Freelancing on a spouse visa?

I'm a freelance content writer and was just told to watch out when it comes to freelancing in the UK. They said it's illegal on several visas. Surely this isn't true when it comes to the spouse visa? I'm not in the UK yet but want to make sure I'm ok to work once I get my visa and move!

I'm a freelance content writer and was just told to watch out when it comes to freelancing in the UK. They said it's illegal on several visas. Surely this isn't true when it comes to the spouse visa? I'm not in the UK yet but want to make sure I'm ok to work once I get my visa and move!

That's not a problem from the point of view of being on a spouse visa but you're going to want to look into the tax implications in both countries.

Once you have a spousal visa, you are free to work in any job you like with no restrictions.

However, you would likely need to work out the tax implications of freelancing in the UK, in regards to things like filing U.K. taxes, registering as self-employed etc (I don’t know the ins and outs of that though).


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That's not a problem from the point of view of being on a spouse visa but you're going to want to look into the tax implications in both countries.

Good to know!!

Do you know where I can find a good resource about the tax implications of freelancing? I'd like to have an idea of what I'm getting myself into.

Do you know where I can find a good resource about the tax implications of freelancing? I'd like to have an idea of what I'm getting myself into.

HMRC (like the IRS, but British) has a good overview here: https://www.gov.uk/working-for-yourself

Freelancing in the UK is not hard. After you've done the registration there's not much to it. You have to file your own taxes once a year, but if you've done them in the US then doing them in the UK is not that different; you just have to learn what expenses in your field are deductible so you know to keep track of them.

You might have to jump through a few more hoops when it comes to getting a bank account or a mortgage because banks still work under the assumption that everyone has a full-time job for a big company that pays them the same amount of money every month, so lending money to freelancers makes them nervous. 

Hi again @jennimaul ! It seems we have even more in common than our visa type. I too am looking at freelancing in the U.K. for my current US company. Wondering if you found out anything else since the last post here?

I know working from home is not exactly the best way to meet people in a new country, but I'm also worried I wouldnt find a U.K. job very quickly, based on so many others experiences. So I figured I could freelance as long as possible and search for a U.K. job at the same time. I was pleasantly shocked this week when my company was all for keeping me on as a freelancer!