I know I should take advice from an accountant and will, but I know quite a few people have companies so will ask.

Let's say that as an individual you provide a service of some kind, on a consultant basis, self employed. Let's say that you then form a limited company, with your wife and other family members as shareholders.
Now all this company does in terms of trading is provide the consulting service that I do. Two questions

1) Are there still tax advantages to this, depending on income of course?

2) Can this company now go and do something completely different? Ie go and buy an investment property, with the return from that property added (or subtracted from) to the companies income.

Sorry if this is a stupid question.

 

Are you trying to circumvent IR35? - you will pay less in NIC & there is no minimum salery for Directors, so you will only pay a minimum of NIC & Corp tax on dividends.

It should be possible to use this company for something different, but I'd ask an accountant for advice. Try Nixon Williams.

HTH