Self Assessment for Greeks in the UK has one date that matters right now: Monday 5 October 2026. That is the deadline to tell HMRC that you need to file a tax return for the last tax year, and LADbible reports that around a million people are affected, mostly new freelancers, people with a side job and new landlords. For Greeks there is an extra trap: the rent, pension or interest that still comes in from Greece.
If your only income is a salary, the tax is deducted through PAYE and you usually never see a tax return. According to GOV.UK, you must send one if, between 6 April 2025 and 5 April 2026, you were self employed as a sole trader and earned more than £1,000, you were a partner in a business partnership, or you had untaxed income. That last group includes rent, tips and commission, savings interest, dividends and foreign income.
If any of that is new for you, you have to register for Self Assessment by 5 October. HMRC then sends you a Unique Taxpayer Reference, the number you need to file. Not sure? Use the free HMRC checker.
Greek lessons at the weekend, DJ sets, translations, design work for a client back in Athens: all of it is trading income. The first £1,000 a year is covered by the trading allowance, but once your gross trading income passes £1,000 you have to register. Gross means what you were paid, before expenses, and it applies even if you also have a full time job.
This is the part of Self Assessment for Greeks in the UK that surprises people. The flat in Kypseli you inherited from yiayia, the studio in Thessaloniki you let to students: GOV.UK lists rental income on overseas property as foreign income, and if you are UK resident you normally pay UK tax on it and report it in a tax return.
The property allowance covers the first £1,000 of property income a year. Above that you need to contact HMRC, and above £2,500 the guidance says to register. A Greek pension and interest or dividends from a Greek bank also count as foreign income.
Yes, you declare the rent in Greece as well, on the E2 form that goes with your E1 return. That does not mean paying twice in full. The UK and Greece have had a double taxation convention since 1953, and you can usually claim Foreign Tax Credit Relief for tax already paid abroad, although you may not get all of it back. Keep your Greek tax statement (the ekkatharistiko) as proof, and note the rent month by month, because Greece taxes the calendar year. Buying rather than letting? See our guide to getting a mortgage in Greece from the UK.
Everything above about Self Assessment for Greeks in the UK depends on being UK resident for tax. The best known test is spending 183 days or more in the UK in a tax year, and in the year you arrive the tax year is usually split into a non resident part and a resident part.
New arrivals should know the foreign income and gains regime. In your first four tax years of UK residence, after at least ten consecutive tax years abroad, you can claim relief on qualifying foreign income through your tax return. The catch: you give up your personal allowance for that year, so for a modest Greek rent it can cost more than it saves.
The key dates for Self Assessment for Greeks in the UK are the same as for everyone else:
A late return means an initial £100 penalty, then £10 a day after three months, up to £900. Late payment adds 5% of the unpaid tax at 30 days, six months and twelve months, plus interest.
You can do all of this yourself, but Self Assessment for Greeks in the UK gets complicated quickly when two tax systems are involved. According to its Greek List listing, NP&US Accountants has worked in the UK for 18 years, is supervised by the ACCA and has particular experience in cross border tax. Its services include Self Assessment and sole trader tax returns, rental income, bookkeeping, payroll and VAT.
Getting there: New Barnet station (Great Northern trains from Moorgate and Finsbury Park). Lytton Road is a few minutes from the station on foot.
Help in Greek: NP&US Accountants at 4 Lytton Road, New Barnet, EN5 5BY. The listing shows office hours Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. Call ahead and take your P60, your rent figures and your Greek tax statement.
Greek stop nearby: Source of Life Bakehouse at 258 East Barnet Road, the road that runs from New Barnet station towards East Barnet village. A family bakery open since 2020, with sourdough bread and treats baked fresh every day.
Some questions are legal before they are tax questions: an inherited share of a house in Greece, a power of attorney so a relative can sign for you there, a will that covers both countries. Lemian and T Solicitors is a UK law practice whose listing covers immigration, leases, landlord and tenant disputes, family law, powers of attorney, wills, tax and cross border matters involving Greece and the UK.
Getting there: Great Portland Street station (Circle, Hammersmith and City and Metropolitan lines). The firm describes itself as remote first, so get in touch before you travel.
Help in Greek: Lemian and T Solicitors at 167 to 169 Great Portland Street, W1W 5PF, known in the Greek community in London for immigration and for legal work between Greece and the UK.
Compare. We keep a list of Greek accountants in London and a guide to Greek lawyers and solicitors in the UK, so you can discuss Self Assessment for Greeks in the UK with more than one before you choose.
A fair warning. This guide is general information based on GOV.UK at the time of writing, not tax advice. Rules change, and your own situation is what counts.
Once the paperwork is done, go out. Greek List events is the most complete list of Greek events in the UK, and listing an event is free. Coming up in the next ten days:
The accountants, solicitors and bakery featured in this guide are Greek List members. More than 100,000 Greeks and Cypriots in the UK read Greek List every month on the site, in the newsletter and in the Ellines sto Londino Facebook group, and Greek List listings rank first on Google.
Do you file a tax return here, in Greece, or both? Share your experience and your questions in the Facebook group Ellines sto Londino.
