Omega Owners Forum
Chat Area => General Discussion Area => Topic started by: tunnie on 21 August 2009, 16:43:16
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Whats the best way to set myself up as a Ltd company, quick google suggests few sites out there showing it can be done for £25 odd?
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Buy a company 'Off the shelf', and change it's name.
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Buy a company 'Off the shelf', and change it's name.
:-/ :-/ :-/ :-/
Found this, seems suitable?
http://www.smartcompanyformations.co.uk/Bronze_Package.html
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I can't recall the full details, but when I started a company back in the 80's, I seem to remember I just bought a £100 company 'off the shelf", that was the only way to do it then, perhaps things have changed.
I would contact Companies House, myself, they will advise you of the options.
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I can't recall the full details, but when I started a company back in the 80's, I seem to remember I just bought a £100 company 'off the shelf", that was the only way to do it then, perhaps things have changed.
I would contact Companies House, myself, they will advise you of the options.
Looks like you can do it online now, and its all done in a couple of hours.
But i might give them a call anyway :y
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If it's for your self Tunnie I would advise seeking advice from an account before you do.
Allthough there are plentyof benefits in all types of company formations and VAT as mentioned in otherposts there are also plenty of pitfalls and draw backs thatmaynot needtobetaken at an early stage.
Please ignore the above if itis not for you personally.
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If it's for your self Tunnie I would advise seeking advice from an account before you do.
Allthough there are plentyof benefits in all types of company formations and VAT as mentioned in otherposts there are also plenty of pitfalls and draw backs thatmaynot needtobetaken at an early stage.
Please ignore the above if itis not for you personally.
No it is for me, so i can be self employed and contract, if i accept this new job.
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If it's for your self Tunnie I would advise seeking advice from an account before you do.
Allthough there are plentyof benefits in all types of company formations and VAT as mentioned in otherposts there are also plenty of pitfalls and draw backs thatmaynot needtobetaken at an early stage.
Please ignore the above if itis not for you personally.
No it is for me, so i can be self employed and contract, if i accept this new job.
Tunnie
www.businesslink.gov.uk - get the number and ring - it is free and they will advise better than someone with a commercial interest.
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If it's for your self Tunnie I would advise seeking advice from an account before you do.
Allthough there are plentyof benefits in all types of company formations and VAT as mentioned in otherposts there are also plenty of pitfalls and draw backs thatmaynot needtobetaken at an early stage.
Please ignore the above if itis not for you personally.
No it is for me, so i can be self employed and contract, if i accept this new job.
Tunnie
www.businesslink.gov.uk - get the number and ring - it is free and they will advise better than someone with a commercial interest.
Thanks Allen, will do :y
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Consider being a sole trader then, Tunnie Associates, or something like that, you don't need to be Ltd to be a sole trader.
You don't need to register anything then, but you will have to submit tax returns in that name.
If your turnover exceeds the VAT threshold, you will have to register for VAT.
I finished the last few years of my life freelancing, didn't have to register anything.
You can set up a bank account in that name, a bank will give you advice for free.
You may consider employing an accountant, if you are not sure how to submit a sole trader return to the I.R.
As a sole trader, you can claim for expenses against income.
Hope this helps.
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Consider being a sole trader then, Tunnie Associates, or something like that, you don't need to be Ltd to be a sole trader.
You don't need to register anything then, but you will have to submit tax returns in that name.
If your turnover exceeds the VAT threshold, you will have to register for VAT.
I finished the last few years of my life freelancing, didn't have to register anything.
You can set up a bank account in that name, a bank will give you advice for free.
You may consider employing an accountant, if you are not sure how to submit a sole trader return to the I.R.
As a sole trader, you can claim for expenses against income.
Hope this helps.
I like that part, cause i can claim for fuel! :D
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Consider being a sole trader then, Tunnie Associates, or something like that, you don't need to be Ltd to be a sole trader.
You don't need to register anything then, but you will have to submit tax returns in that name.
If your turnover exceeds the VAT threshold, you will have to register for VAT.
I finished the last few years of my life freelancing, didn't have to register anything.
You can set up a bank account in that name, a bank will give you advice for free.
You may consider employing an accountant, if you are not sure how to submit a sole trader return to the I.R.
As a sole trader, you can claim for expenses against income.
Hope this helps.
I like that part, cause i can claim for fuel! :D
It's not as simple as that, there are rules for claiming for fuel :(
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Consider being a sole trader then, Tunnie Associates, or something like that, you don't need to be Ltd to be a sole trader.
You don't need to register anything then, but you will have to submit tax returns in that name.
If your turnover exceeds the VAT threshold, you will have to register for VAT.
I finished the last few years of my life freelancing, didn't have to register anything.
You can set up a bank account in that name, a bank will give you advice for free.
You may consider employing an accountant, if you are not sure how to submit a sole trader return to the I.R.
As a sole trader, you can claim for expenses against income.
Hope this helps.
I like that part, cause i can claim for fuel! :D
It's not as simple as that, there are rules for claiming for fuel :(
I know but as PAYE i can't claim for any of my standard transport.... so even claiming a bit is fine by me!
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Tunnie,
Trust me, use businesslink. I know a bit about this, I am directly involved in the national portal and 3 regional links. The rules around VAT etc are changing, the only place to get the latest info is from businesslink.gov. It is run out of HMRC and liaises with all other Gov departments so the info is accurate.
Banks, local enterprise agencies etc ALL have commercial interests! you pay tax so use the service that your taxes have paid for!
