Do you use a UK mailbox service to maintain a UK address?

[KittenKong]

Absolute RUBBISH

Your residency is a matter of fact whether you inform HMRC or not.

Great. And if you dont inform them via Form RR1 or some other means, how exactly would they know that you are not resident, and why would they make any assumptions about it for themselves in the first place?

[Minpin]

Thanks for reply. Interestingly I emailed 8 companies re Thai licence and Enterprise even after a check follow up email said they wouldn't accept it. I would prefer Enterprise as I used to use them and always had good service especially delivery and pick up. I will not now cross them off my list.

Firstly sorry wrong car hire company, it was National. Wifes memory better than mine.

Just read their terms and conditions. A genuine foreign visitor just has to show proof they are visiting. E ticket passport stamp etc. Can use their foreign licence. Some licences need IDP. Thats why wife never has problem.

Now the bit regarding UK nationals

"Holders of any licence that does not show the current address must also produce proof of current address in the form of a Current Credit Finance Agreement, Current Utilities Bill, or Current Bank Statement. All renters with a UK home address will need to pass an Equifax eIDVerifier as verification of residence at their given address. Any customer failing the check will not be allowed to rent. If there is an unsatisfactory search result you will need to provide paper-based proof of identity such as a valid bank/ building society/credit card statement, utility bill (not a council tax bill), land line telephone bill (not a mobile phone bill) or a TV license that is less than 3 months old when you pick up the vehicle from the Rental Station. UK Nationals residing overseas are advised to use a driving license of the country in which they reside or they will be subject to the above. Equifax eIDVerifierf: Equifax’s eIDVerifier enables Europcar UK Group to combat identity fraud by using independent data sources to establish a degree of confidence in a personâl"

My bold type.

This topic has wondered off but I feel it is important to realise that even if you have a driving licence with a UK address it is not proof of maintaining a presence. What about borrowing a friends car and writing it off. Insurance could be invalid as using an invalid licence

If a car hire company has these checks available to them what checks do officialdom have!

[Thormaturge]

Absolute RUBBISH

Your residency is a matter of fact whether you inform HMRC or not.

Great. And if you dont inform them via Form RR1 or some other means, how exactly would they know that you are not resident, and why would they make any assumptions about it for themselves in the first place?

A list for you, although hit is by no means exhaustive.....

1. Tracking tools and search engines

HM Revenue and Customs have their own specialised information-gathering tools at their disposal, including web-trawling software, to help catch eBay traders in addition to publicly available internet and social media sites such as Facebook, Linkedin, etc.

2. Social and traditional media alerts

Individuals proudly boasting about their yacht on a Facebook and similar sites while declaring next to no income on their tax returns will come to the attention of HMRC (see especially 6 below). HMRC also has access to shipping registrations. Press articles and media coverage have also been the cause of HMRC enquiries into an individual�s affairs. Once HMRC has a suspicion that an individual has underpaid tax liabilities, it has a range of powers and tools available for it to enquire into the individual taxpayer�s affairs.

3. Statutory demands for information

Taking the example of buy-to-let landlords who have omitted rental income from their tax returns, HMRC may obtain information that will help with their enquiries without requiring the landlord's co-operation. HMRC has the statutory power to issue a demand to any tenant (whether a company or an individual), compelling them to inform HMRC how much rent they pay and to whom it is paid. This information can then be compared to the landlord�s tax return and is therefore a relatively simple way for HMRC to identify whether the income has been declared correctly.

4. Phone checks and official records

Rental adverts may also be reviewed and lettings agents may be contacted. Remember, it is relatively quick and easy for HMRC to check with the Land Registry who owns a specific property. HMRC will also have access to housing benefit records.

It is similarly difficult to escape HMRC�s clutches when the time comes to selling the property. Tax inspectors regularly review local newspapers for houses for sale and the internet makes this process even easier, especially with the abundance of websites that show historic house sale prices.

5. Information-trawling software

HMRC has also invested in a computer system which allows it to bring together information on property sales and collate a historical list of properties purchased by a particular landlord. This information can then be compared to what the landlord has declared for capital gains tax purposes.

6. Hotline tip-offs

In addition to the more sophisticated tools, HMRC still receives significant amounts of information via its Hotline from disgruntled third parties, such as neighbours or vengeful former spouses. While some of these should naturally be taken with a pinch of salt, many individuals have found themselves subject to serious tax investigations following a tip-off from a wronged former spouse, neighbour or business rival.

[KittenKong]

A list for you, although hit is by no means exhaustive.....

1. Tracking tools and search engines

....

2. Social and traditional media alerts

....

3. Statutory demands for information

....

4. Phone checks and official records

....

5. Information-trawling software

....

6. Hotline tip-offs

....

All those appear to be things that HMRC might do to prove that a resident is not paying the right amount of tax, or that someone who declares himself non-resident is actually resident.

Why would they bother doing any of those things to prove that someone who declares himself resident is, in fact, non-resident?

Indeed why would they bother doing anything at all given that the tax take from a person who is resident will almost always be higher than from the same person on the same income if he becomes non-resident? There is nothing in it for them, which rather sums up my point.