RFIG20720 - Statutory Residence Test (SRT): Days spent in the UK: The deeming rule
Source: gov.uk (2025-04-04)


A number of the SRT tests require a count of the number of days an individual spends in the UK. Days an individual is present in the UK at the end of the day count as a day spent in the UK.

If an individual is not present in the UK at the end of the day, that day will not count as a day spent in the UK. This is subject to the deeming rule.

The deeming rule will apply to an individual for a tax year if they have:
- been UK resident in 1 or more of the 3 previous tax years
- at least 3 UK ties (see RFIG20510 (https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/residence-and-fig-regime-manual/rfig20510) onwards) for the tax year
- been present in the UK on more than 30 days without being present at the end of the day, (known as a 'qualifying day') in the tax year
The deeming rule does not apply to the limit of days spent in the UK under the third automatic overseas test (see RFIG20140 (https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/residence-and-fig-regime-manual/rfig20140)).

If an individual meets all of these conditions the deeming rule means that, after the first 30 qualifying days, all subsequent qualifying days within the tax year are treated as days spent in the UK.

If an individual meets the deeming rule, for the purposes of counting up the number of days they have spent in the UK, they must aggregate all their days spent, that is:
- those when they were present at the end of the days, plus
- any qualifying days over and above the 30 day threshold
Example 1

Angharad does not meet any of the automatic UK or automatic overseas tests for the tax year. She spent 35 days in the UK where she was present at the end of the day, but was also present in the UK on 57 other days, leaving the UK before the end of the day. Without the deeming rule she will be non-resident under the SRT sufficient ties test as she has 3 UK ties but only spent 35 days here.

Angharad will however need to consider the deeming rule as she was resident in the previous tax year, and has at least 3 ties under the sufficient ties test, therefore she needs to consider Table A at RFIG20520 (https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/residence-and-fig-regime-manual/rfig20520).

As Anghard was present in the UK on 57 other days and she meets the deeming rule conditions, she must include these further days in her day count computation. This gives her a total of 62 days spent in the UK. 35 days where she was present at midnight, plus 27 qualifying days, (by virtue of the deeming rule); taken together with her 3 UK ties means she will be resident under the sufficient ties test.

The deeming rule does not apply for the purposes of deciding if an individual has a 90 day tie, (see RFIG20570 (https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/residence-and-fig-regime-manual/rfig20570)), when checking whether they have 3 UK ties for the purposes of the deeming rule.

Example 2

Benedict needs to establish his residence position for the 2016-2017 tax year, he was resident in the UK in the 2015-2016 tax year.

In 2016-2017 he is in the UK on 50 days when he is not present at the end of the day, and 85 days at midnight. Benedict meets 2 of the deeming rules conditions and needs to determine if he has 3 ties in 2016-2107, to see whether the deeming rules apply to him. For the purposes of this example assume he has 2 other ties and only the 90 day tie can bring his total to 3.

When considering whether he has a 90 day tie for 2016-2017, Benedict will need to look back to 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 tax years:
- in 2015-2016 he was in the UK at the end of the day on 80 days and on another 45 days he left the UK before the end of the day
- in 2014-2015 he was in the UK at the end of the day on 70 days and on another 39 days he left the UK before the end of the day
For the purposes of the deeming rule only the days Benedict was in the UK at the end of the day are taken into account, so in this case he does not have a 90 day tie for 2016-2017. The deeming rules will not apply as Benedict only has 2 ties. Benedict uses Table A (see RFIG20520 (https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/residence-and-fig-regime-manual/rfig20520)), to check his residence status. On a count of 85 days (midnights), and only 2 ties, Benedict will not be UK resident for 2016-2017.

Example 3

Desmond needs to establish his residence position for 2016-2017 tax year, he was UK resident in 2015-2016 tax year. He is considering how many days he spent in the UK.

Desmond has 3 UK ties, (a country tie, a family tie and an accommodation tie). In 2016-2017 he is present in the UK on 50 days when he is not present at the end of the day, and also present at midnight on 44 other days.

As Desmond meets all 3 of the deeming rule conditions, he will need to consider how many deemed days he spent in the UK in the tax year. He has 20 days above the 30 day limit, so has 20 qualifying days to include in his UK day count.

Desmond's total days in the UK are therefore the 44 days when he was present at midnight plus the 20 qualifying days, a total of 64 days in the UK. Checking Table A (see RFIG20520 (https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/residence-and-fig-regime-manual/rfig20520)), a day count of 64 with 3 ties make Desmond UK resident in 2016-2017, (assuming that he does not meet any of the automatic overseas tests).