US Debit card

this might be a stupid question....but can i use my US debit card to pay for in-store purchases in UK? 

If it has Visa/Mastercard or other accepted Credit companies logo's on it - Yes you can. You may need to use a PIN number which the issuer of the card can supply if you don't have one. From a date in Mid Feb (cant remember exactly) it is required for all purchases in stores that have Chip and pin machines. From someone who has moved from the UK to the US the price difference will make you think twice before you buy anything lol.

If it has Visa/Mastercard or other accepted Credit companies logo's on it - Yes you can. You may need to use a PIN number which the issuer of the card can supply if you don't have one. From a date in Mid Feb (cant remember exactly) it is required for all purchases in stores that have Chip and pin machines. From someone who has moved from the UK to the US the price difference will make you think twice before you buy anything lol.

yeah...i know about the whole chip and pin thing that went into effect 14 feb.....i was just trying to avoid the checker saying "oh...we can't accept your card because it doesn't have a chip in it"....even tho i know they are supposed to accept it anyway (i've spoken to several store managers about it).  but i know that there are going to be some that are going to hassle me about it.  so i figured if i could just use my debit card, then maybe i could avoid the whole "we can't accept it without a chip" thing.

I've been using my US debit card for all purchases ever since I've been here. It's a Visa one, so I've had no probs.

oh good!!  thanks!!

oh good!!  thanks!!

But remember your card from the US doesn't have the chip...so you may have the same problem.  You just use your debit card here like any other credit card i.e. it won't save you from the hassles!  at least I don't think it will

But - for most folks using a US debit card has two SERIOUS disadvantages:

1. The bank back home will add on a (hidden) charge to convert from foreign currency to US dollars (typically 2.5% to 3.5%).

2. The money drawn out and spent in the UK will be treated for UK tax purposes as a remittance of US income and so will have be declared as taxable income in the UK and you'll end up paying taxes on it (as well as accounting fees to figure out the taxes)!

I just would not go down this route...

But - for most folks using a US debit card has two SERIOUS disadvantages:

1. The bank back home will add on a (hidden) charge to convert from foreign currency to US dollars (typically 2.5% to 3.5%).

2. The money drawn out and spent in the UK will be treated for UK tax purposes as a remittance of US income and so will have be declared as taxable income in the UK and you'll end up paying taxes on it (as well as accounting fees to figure out the taxes)!

I just would not go down this route...

ok....you lost me at the "remittance of US income" part.  i'm not exactly sure what you mean in #2.  can you explain that a bit further please?  am i going to get some sort of statement from my bank stating how much money i have been using since i have been here?  or am i supposed to calculate that on my own or something?  i'm confused....

Best advise is dont use debit cards at all except multi use for withdrawing cash.

They have higher fees and they don't provide any of the protections for disputes that credit cards do. And if they are lost or stolen you can lose everything in your account instead of just a small $50 max.  I never use them.

But - for most folks using a US debit card has two SERIOUS disadvantages:

1. The bank back home will add on a (hidden) charge to convert from foreign currency to US dollars (typically 2.5% to 3.5%).

2. The money drawn out and spent in the UK will be treated for UK tax purposes as a remittance of US income and so will have be declared as taxable income in the UK and you'll end up paying taxes on it (as well as accounting fees to figure out the taxes)!

I just would not go down this route...

Yeah I'm confused about number 2 as well.  What exactly does that mean?  I have drawn out plenty of money from my US bank account here and am not planning on paying any taxes on it in the UK.  I have already paid taxes on it in the US so why should I pay taxes again on it?  Sorry I may not be reading this correctly but am a bit confused...

Since you are not domiciled within the UK for UK tax purposes the UK only charges you to UK income and capital gains tax on income and gains arising in the UK or remitted to the UK.

If your US bank accounts contain income (such as bank interest or US source dividends) and you draw from the US bank account while in the UK then you will be remitting the interest, dividends etc and be subject to UK taxes on the remittances.

You will need to figure this out on your UK self-assesment tax returns...

Sorry guya, but i dont think your explanation above has made it any clearer for anyone...

can you try explaining again in very simple, laymans terms?

Since you are not domiciled within the UK for UK tax purposes the UK only charges you to UK income and capital gains tax on income and gains arising in the UK or remitted to the UK.

If your US bank accounts contain income (such as bank interest or US source dividends) and you draw from the US bank account while in the UK then you will be remitting the interest, dividends etc and be subject to UK taxes on the remittances.

You will need to figure this out on your UK self-assesment tax returns...

Sorry, but you've completely lost me too on this one. From my experience, US debit cards are perfectly fine to be used in the UK. Just think of all the tourists that use them over here all year long! I've used my US debit card in the UK as a tourist and also from time to time since I moved here and I've never had a bit of trouble. I get a small charge of $1 from my US bank for using my card abroad, but that's all.

As for the self-assesment tax returns, my local UK tax authority said this is only to be done by people who are self-employed.

There is nothing at all wrong with using your US money over here.

However, lets imagine your savings account has $1,000 in it and pays you interest of 2% a year.  After a year you'll have earned $20 of interest income.  If you spend anything from the account in the UK then the UK will say you have FIRST brought to the UK the $20 of interest income you have earned, so you'll have to file a UK tax return reporting the interest income as taxable.

The UK tax system is quite different from the US, so only about one-third of folks file taxes each year; but the responsibility remains on each individual to tell the tax folks if they need to report (or claim) anything.  Sorry kwilkins79, but the information you were told is not correct; yes the self-employed do have to file tax returns - but so do several million who are employed as well...