[Finance] Small business/accountancy support

[mr sheen]

I am about to launch a very small consultancy venture I am embarking on alongside my full time job.

Initially I will be working for one client, invoicing them for around £500 once a month, and doing this via a limited company. I would hope to attract others clients

There is a high probability that, combined with my PAYE income, bonus etc that this will take me over the threshold for self assessment.

I am complete new to all this, have no idea if I need an accountant, whether the outlay for one can be justified for this level of income, even what that outlay might be. I would have to lend the firm some cash to buy some equipment - laptop - clueless on that too.

Any tips? Or anyone on here who supports such activities. I reckon I could do the maths and record keeping on my own, if I could buy an intro session with someone who knows the ropes

 

[sully]

January isn’t normally the best time to ask for tax advice!

Hopefully someone will be able to give proper advice, but I’d say you just need pointing in the right direction. I manage to sort my private work out myself and do the tax returns and it’s not rocket science.

 

[Carlos BC]

Earning £500 a month, would you not be better being set up as a sole trader rather than Ltd. CO.? If you do find additional clients then you can always set up a company at that point. Being a sole trader is alot less onerous with regards to the accounts. You will have to do a self assessment return that way rather than company accounts.

 

[mr sheen]

January isn’t normally the best time to ask for tax advice!

Ah yes, good point. Told you I was new to this.

 

[mr sheen]

Earning £500 a month, would you not be better being set up as a sole trader rather than Ltd. CO.? If you do find additional clients then you can always set up a company at that point. Being a sole trader is alot less onerous with regards to the accounts. You will have to do a self assessment return that way rather than company accounts.

Thanks, you maybe right - I need to work that out too. Company I am working with would prefer me to be a limited company I think.

 

[Carlos BC]

Thanks, you maybe right - I need to work that out too. Company I am working with would prefer me to be a limited company I think.

Ah yes, I have come across that before. I had a small business a few years back. It was largely B2C but there was some B2B work and we were set up as a Ltd. CO. A couple of schools that used us would only pay limited companies and I wondered at the time if we would have just not got the business if still set up as sole trader.