In Michael Parker v HMRC [2026] TC09868, the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) found that days spent in the UK by an overseas engineer travelling between Iraq, the UK, and holiday destinations could be excluded under the transit days and exceptional circumstances provisions.
Michael Parker, a Chartered Engineer, worked overseas from July 2017 to June 2025, managing civil engineering and construction works in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
- During the 2019-20 tax year, Mr Parker worked on a rotational basis, while maintaining a family home in the UK.
- He travelled through the UK several times during that year, primarily in transit while moving between Iraq and holiday destinations.
- Mr Parker arrived in the UK from Iraq via Istanbul on 8 February 2020. He stayed overnight in a hotel near Heathrow Airport before departing the following day for a holiday in Naples.
- He returned from Naples on 17 February 2020, again staying overnight at a hotel near Heathrow Airport before leaving for Tokyo.
- He returned to the UK from Tokyo on 28 February 2020 and stayed near the airport.
- On 29 February 2020, he boarded a flight due to depart for Dublin at 13:35. However, the flight was cancelled due to Storm Jorge and Dublin Airport's closure. His luggage remained checked in overnight and he stayed in a hotel near Heathrow before flying to Dublin the following morning.
- He had planned to return to Iraq from Heathrow on 5 March 2020, but this flight was cancelled due to COVID. Instead, he travelled from Ireland to Belgium, intending to return to the UK on 6 April 2020.
- Following UK government advice for citizens to return home and the cancellation of flights from Belgium, he took the last available flight back to the UK on 30 March 2020.
- During his UK visits, Mr Parker was unable to secure same-day onward flights and therefore stayed overnight near Heathrow Airport.
- His wife joined him at the hotel on some occasions, since they were travelling together. His adult stepdaughter met them at the airport for their trip to Japan, but did not stay overnight.
- Aside from the brief contact with his wife and stepdaughter, Mr Parker did not meet any other friends or family during his visits.
- His activities were limited to routine matters, such as eating, sleeping, watching TV, reading, using the internet and travelling between the hotel and airport.
- In his 2019-20 Self Assessment tax return, Mr Parker claimed that he was Non-UK resident under the Statutory Residence Test (SRT), on the basis that he satisfied the third automatic overseas test by working full-time abroad.
- He reported 100 days in the UK, but disregarded seven days due to COVID, one day for Exceptional circumstances and three Transit days. These reduced his UK count to 89 days and placed him below the relevant threshold.
- On 7 December 2020, HMRC opened an enquiry into Mr Parker's 2019-20 tax return.
- While accepting the seven COVID-related exclusions, HMRC rejected the other four days.
- They argued that Mr Parker's journeys into and out of the UK were separate, as he had booked separate tickets, therefore, he was no longer a passenger once he arrived in the UK.
- HMRC also argued that flight cancellations due to adverse weather were not exceptional circumstances.
- On this basis, HMRC calculated Mr Parker's UK presence as 93 days.
- On 31 October 2022, HMRC issued a Closure notice for a tax liability of £64,946 for the 2019-20 tax year, concluding that Mr Parker was UK resident under the sufficient ties test.
- Mr Parker appealed to HMRC, who upheld their decision, and subsequently Appealed to the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) on 21 March 2023.
The FTT found that:
- In relation to his transit days:
- Mr Parker's use of Heathrow Airport was driven by convenience rather than preference, and his ticket arrangements did not negate his status as a passenger.
- The legislation requires only that the individual 'arrives in the UK as a passenger', which applied in Mr Parker's case, regardless of whether the UK was an intermediate or final destination.
- Mr Parker's overnight stays, meals and travel between the hotel and the airport were incidental and functionally connected to his onward travel.
- Meeting with his wife and stepdaughter was likewise directly related to their shared travel plans.
- In relation to the exceptional circumstances claim for 29 February 2020, the FTT applied the test established in A Taxpayer v HMRC [2025] EWCA Civ 106.
- The flight cancellation due to severe weather, the lack of available alternatives, and the airline's handling of his luggage and accommodation collectively constituted circumstances beyond the ordinary course of travel.
- Mr Parker had accepted the airline's arrangements and departed at the earliest opportunity, satisfying the requirement to leave as soon as reasonably possible.
- 8 February 2020, 17 February 2020 and 28 February 2020 could be excluded as transit days, and 29 February 2020 under the exceptional circumstances provision.
- Mr Parker's day count in the UK in 2019-20 for SRT purposes was 89 days, so he did meet the third automatic overseas test and was not resident in the UK in the 2019-20 tax year.
The appeal was allowed.
Useful guides on this topic
Non-resident tax toolkit
This toolkit covers the key UK tax issues for non-UK resident individuals holding UK assets and property and working in the UK.
SRT: Statutory Residence Test
What is the Statutory Residence Test (SRT)? Why is it important and how does it determine a person's residency?
SRT: Day-Counting Toolkit
This is a day-counting toolkit for the Statutory Residence Test.
Residence v non-residence: tax treatment
What are the differences between being UK resident and non-UK resident for UK tax purposes?
Closure notices
When does HMRC issue a Closure Notice? Can a taxpayer demand one? Are there appeal rights?
How to appeal an HMRC decision
Disagree with an HMRC decision? How do you appeal, what type of decision can you appeal and what are your different options when you disagree with HMRC? What are the key steps in making an appeal?
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