British Expat Financial Planning · UAE
UK-Based Private Office Coordination for British Expats in the UAE
If you are a British national living in Dubai, Abu Dhabi or elsewhere across the Emirates and you want a coherent UK-based view of your pensions, investments, Wills and inheritance tax position, IFA Private Office is built for the brief. We are a UK-based firm operating under a transparent fiduciary model, with introductions to appropriately authorised UK specialists for regulated advice and execution.
The cross-border brief
A long-serving British expat in the UAE typically holds a particular shape of balance sheet: a UK workplace pension or two, possibly an international SIPP or QROPS, an offshore portfolio bond, UAE property, end-of-service benefits, cash in multiple currencies and a Will written for a life that no longer exists. The pieces interact. The conventional Dubai advisory market is not built to handle that interaction with the client's interest first.
Our cross-border coordination helps you see the pieces together. Any investment recommendation is made directly by the appropriately authorised professional you instruct, under their own terms and fees.
What we cover
- • UK pension transfers and consolidation — QROPS, SIPP and defined benefit reviews coordinated with UK-regulated specialists.
- • Investment planning — coordinating your investment questions and, where regulated advice is needed, introducing appropriately authorised professionals under their own terms of engagement.
- • Wills for British expats — UK and DIFC Wills, coordinated.
- • UK inheritance tax planning — including the residence-based IHT regime in force since 6 April 2025 and the pension IHT changes from 6 April 2027.
- • Trusts and offshore structures — where appropriate and properly justified.
- • Returning-to-UK financial planning — pre-arrival tax, residency and pension structuring.
How we differ from the conventional UAE advisory market
We do not sell products. We do not earn commission from product providers. We do not introduce clients to offshore bond providers in exchange for trail income. Our income comes from the client, agreed in writing in advance, for coordination and general information. Any investment recommendation — including a recommendation to do nothing — is made by the appropriately authorised professional, not IFA.AE.
See our fiduciary model for the full position.
If you are a British expat in the UAE and you want a UK-based view of your financial position, arrange a confidential conversation.
Book a Free ConsultationFrequently asked questions
What does a British expat financial adviser in the UAE actually do?
Cross-border financial planning for British nationals living in the UAE. The work spans UK pensions (QROPS, SIPP, defined benefit), investment portfolio construction, Wills and inheritance tax, end-of-service planning and — for those returning home — pre-arrival UK tax and residency planning. The role is to provide a coherent UK-based perspective on a financial life that straddles two jurisdictions.
Why should I use a UK-based adviser rather than a local UAE firm?
The UAE advisory market is dominated by firms remunerated by product providers rather than by the client. The documented losses to British expat wealth from commission-driven advice — high-cost offshore bonds, mis-sold QROPS, opaque mirror-fund portfolios — run into hundreds of millions of pounds. A UK-based adviser working under a fiduciary model operates on a different basis: fees agreed in writing, recommendations measured against the whole UK market, regulated execution by appropriately authorised UK specialists.
What size of client do you work with?
Typical clients are senior professionals, business owners and partners with investable assets, pensions and property of £500,000 upwards, often £2m+ across pensions, property and liquid assets. The model is designed for clients whose position is complex enough to warrant proper cross-border coordination.
Are you regulated in the UK?
IFA Private Office is a UK-based private office providing coordination, general planning information and introductions. It does not itself provide regulated financial advice. Regulated activity that requires specific UK authorisation — defined benefit pension transfers, regulated investment management, certain QROPS transfers — is conducted by appropriately authorised UK specialists to whom we introduce clients. We confirm in writing who they are and how they are regulated before any introduction.
Do you work with clients planning to return to the UK?
Yes — extensively. The twelve to twenty-four months before a return to the UK are the most valuable planning window of the expatriate cycle. See our returning-expat guidance for the full position.
What does a first conversation cost?
Nothing. The initial conversation is confidential, no-obligation and conducted at our cost. If we proceed, fees are agreed in writing in advance.