British Buyers Guide to South Florida Real Estate: Tax Treaties, FIRPTA, and the Florida Lifestyle for UK Expats

British buyers have been purchasing in South Florida for decades, and the community here reflects it. But the legal and tax framework for UK buyers is genuinely different from other international purchasers. Here's a clear-eyed guide to getting it right.

The UK's April 2025 abolition of the non-domicile tax status is the most significant driver of British wealth migration in a generation. I have had more UK buyer inquiries in the past 12 months than in the prior five years combined. What Changed in 2025 and Why It Matters The previous non-dom regime allowed UK residents with a foreign domicile to avoid UK tax on foreign income and gains for up to 15 years. The 2025 reform replaced this with a four-year Foreign Income and Gains exemption for new arrivals, and eliminated it entirely for anyone who has been a UK resident for more than four years. For high-net-worth individuals who had structured their affairs around the non-dom regime, the change is material. The effective UK tax rate on worldwide income at the top bracket, 45% income tax...