% main rate. The rate itself does not change.
On a £1 million qualifying gain, the tax rises from £180,000 today to £210,000 after 5 April 2027 (£500,000 at 18% plus £500,000 at 24%). That is £30,000 more.
Relief already claimed counts against the new limit. Anyone who has claimed £500,000 or more of BADR in the past will have nothing left from 6 April 2027.
Not automatically. Anti-forestalling rules apply to unconditional contracts entered into before 6 April 2027 that complete afterwards. The £500,000 cap applies unless the parties can show they did not enter the contract to gain a tax advantage from the contract-date rule. Where buyer and seller are connected, the contract must also be wholly commercial. A statement is needed where the gain exceeds £100,000.
A separate rule catches pre-sale restructuring. If an election to disapply the share reorganisation rules is made on or after 6 April 2027, the disposal is treated as happening at the election, so the £500,000 limit applies.
Founders’ Relief is aimed at founders and significant early investors in high-growth UK companies, not owner-managed businesses generally. Against the 24% main rate, the most it can save one person is £1.4 million.
The individual must, under the consultation proposals:
The company must:
The £10 million limit is reduced by BADR and Investors’ Relief claimed from 6 April 2027.
It pulls in the opposite direction to a move. A qualifying founder who becomes non-resident before selling fails the five-year UK residence condition and loses the 10% rate.
The real choice for a qualifying founder is therefore between selling while UK resident at 10%, and a genuine move abroad of more than five years (see below). The consultation does not yet say how the tax year of the sale, or a split year, counts towards the five years.
For most owner-managed businesses, the turnover and headcount tests will not be met. For them the comparison is BADR and the 24% main rate against the position after a move.
Yes. UK rental income remains taxable in the UK whether or not you live there, and the higher property rates apply from 6 April 2027. The non-resident landlord withholding rate also rises to 24% from April 2027.
The new savings rates apply across the UK. The new property rates apply to taxpayers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland; Scotland will announce its own, and Wales can set its own.
The increases are four percentage points above the ordinary income tax rates. They matter most to anyone planning to hold sale proceeds in UK deposits or UK property. Earned income and dividends are not affected.
A Jersey resident with UK rental income is also taxed in Jersey on it, with credit normally given for the UK tax paid. Where a UK property portfolio is held should be reviewed before the move, not after.
Sometimes, but only if residence, the contract date and the length of time abroad all line up. A move timed just before completion often fails on at least one of them.
Not straight away. Under the long-term residence rules in force since April 2025, someone UK resident for at least 10 of the previous 20 tax years stays within UK inheritance tax on worldwide assets for between three and ten years after leaving. UK-situated assets, including UK property, can remain in scope permanently.
The practical point: take advice before signing heads of terms, not before completion. By the time a sale is agreed, most of these choices have already been made.
Jersey taxes resident individuals at a standard income tax rate of 20%. It has no general capital gains tax and no inheritance tax. It has its own tax system, separate from the UK, under the Income Tax (Jersey) Law 1961.
Tax residence is not the same as the right to live and work in Jersey. Entrepreneurs usually need one of two routes, both handled through Locate Jersey:
High Value Residency applications were historically known as Article 2(1)(e) applications. They are now made for Entitled status on economic or social grounds.
For someone planning a sale, the Skilled High Earner conditions continue after the exit. You will still need £250,000 of Jersey-taxable earned income from full-time business activity, so the plan needs to include what you will do next, not only the tax on the proceeds.
BCR Pro advises entrepreneurs, investors and internationally mobile families on moving from the UK to Jersey. We look at UK residence, split-year treatment and temporary non-residence alongside the timing of a business sale, investment income and inheritance tax. We work with your UK advisers and Jersey lawyers so the tax, relocation route and transaction plan fit together.
James Collins is Managing Director of BCR Professional Services Limited in St Helier. He advises on UK and Jersey cross-border private client tax, including the Statutory Residence Test, split-year treatment, the long-term residence inheritance tax rules and Jersey income tax.
To discuss a proposed move, contact James on 01534 760 896 or james.collins@bcrproltd.com.
