# UK P85 Forms Do Not Show How Many People Leave the Country

By Riza Dagoc

Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/regulation/32364
Published: 2026-10-15T07:37:08.000Z
Updated: 2026-10-15T07:37:08.000Z
Section: Regulation

> The form covers certain people working abroad or claiming tax back, while some taxpayers use Self Assessment instead.

People leaving the U.K. cannot be counted through P85 tax forms alone because the form covers defined circumstances and some taxpayers use Self Assessment instead.

The P85 form lets some people notify HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) after leaving the country and claim back tax paid on U.K. employment. It applies to people who have left and may not return, as well as those who will work abroad full-time for at least one full tax year. People filing a Self Assessment return for the year they leave do not need P85.

A P85 filing does not establish how many people permanently emigrated. The form covers different situations, including work abroad for a full tax year, while other taxpayers use Self Assessment. It also does not identify why a person moved.

Monthly P85 figures cover electronic forms only, are rounded to the nearest 100 and exclude postal submissions because postal-form data is unavailable. The series is not divided along the exact U.K. tax-year boundary, which runs from April 6 through April 5. Those limits mean the monthly figures do not provide a directly comparable count of everyone who left during a tax year.

The former non-domicile tax rules ended April 6, 2025, when a residence-based system took effect. The change began during the 2025-26 tax year, but P85 filings do not show whether it influenced anyone’s decision to leave.

Natasha Stanley, head of coaching at Careershifters, said she could not recall a client leaving for tax reasons: “For tax purposes specifically, I can’t think of anyone.”