European Union Savings Directive
The European Union Savings Directive (ESD) came into force on 1 July 2005 and will be relevant to most people who are resident within the member states of the European Union (EU).
Will the ESD affect me?
The ESD will apply to:
- all EU member states,
- UK Crown Dependencies (the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man)
- the dependent territories of the Netherlands and
- certain other countries which have all voluntarily agreed to apply the same equivalent measures as those contained in the ESD.
An exhaustive list of the impacted countries can be found in our Guide to the European Savings Tax Directive. The Directive applies if you are a resident of an impacted country and you benefit from savings income paid from another country other than your country of residence. In this case, the institution making the savings income payment will be required to exchange information with the tax authority in your country of residence or apply a withholding tax to your savings income.
What options are available to me?
If you live in a country impacted by the ESD and if we do not hear from you to the contrary we will automatically deduct tax at a rate determined by the ESD from any interest paid to your account after 1 July 2005.
If you do not want us to deduct tax the ESD allows us to offer another alternative. We can, if you prefer, provide information about you and the interest credited to your account after 1 July 2005 to the tax authority in your country of residence. In order to use this option we require completion of an Exchange of Information form.
If you have any queries or require any further information about the ESD, please feel free to contact us on +44 (0)1481 712004.
Please note that we can only provide information on the ESD. If you are in any doubt as to your preferred course of action you should obtain independent, professional advice.
Further Information
Further information regarding the European Union Savings Directive (ESD) can be found on the HM Revenue & Customs website.