No. Jersey has no general capital gains tax. Whether a gain escapes UK tax depends on UK rules: the Statutory Residence Test, the contract date and the temporary non-residence rules.
Not if you have genuinely ceased to be UK resident before the contract is made and stay non-resident for more than five years. If you return within five years, gains on assets you owned before leaving are taxed in the year you come back.
No, as currently proposed. It requires five continuous tax years of UK residence before the sale, so a founder who has already moved to Jersey will not qualify.
For qualifying disposals on or after 6 April 2027. Unconditional contracts signed before that date but completing after it can be caught by anti-forestalling rules.
A relocation route introduced on 2 April 2026 for entrepreneurs who run a business in Jersey full-time. It requires Jersey-taxable income of £250,000 a year for ten years, or until Entitled status, and property of £2 million or above.
£250,000 a year for new applicants: 20% on the first £1.25 million of income and 1% above that.
Yes. UK rental income stays taxable in the UK, at rates rising to 24%, 44% and 49% from April 2027, and Jersey also taxes it with credit for the UK tax.
Not immediately. Long-term UK residents stay within UK inheritance tax on worldwide assets for three to ten years after leaving, depending on how long they lived in the UK.
HM Treasury: Founders’ Relief technical consultation
HMRC: Capital Gains Tax: new Business Asset Disposal Relief lifetime limit
ICAEW: Budget tax rates on property and savings income increased
Locate Jersey: Skilled High Earner eligibility and criteria
Government of Jersey: High value resident tax information
This article reflects the Budget announcements and consultation published to 5 November 2026. The measures are subject to legislation and the Founders’ Relief conditions may change after the consultation closes. It is general information, not advice on any individual’s circumstances.
Thinking of selling your business and moving to Jersey? We explore what the UK Budget 2026 could mean for your plans, from tax considerations to the options available for relocating to the Island.
The Chancellor’s Budget on 28 October 2026 changed three things that matter to anyone selling a business or living off investment income. Each applies from 6 April 2027 and still needs legislation in Finance Bill 2026-27. The Founders’ Relief detail is under technical consultation until 30 November 2026, so its conditions may change.
From 6 April 2027, only £500,000 of lifetime gains will qualify for the 18% BADR rate; gains above that are taxed at the 24% main rate. The rate itself does not change.
On a £1 million qualifying gain, the tax rises from £180,000 today to £210,000 after 5 April 2027 (£500,000 at 18% plus £500,000 at 24%). That is £30,000 more.
Relief already claimed counts against the new limit. Anyone who has claimed £500,000 or more of BADR in the past will have nothing left from 6 April 2027.
Not automatically. Anti-forestalling rules apply to unconditional contracts entered into before 6 April 2027 that complete afterwards. The £500,000 cap applies unless the parties can show they did not enter the contract to gain a tax advantage from the contract-date rule. Where buyer and seller are connected, the contract must also be wholly commercial. A statement is needed where the gain exceeds £100,000.
A separate rule catches pre-sale restructuring. If an election to disapply the share reorganisation rules is made on or after 6 April 2027, the disposal is treated as happening at the election, so the £500,000 limit applies.
Founders’ Relief is aimed at founders and significant early investors in high-growth UK companies, not owner-managed businesses generally. Against the 24% main rate, the most it can save one person is £1.4 million.
The individual must, under the consultation proposals:
The company must:
The £10 million limit is reduced by BADR and Investors’ Relief claimed from 6 April 2027.
It pulls in the opposite direction to a move. A qualifying founder who becomes non-resident before selling fails the five-year UK residence condition and loses the 10% rate.
The real choice for a qualifying founder is therefore between selling while UK resident at 10%, and a genuine move abroad of more than five years (see below). The consultation does not yet say how the tax year of the sale, or a split year, counts towards the five years.
For most owner-managed businesses, the turnover and headcount tests will not be met. For them the comparison is BADR and the 24% main rate against the position after a move.
Yes. UK rental income remains taxable in the UK whether or not you live there, and the higher property rates apply from 6 April 2027. The non-resident landlord withholding rate also rises to 24% from April 2027.
The new savings rates apply across the UK. The new property rates apply to taxpayers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland; Scotland will announce its own, and Wales can set its own.
The increases are four percentage points above the ordinary income tax rates. They matter most to anyone planning to hold sale proceeds in UK deposits or UK property. Earned income and dividends are not affected.
A Jersey resident with UK rental income is also taxed in Jersey on it, with credit normally given for the UK tax paid. Where a UK property portfolio is held should be reviewed before the move, not after.
Sometimes, but only if residence, the contract date and the length of time abroad all line up. A move timed just before completion often fails on at least one of them.
Not straight away. Under the long-term residence rules in force since April 2025, someone UK resident for at least 10 of the previous 20 tax years stays within UK inheritance tax on worldwide assets for between three and ten years after leaving. UK-situated assets, including UK property, can remain in scope permanently.
The practical point: take advice before signing heads of terms, not before completion. By the time a sale is agreed, most of these choices have already been made.
Jersey taxes resident individuals at a standard income tax rate of 20%. It has no general capital gains tax and no inheritance tax. It has its own tax system, separate from the UK, under the Income Tax (Jersey) Law 1961.
Tax residence is not the same as the right to live and work in Jersey. Entrepreneurs usually need one of two routes, both handled through Locate Jersey:
High Value Residency applications were historically known as Article 2(1)(e) applications. They are now made for Entitled status on economic or social grounds.
For someone planning a sale, the Skilled High Earner conditions continue after the exit. You will still need £250,000 of Jersey-taxable earned income from full-time business activity, so the plan needs to include what you will do next, not only the tax on the proceeds.
BCR Pro advises entrepreneurs, investors and internationally mobile families on moving from the UK to Jersey. We look at UK residence, split-year treatment and temporary non-residence alongside the timing of a business sale, investment income and inheritance tax. We work with your UK advisers and Jersey lawyers so the tax, relocation route and transaction plan fit together.
James Collins is Managing Director of BCR Professional Services Limited in St Helier. He advises on UK and Jersey cross-border private client tax, including the Statutory Residence Test, split-year treatment, the long-term residence inheritance tax rules and Jersey income tax.
To discuss a proposed move, contact James on 01534 760 896 or james.collins@bcrproltd.com.
No. Jersey has no general capital gains tax. Whether a gain escapes UK tax depends on UK rules: the Statutory Residence Test, the contract date and the temporary non-residence rules.
Not if you have genuinely ceased to be UK resident before the contract is made and stay non-resident for more than five years. If you return within five years, gains on assets you owned before leaving are taxed in the year you come back.
No, as currently proposed. It requires five continuous tax years of UK residence before the sale, so a founder who has already moved to Jersey will not qualify.
For qualifying disposals on or after 6 April 2027. Unconditional contracts signed before that date but completing after it can be caught by anti-forestalling rules.
A relocation route introduced on 2 April 2026 for entrepreneurs who run a business in Jersey full-time. It requires Jersey-taxable income of £250,000 a year for ten years, or until Entitled status, and property of £2 million or above.
£250,000 a year for new applicants: 20% on the first £1.25 million of income and 1% above that.
Yes. UK rental income stays taxable in the UK, at rates rising to 24%, 44% and 49% from April 2027, and Jersey also taxes it with credit for the UK tax.
Not immediately. Long-term UK residents stay within UK inheritance tax on worldwide assets for three to ten years after leaving, depending on how long they lived in the UK.
HM Treasury: Founders’ Relief technical consultation
HMRC: Capital Gains Tax: new Business Asset Disposal Relief lifetime limit
ICAEW: Budget tax rates on property and savings income increased
Locate Jersey: Skilled High Earner eligibility and criteria
Government of Jersey: High value resident tax information
This article reflects the Budget announcements and consultation published to 5 November 2026. The measures are subject to legislation and the Founders’ Relief conditions may change after the consultation closes. It is general information, not advice on any individual’s circumstances.
Thinking of selling your business and moving to Jersey? We explore what the UK Budget 2026 could mean for your plans, from tax considerations to the options available for relocating to the Island.
The Chancellor’s Budget on 28 October 2026 changed three things that matter to anyone selling a business or living off investment income. Each applies from 6 April 2027 and still needs legislation in Finance Bill 2026-27. The Founders’ Relief detail is under technical consultation until 30 November 2026, so its conditions may change.
From 6 April 2027, only £500,000 of lifetime gains will qualify for the 18% BADR rate; gains above that are taxed at the 24% main rate. The rate itself does not change.
On a £1 million qualifying gain, the tax rises from £180,000 today to £210,000 after 5 April 2027 (£500,000 at 18% plus £500,000 at 24%). That is £30,000 more.
Relief already claimed counts against the new limit. Anyone who has claimed £500,000 or more of BADR in the past will have nothing left from 6 April 2027.
Not automatically. Anti-forestalling rules apply to unconditional contracts entered into before 6 April 2027 that complete afterwards. The £500,000 cap applies unless the parties can show they did not enter the contract to gain a tax advantage from the contract-date rule. Where buyer and seller are connected, the contract must also be wholly commercial. A statement is needed where the gain exceeds £100,000.
A separate rule catches pre-sale restructuring. If an election to disapply the share reorganisation rules is made on or after 6 April 2027, the disposal is treated as happening at the election, so the £500,000 limit applies.
Founders’ Relief is aimed at founders and significant early investors in high-growth UK companies, not owner-managed businesses generally. Against the 24% main rate, the most it can save one person is £1.4 million.
The individual must, under the consultation proposals:
The company must:
The £10 million limit is reduced by BADR and Investors’ Relief claimed from 6 April 2027.
It pulls in the opposite direction to a move. A qualifying founder who becomes non-resident before selling fails the five-year UK residence condition and loses the 10% rate.
The real choice for a qualifying founder is therefore between selling while UK resident at 10%, and a genuine move abroad of more than five years (see below). The consultation does not yet say how the tax year of the sale, or a split year, counts towards the five years.
For most owner-managed businesses, the turnover and headcount tests will not be met. For them the comparison is BADR and the 24% main rate against the position after a move.
Yes. UK rental income remains taxable in the UK whether or not you live there, and the higher property rates apply from 6 April 2027. The non-resident landlord withholding rate also rises to 24% from April 2027.
The new savings rates apply across the UK. The new property rates apply to taxpayers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland; Scotland will announce its own, and Wales can set its own.
The increases are four percentage points above the ordinary income tax rates. They matter most to anyone planning to hold sale proceeds in UK deposits or UK property. Earned income and dividends are not affected.
A Jersey resident with UK rental income is also taxed in Jersey on it, with credit normally given for the UK tax paid. Where a UK property portfolio is held should be reviewed before the move, not after.
Sometimes, but only if residence, the contract date and the length of time abroad all line up. A move timed just before completion often fails on at least one of them.
Not straight away. Under the long-term residence rules in force since April 2025, someone UK resident for at least 10 of the previous 20 tax years stays within UK inheritance tax on worldwide assets for between three and ten years after leaving. UK-situated assets, including UK property, can remain in scope permanently.
The practical point: take advice before signing heads of terms, not before completion. By the time a sale is agreed, most of these choices have already been made.
Jersey taxes resident individuals at a standard income tax rate of 20%. It has no general capital gains tax and no inheritance tax. It has its own tax system, separate from the UK, under the Income Tax (Jersey) Law 1961.
Tax residence is not the same as the right to live and work in Jersey. Entrepreneurs usually need one of two routes, both handled through Locate Jersey:
High Value Residency applications were historically known as Article 2(1)(e) applications. They are now made for Entitled status on economic or social grounds.
For someone planning a sale, the Skilled High Earner conditions continue after the exit. You will still need £250,000 of Jersey-taxable earned income from full-time business activity, so the plan needs to include what you will do next, not only the tax on the proceeds.
BCR Pro advises entrepreneurs, investors and internationally mobile families on moving from the UK to Jersey. We look at UK residence, split-year treatment and temporary non-residence alongside the timing of a business sale, investment income and inheritance tax. We work with your UK advisers and Jersey lawyers so the tax, relocation route and transaction plan fit together.
