NeilP1

Hi all

As the title says i am going self-employed as of next week (16th July).
As i have just been made redundant after 7 years in the same job doing carpentry on exhibitions all over the world
so need some advice on what to do with National Insurance how much to pay so i keep the State Pension and all other Benefits that go with it
also is it best to get an accountant or just do it online. What can i clam for if i can clam for the fuel and servicing of my car dose it become a company car and will i get taxed more
all info big and small will help as i am in the dark with this lol

Thanks
Neil

Freak

£2 a week class 4 NI - invoice will arrive at your house every 3 months or so to be paid within 28 days.
The rest of the NI (class 2 I think- although I may have got the 4 and 2 the wrong way round there ) you will pay as a % of your income when you self assess- which is due by the april the following year (ie, you calculate and pay for income between april 2006-april 2007, in april 2008 ).

They will send you a pack when you have registered with lots of info.
Would recommend seeing a decent accountant as they will tell you what you can claim for (which is a lot).

shooter007

good start my birthday just talk to them they will tell you after all they want YOUR MONEY good luck

David Lock

I'd say get an accountant. