The Homes for Ukraine scheme provides you with the right to access a range of benefits and services whilst you are in the UK. As a first step, the government will provide to you and each member of your family that you have travelled with a £200 grant to help cover any immediate costs you have while you settle in. This will be provided through your local council. This is not counted as part of any other benefit scheme which you may be able to claim and will not need to be re-paid.

You can choose the bank that suits you best from a range of banks in the UK. These include (but are not limited to):

• Barclays UK
• Bank of Ireland UK
• Bank of Scotland
• The Co-operative Bank
• Danske Bank UK
• First Direct
• Halifax
• HSBC UK
• Lloyds Banking Group
• Monzo (digital only bank)
• Nationwide Building Society
• NatWest Group
• RBS
• Santander UK
• Ulster Bank
• Virgin Money

To open the account you might need to visit the bank person, so you might want to find a bank that has a branch close to where you are living. To open a bank account in the UK, you usually need to show the proof of ID such as passport, biometric residency permit, as well as proof of permanent address, though the latter is not required by law to open a bank account.

If you don’t have all the identification documents, take all the information you have with you to the bank. Banks are encouraged to consider alternative ways to identify and verify their customers, and the government has been working closely with the sector to support access for incoming Ukrainian nationals who may not have standard documentation for identity verification.

It is recommended that you deposit your hryvnia cash into your bank accounts in Ukraine rather than taking cash out of the country as you leave. When in the UK, you will be able to make cashless payments, or withdraw cash in GBP, using payment cards issued by Ukrainian banks.

If you’re employed, the tax you pay will usually be taken out of your salary automatically. If you’re self-employed you may need to register for Self Assessment and send a tax return each year.

Most people in the UK get a Personal Allowance of tax-free income. The standard Personal Allowance is £12,570, which is the amount of income you do not have to pay tax on. For higher bands of income the income tax is levied at progressive rates up to 45%.

You will need to get the National Insurance Number in order to pay mandatory National Insurance contributions. If you are applying for benefit and do not have a National Insurance number, the benefit team will initiate the process so that you are issued with a National Insurance Number. Once your entitlement to benefit has been assessed you will receive a text message to your phone which contains a link (URL) to enable you to apply for a National Insurance Number on gov.uk. You must access the link and complete the application as soon as possible to avoid any delays.

You might get taxed in the UK and Ukraine for income that only needs to be taxed once. If this happens, you’ll usually be able to claim ‘double-taxation relief’. Check this guidance on paying UK tax on your income from Ukraine .

You can transfer money from UK to Ukraine via an international transfer or money transfer at a corresponding provider or a bank.

For an international transfer at the bank you have to fill out a special form and usually pay fees. Other special money transfer providers (e.g. Western Union, Moneygram, Wise, Revolut, Paypal) are often a cheaper and faster alternative.