UK/EU investments and pension

[edie1994]

Hi everyone.

Sorry if this has been asked before, but I'm having trouble understanding a couple of financial things.

I am UK tax payer at the moment, but also have EU citizenship. I'll be moving to China for work this summer.

Natwest can keep my bank account open even if my address is not in the UK (so they said, will confirm again this week). Two years ago I opened a Vanguard account to start investing, but the platform is only for UK residents, so will have to close it. Same for Vanguard's personal pension account (SIPP), available to UK residents only.

I am thinking of moving my residency to China as I will probably not go back to the UK. My family is in EU and I'm planning (hoping) to retire in the EU and buy a house there (one day).

Now I'm wondering:

-Where to transfer my current (very small) investments to? I've read about Interactive Brokers and they seem to support residency in China (there's a list on their website). Which one would you recommend in this case? Blackrock, Etoro, etc.

-Should I open a private pension fund with another platform? Or do you expats normally invest in ETFs, and use them to fund your retirement?

-Is it better to ask your employer to pay you directly in your bank account back home (UK in this case), or to a local bank (Chinese) and then transfer it yourself via Wise, Swipey, etc.?

Sorry for the questions, I've read Andrew Hallam's book but found it quite difficult.

Thanks!

 

[mimitalks]

@edie1994 Sadly I have nothing of use to say to you but I am in a similar boat since I am now living in China and most of my assets are still in the UK with Vanguard. Since I can no longer invest in that platform because I'm now resident in PRC I'm really not sure what I should do now I am earning salary in China and can't find much information about it. My application to open an account with HSBC expat was refused even though I thought I fulfilled the requirements so maybe something to do with living in China so seems the only option left is to open a brokerage account with someone like Interactive Brokers and park my money there which hardly seems ideal. It's a very tricky situation to be in because obviously it's less than desirable to keep money in PRC but then where should I put it without having to pay even more tax?

 

[edie1994]

@mimitalks Thanks for your feedback, nice to see someone else with a similar experience.