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Life topic

Moving abroad and your money

7 min read · Before you start: Lessons on NIS and your payslip, retirement planning and foreign currency · Updated 31 October 2026

Caribbean families move. Study, work, family reunification and return migration are all common, and each one leaves a financial trail in two countries at once. This lesson covers what happens to contributions, accounts, loans and tax obligations when someone leaves Trinidad and Tobago, and what is worth settling before departure rather than afterwards.

Your NIS contributions

Contributions already made do not disappear on departure. Trinidad and Tobago participates in reciprocal social security arrangements — the United States Social Security Administration's country description notes that certain benefits are payable abroad under reciprocal agreements with other Caribbean countries and with Canada, and the NIBTT publishes specific forms for CARICOM and Canada.

What these arrangements generally allow is for contribution periods in participating countries to be taken into account, so that someone who worked in two of them is not treated as having started from zero in each. The detail varies by country and by benefit, and the NIBTT is the authority on which agreements apply and what each one covers. Keeping a record of your National Insurance number and contribution history before leaving makes any later claim considerably simpler.

Bank accounts and credit

• Local accounts can often remain open, though banks may apply different conditions or fees to non-resident account holders, and dormancy rules apply to accounts that sit unused.
• Credit history does not travel. A strong local credit record generally does not transfer to another country's bureau. Arriving somewhere new usually means starting again, which affects renting, phone contracts and borrowing.
• Outstanding local debts do not pause. A loan, credit card or mortgage continues to accrue interest and to be reported, and leaving the country does not end the obligation. Arranging how payments will be made from abroad before departing avoids arrears.
• Contact details matter. An address or phone number that stops working is how people miss notices about their own accounts for years.

Tax in two places

Tax obligations depend on residence and on where income arises, and the rules differ between countries. Two general points are worth understanding:

• Leaving does not automatically close a local tax position. Income arising in Trinidad and Tobago — rent from a property left behind, for example — generally remains within the local tax system. The Board of Inland Revenue sets out filing obligations.
• The new country has its own rules about when someone becomes tax resident, and about whether worldwide income is taxable there. Double taxation agreements exist between some countries to prevent the same income being taxed twice, and whether one applies is a question for the tax authorities of both countries.

This is an area where general guidance has limits. Where there is property, a business or substantial income involved, the position is usually worth confirming with the revenue authority or a tax professional in both countries.

Property and possessions left behind

• Rented out: rental income, management arrangements, insurance that reflects a tenanted rather than owner-occupied property, and the tax position all change.
• Left empty: insurers frequently limit or exclude cover for properties unoccupied beyond a set period. The policy wording is where that limit is stated.
• Held jointly or in family hands: who has authority to act — to sign, to sell, to deal with an emergency repair — is worth settling formally. A power of attorney is the usual instrument, and it is a legal document, so an attorney-at-law is the right place for it.

Moving money

Large transfers out of Trinidad and Tobago meet the foreign exchange conditions described in lesson 31 and the transfer costs described in lesson 45. Documentation showing the source of funds is normally required for substantial amounts, and assembling it is far easier while still in the country with access to the institutions holding the records.

If you are returning

Return migration has its own set of considerations. Customs provides concessions for returning nationals subject to conditions and documentation; pension and social security entitlements from abroad may be payable here, depending on the country's rules; and foreign qualifications may need local recognition. The relevant ministries and the originating country's pension authority publish the conditions.

A short list for before departure

1. Record your National Insurance number and contribution history.
2. Decide what happens to each account, loan and standing payment.
3. Update contact details and nominate someone reachable locally where an institution requires it.
4. Confirm filing obligations with the Board of Inland Revenue if income will continue to arise here.
5. Review insurance on any property or vehicle left behind.
6. Settle, in writing, who can act on your behalf if something needs signing.

Test yourself

Mark this lesson as done

Not financial advice. This lesson is general education only. See our editorial policy and disclaimer.