Merv -
PS. say hello to your dad from me
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I set up as a limited company when I had my IT business. Recognise that the Limited part means "limited liability" and is appropriate if you are running a business where a major "cock up" of a customers equipment/database etc could lead to litigation. Operating as a sole trader in these circumstances could at worst lead to personal property (eg house etc) being at risk. Liability of a limited company is limited to the worth of the company only. It also allows the "owner" to become a PAYE employee which used to have tax and NI benefits (pay yourself a low salary and make up income with Directors dividend payments from co profits - used to pay 10% tax on these) - believe this particular loophole closed now :(
My advice - think carefully as to your reasons for setting up as a limited company - seek professional advice. Probably better in your situation to set up as a sole trader.
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I finished the last few years of my life freelancing, didn't have to register anything.
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Don't you mean the last few years of your career? Or is there something you've not told us, AA? ;D
Can you get an internet connection the other side of the pearly gates? :D
Kevin
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might be worth remembering that if you are self-employed rather than employed by a ltd co. that pays your tax PAYE you will forfit rights to benefits should the work go belly up
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If you are going to do contract work in the IT field, you may find that many of the agencies will only deal with a limited company, and won't go near sole traders.
I would strongly advise you to use an accountant and get him to do the company set up. It should only cost a little more than buying an OTS package, and you can choose your own name and registered office (the accountant). Find a local accountant - don't bother with one of the big firms specialising in contractor/service companies.
The low salary/high dividend approach is OK, but you have to be careful - HMRC (justifiably) don't like it, and you will just draw attention to yourself. Once that happens, beware of IR35 - it's a set of rules for service companies whereby HMRC deem 95% of your gross invoicing as personal salary, and tax it as such. No expenses, no benefits in kind, no corporation tax - its all going on your income tax. There are ways of dealing with this - you'll need to do some research.
You have years of administrative fun ahead of you...
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.....
I finished the last few years of my life freelancing, didn't have to register anything.
...
Don't you mean the last few years of your career? Or is there something you've not told us, AA? ;D
Can you get an internet connection the other side of the pearly gates? :D
Kevin
Do I come here often? :-/
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going back to this and looking at some of the details, looks like there are 2 options, due to the budget changes.
Either umbrella company or limited, i don't like giving other people my money so i think i will setup my own limited company ;D
Can anyone recommend a good accountant in Northants or London?
I will call the business link people tomorrow as well :y
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going back to this and looking at some of the details, looks like there are 2 options, due to the budget changes.
Either umbrella company or limited, i don't like giving other people my money so i think i will setup my own limited company ;D
Can anyone recommend a good accountant in Northants or London?
I will call the business link people tomorrow as well :y
Dont go for one in London then. ;D ;D
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Still think, if you are only selling yourself, the best option is a sole trader.
It has better tax perks.
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Still think, if you are only selling yourself, the best option is a sole trader.
It has better tax perks.
According to a few sites, thats no longer possible for contractors.
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http://www.bytestart.co.uk/content/19/19_1/what-is-a-sole-trader.shtml
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http://www.bytestart.co.uk/content/19/19_1/what-is-a-sole-trader.shtml
And i repeat, you CANNOT be a sole trader if you contract.
http://www.ir35calc.co.uk/contractor_sole_trader.aspx
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Ok, if you work for an agency, you are employed by them.
If you find your own contract, you can act as a sole trader!
This is what I used to do.
The two situations can run side by side.
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Ok, if you work for an agency, you are employed by them.
If you find your own contract, you can act as a sole trader!
This is what I used to do.
The two situations can run side by side.
Sadly the contract is via an agency, as are most.... they are advertised online via Agencies for the companys they will contract you too.
The agency will pay me not the place i will work for, so its the Ltd company way i think. Agency did ask for my company number and such....
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going back to this and looking at some of the details, looks like there are 2 options, due to the budget changes.
Either umbrella company or limited, i don't like giving other people my money so i think i will setup my own limited company ;D
Can anyone recommend a good accountant in Northants or London?
I will call the business link people tomorrow as well :y
Advantage of umbrella company is less hassle...however they wont be 'imaginative' on your tax return...
I had a ltd company up until last year....i used it for IT contracting....but havent done that for years now..but you still have to do returns for it and pay companies house every year....so couldnt see the point and closed it down.
Get a good accountant tunnie.....and he'll claim for things you wouldnt have imagined you could ;) ....things that spring to mind are.....home office (rent charged to ltd company by yourself ;D )
, part of leccy bill, part of phone bill, stationary/consumables etc....
I think the current government has closed the loophole of being able to pay youself dividends from the ltd company......by doing this i just got taxed a flat 25% on the dividends.....handy if you were in the 40% bracket :y but worth checking with your accountant if the loophole is still closed.
Good luck :y
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Oh and i wouldnt bother registering for VAT unless you have to......my accountant advised me against it...as it is too much hassle to do the returns every 3 months.....i used to take time off when i started getting near the threshold :y
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Cheers :y
I intend to ring up Mr Tax man to get the final details, there seems to be quite a few websites that will setup a Ltd company in just a few hours :)
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Cheers :y
I intend to ring up Mr Tax man to get the final details, there seems to be quite a few websites that will setup a Ltd company in just a few hours :)
They wont tell you what you can fiddle legitamately claim for tho!
Carnt remember how much it cost me....its old age creeping in ::) Think my accountant did it for me....then i opened a business account...with the details..
tunniecomputerservices ltd .... :y
You'll be able to put "Director" on your business cards :y
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Cheers :y
I intend to ring up Mr Tax man to get the final details, there seems to be quite a few websites that will setup a Ltd company in just a few hours :)
They wont tell you what you can fiddle legitamately claim for tho!
Carnt remember how much it cost me....its old age creeping in ::) Think my accountant did it for me....then i opened a business account...with the details..
tunniecomputerservices ltd .... :y
You'll be able to put "Director" on your business cards :y
Was thinking along the lines of "tunniemobileconsultancy ltd" :)