James Collins is Managing Director of BCR Professional Services Limited in St Helier. He advises on UK and Jersey cross-border private client tax, including the Statutory Residence Test, split-year treatment, the long-term residence inheritance tax rules and Jersey income tax.
To discuss a proposed move, contact James on 01534 760 896 or james.collins@bcrproltd.com.
No. Jersey has no general capital gains tax. Whether a gain escapes UK tax depends on UK rules: the Statutory Residence Test, the contract date and the temporary non-residence rules.
Not if you have genuinely ceased to be UK resident before the contract is made and stay non-resident for more than five years. If you return within five years, gains on assets you owned before leaving are taxed in the year you come back.
No, as currently proposed. It requires five continuous tax years of UK residence before the sale, so a founder who has already moved to Jersey will not qualify.
For qualifying disposals on or after 6 April 2027. Unconditional contracts signed before that date but completing after it can be caught by anti-forestalling rules.
A relocation route introduced on 2 April 2026 for entrepreneurs who run a business in Jersey full-time. It requires Jersey-taxable income of £250,000 a year for ten years, or until Entitled status, and property of £2 million or above.
£250,000 a year for new applicants: 20% on the first £1.25 million of income and 1% above that.
Yes. UK rental income stays taxable in the UK, at rates rising to 24%, 44% and 49% from April 2027, and Jersey also taxes it with credit for the UK tax.
Not immediately. Long-term UK residents stay within UK inheritance tax on worldwide assets for three to ten years after leaving, depending on how long they lived in the UK.
HM Treasury: Founders’ Relief technical consultation
HMRC: Capital Gains Tax: new Business Asset Disposal Relief lifetime limit
ICAEW: Budget tax rates on property and savings income increased
Locate Jersey: Skilled High Earner eligibility and criteria
Government of Jersey: High value resident tax information
This article reflects the Budget announcements and consultation published to 5 November 2026. The measures are subject to legislation and the Founders’ Relief conditions may change after the consultation closes. It is general information, not advice on any individual’s circumstances.
Thinking of selling your business and moving to Jersey? We explore what the UK Budget 2026 could mean for your plans, from tax considerations to the options available for relocating to the Island.
The Chancellor’s Budget on 28 October 2026 changed three things that matter to anyone selling a business or living off investment income. Each applies from 6 April 2027 and still needs legislation in Finance Bill 2026-27. The Founders’ Relief detail is under technical consultation until 30 November 2026, so its conditions may change.
From 6 April 2027, only £500,000 of lifetime gains will qualify for the 18% BADR rate; gains above that are taxed at the 24% main rate. The rate itself does not change.
On a £1 million qualifying gain, the tax rises from £180,000 today to £210,000 after 5 April 2027 (£500,000 at 18% plus £500,000 at 24%). That is £30,000 more.
Relief already claimed counts against the new limit. Anyone who has claimed £500,000 or more of BADR in the past will have nothing left from 6 April 2027.
Not automatically. Anti-forestalling rules apply to unconditional contracts entered into before 6 April 2027 that complete afterwards. The £500,000 cap applies unless the parties can show they did not enter the contract to gain a tax advantage from the contract-date rule. Where buyer and seller are connected, the contract must also be wholly commercial. A statement is needed where the gain exceeds £100,000.
A separate rule catches pre-sale restructuring. If an election to disapply the share reorganisation rules is made on or after 6 April 2027, the disposal is treated as happening at the election, so the £500,000 limit applies.
Founders’ Relief is aimed at founders and significant early investors in high-growth UK companies, not owner-managed businesses generally. Against the 24% main rate, the most it can save one person is £1.4 million.
The individual must, under the consultation proposals:
The company must:
The £10 million limit is reduced by BADR and Investors’ Relief claimed from 6 April 2027.
It pulls in the opposite direction to a move. A qualifying founder who becomes non-resident before selling fails the five-year UK residence condition and loses the 10% rate.
The real choice for a qualifying founder is therefore between selling while UK resident at 10%, and a genuine move abroad of more than five years (see below). The consultation does not yet say how the tax year of the sale, or a split year, counts towards the five years.
For most owner-managed businesses, the turnover and headcount tests will not be met. For them the comparison is BADR and the 24% main rate against the position after a move.
