UK expat financial calculators: run the numbers before you sign
Free calculators for every pitch Gulf expats get sold: RL360 Quantum, Zurich Vista, Hansard Vantage and Generali Vision offshore plans; offshore bonds; UK buy-to-let; Gulf property. Plus the budget calculator that tells you whether any of it is affordable in the first place.
Why I created this site
Free calculators in the Gulf are rarely free. The price is your email address, which lands on the desk of a commission-based adviser within the hour. Not here. I don't ask for your email, and the calculators run in your browser, so your figures aren't sent anywhere.
Thinks in your two currencies
AED, QAR or SAR as income. GBP as the destination. Set your currencies once in the nav and every calculator handles both simultaneously - no mental conversion required.
I have no product to sell you
No RL360 affiliate link, no offshore bond referral, no property commission. I built the fee drain calculator to show what those products cost. I earn nothing either way, so it has no reason to flatter them.
Your numbers stay in your browser
Your figures are worked out in your browser. A few settings, and numbers you pass from one calculator to the next, are saved on your own device. Nothing reaches me unless you use the contact form.
A tax-free salary sounds like a pay rise. Run the numbers before you find out it wasn't.
Whether you're still weighing up the offer or you're five years in, the order is the same. Find where you are and start there.
Know what you really earn at home
Your UK position isn't just your payslip. Employer pension contributions, child benefit, NI credits towards your state pension and a free workplace safety net all disappear the day you leave. Price them before you compare salaries.
Budget the offer against your destination
Now put the new salary against real local costs. School fees, rent paid a year upfront, flights home, healthcare and FX losses on every transfer. The surplus left over is the only number that matters, and it's usually smaller than the recruiter implied.
Learn to invest it yourself
Investing the surplus doesn't need an adviser, a structure or a meeting in a hotel lobby. A low-cost global index fund through a proper offshore broker does the job. The guides show you how, step by step.
Spot the fee traps before you sign
Long-term offshore savings plans from the likes of RL360, Friends Provident and Zurich are sold hard across the Gulf. Charges can swallow years of growth, and exit penalties lock you in. Run the plan through the calculator before the meeting ends, not after you've signed.
Come home without getting mugged
The return leg has its own traps. Get the Statutory Residence Test wrong, mistime a sale or move money home carelessly and HMRC takes a slice of everything you worked for. Plan the exit before you book the flight.
Three tools for the three most expensive mistakes Gulf expats make.
Offshore savings plans, offshore bonds and Gulf buy-to-lets are the three things sold hardest to expats. The sales projections usually leave the charges out. These calculators put them back in.
Offshore bond vs ETFs calculator
Compare a low-cost ETF held in Interactive Brokers against a "Tax Free" offshore bond.
It models the wrapper fees, adviser costs, chargeable event tax and the benefit of deferring withdrawals. The bond is only worth having if the tax it saves is more than its fees.
RL360 / Zurich / Hansard fee drain
Model initial unit charges, surrender penalties, mirror fund fees and adviser commission for RL360 Quantum, Zurich Vista, Hansard Vantage and Generali Vision, then compare the result with investing directly in ETFs.
Gulf property ROI calculator
Dubai, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Oman purchases carry 4-7% in transaction costs before the rental yield clock starts. Work out the real return after purchase costs, mortgage, net yield and exit costs, and compare it with a global ETF growing at 7% a year over the same period.
What will it actually cost you?
Every offshore plan, bond and property pitch comes with projected returns. Very few put the total charges in writing next to what the same money would do in a cheap index fund. That's the comparison these tools make.
| What you were told | What the calculator tests | What you get back |
|---|---|---|
| "This offshore savings plan is disciplined investing." | What do initial units, surrender charges, mirror fund fees and adviser commission cost over the real contract term? | The plan's charges, from the provider's own documents, against the same money in ETFs. |
| "This offshore bond makes UK tax disappear." | Is it tax-free, or just an expensive way to delay the tax until you're back in the UK and it's charged as income? | GIA dividend and CGT tax model versus bond charges and final chargeable event liability. |
| "UK property is safer than markets." | What is the net yield after stamp duty, Section 24, management fees, voids, repairs and selling costs? | Buy-to-let after-tax return versus a global ETF held in a GIA over the same period. |
| "You can afford the premium." | What does your actual monthly cashflow look like after all Gulf and UK commitments? | What you really have left each month, your savings rate and where money is tight. |
The articles people read the night before a financial meeting.
Each guide explains one product or situation in plain English, then links to the calculator so you can try it with your own numbers.
RL360 Quantum review: is it worth it, or a fee trap?
How RL360 Quantum's charges work: the initial units, what your adviser earned the day you signed, the surrender penalties, and whether it's ever worth keeping.
RepatriationUK Statutory Residence Test: how many days can you spend in the UK?
The test that decides whether HMRC treats you as UK tax resident. Covers the automatic tests, the sufficient-ties rules and a worked example where one extra trip home changes the result for the whole year.
End of ServiceHow UAE end-of-service gratuity is calculated
Why it's based on basic salary, not your package, the 21-day and 30-day bands, the two-year cap, and a worked example showing how far out an estimate based on your full package can be.
Expat Advisor ForensicsExpat Investment Plans Exposed
What RL360 Quantum, Zurich Vista, Hansard Vantage and Generali Vision cost, what the adviser is paid, and your options if you already hold one.
ETF InvestingHow to invest in VWRA from the Gulf
Why VWRA and Interactive Brokers are a sensible place to start, how to get money there from each GCC country, and how often to invest.
The calculators worth opening before a big expat money decision.
The fee checks come first because they're usually the most urgent. Everything runs in your browser: open one, enter your numbers, and close it when you're done.
The questions worth Googling before you agree to anything.
What Gulf expats tend to search for after a financial meeting, usually late at night with the brochure still on the table.
Are RL360 Quantum, Zurich Vista and Hansard Vantage offshore plans worth the fees?
For most Gulf expats, no, once you add up all the charges. Initial units (typically the first 18-24 months of premiums) are charged at 100%, surrender penalties run for up to 10 years, mirror fund charges add 1-2% annually and adviser commissions compound on top. The fee drain calculator uses provider KFD and brochure data to model the exact cost versus investing the same amounts directly in a low-cost UCITS ETF.
Are offshore bonds tax-free for UK expats returning home?
Usually tax-deferred rather than tax-free. Gains inside an offshore bond accumulate free of UK tax during the deferral period, but the full gain is assessed to income tax as a chargeable event when the bond matures or is surrendered after you become UK resident again. The offshore bond calculator compares this tax treatment and all wrapper fees against a low-cost GIA using 2026/27 HMRC rates.
Which expat calculators should I use first?
Start with the budget calculator to establish your true monthly investable surplus - it pre-loads into the other tools. Then choose based on the decision in front of you: the fee drain calculator if you have been shown an offshore savings plan; the offshore bond calculator if comparing bonds and GIAs; or the buy-to-let calculator if you are considering UK property.
Does ExpatMoneyMatters provide regulated financial advice?
No. The site provides educational calculators and independent research. It is designed to help UK expats understand the numbers before taking regulated financial, tax or legal advice from a qualified adviser authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority.
What is end-of-service gratuity and how does it affect my retirement planning?
End-of-service gratuity (EOSG) is a statutory lump sum from UAE employers, calculated at 21 days basic pay per year for the first five years of service and 30 days per year thereafter. The retirement planner combines your ETF portfolio projection, estimated EOSG entitlement and UK property equity into one 20-year projection of your net worth.
Run it before you sign.
Pick the product you've been shown, enter the figures from the brochure and compare it with the direct alternative. Then take the result into the meeting.