Yes. UK rental income remains taxable in the UK whether or not you live there, and the higher property rates apply from 6 April 2027. The non-resident landlord withholding rate also rises to 24% from April 2027.
The new savings rates apply across the UK. The new property rates apply to taxpayers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland; Scotland will announce its own, and Wales can set its own.
The increases are four percentage points above the ordinary income tax rates. They matter most to anyone planning to hold sale proceeds in UK deposits or UK property. Earned income and dividends are not affected.
A Jersey resident with UK rental income is also taxed in Jersey on it, with credit normally given for the UK tax paid. Where a UK property portfolio is held should be reviewed before the move, not after.
Sometimes, but only if residence, the contract date and the length of time abroad all line up. A move timed just before completion often fails on at least one of them.
Not straight away. Under the long-term residence rules in force since April 2025, someone UK resident for at least 10 of the previous 20 tax years stays within UK inheritance tax on worldwide assets for between three and ten years after leaving. UK-situated assets, including UK property, can remain in scope permanently.
The practical point: take advice before signing heads of terms, not before completion. By the time a sale is agreed, most of these choices have already been made.
Jersey taxes resident individuals at a standard income tax rate of 20%. It has no general capital gains tax and no inheritance tax. It has its own tax system, separate from the UK, under the Income Tax (Jersey) Law 1961.
Tax residence is not the same as the right to live and work in Jersey. Entrepreneurs usually need one of two routes, both handled through Locate Jersey:
High Value Residency applications were historically known as Article 2(1)(e) applications. They are now made for Entitled status on economic or social grounds.
For someone planning a sale, the Skilled High Earner conditions continue after the exit. You will still need £250,000 of Jersey-taxable earned income from full-time business activity, so the plan needs to include what you will do next, not only the tax on the proceeds.
BCR Pro advises entrepreneurs, investors and internationally mobile families on moving from the UK to Jersey. We look at UK residence, split-year treatment and temporary non-residence alongside the timing of a business sale, investment income and inheritance tax. We work with your UK advisers and Jersey lawyers so the tax, relocation route and transaction plan fit together.
James Collins is Managing Director of BCR Professional Services Limited in St Helier. He advises on UK and Jersey cross-border private client tax, including the Statutory Residence Test, split-year treatment, the long-term residence inheritance tax rules and Jersey income tax.
To discuss a proposed move, contact James on 01534 760 896 or james.collins@bcrproltd.com.
No. Jersey has no general capital gains tax. Whether a gain escapes UK tax depends on UK rules: the Statutory Residence Test, the contract date and the temporary non-residence rules.
Not if you have genuinely ceased to be UK resident before the contract is made and stay non-resident for more than five years. If you return within five years, gains on assets you owned before leaving are taxed in the year you come back.
No, as currently proposed. It requires five continuous tax years of UK residence before the sale, so a founder who has already moved to Jersey will not qualify.
For qualifying disposals on or after 6 April 2027. Unconditional contracts signed before that date but completing after it can be caught by anti-forestalling rules.
A relocation route introduced on 2 April 2026 for entrepreneurs who run a business in Jersey full-time. It requires Jersey-taxable income of £250,000 a year for ten years, or until Entitled status, and property of £2 million or above.
£250,000 a year for new applicants: 20% on the first £1.25 million of income and 1% above that.
Yes. UK rental income stays taxable in the UK, at rates rising to 24%, 44% and 49% from April 2027, and Jersey also taxes it with credit for the UK tax.
Not immediately. Long-term UK residents stay within UK inheritance tax on worldwide assets for three to ten years after leaving, depending on how long they lived in the UK.
HM Treasury: Founders’ Relief technical consultation
HMRC: Capital Gains Tax: new Business Asset Disposal Relief lifetime limit
ICAEW: Budget tax rates on property and savings income increased
Locate Jersey: Skilled High Earner eligibility and criteria
Government of Jersey: High value resident tax information
This article reflects the Budget announcements and consultation published to 5 November 2026. The measures are subject to legislation and the Founders’ Relief conditions may change after the consultation closes. It is general information, not advice on any individual’s circumstances.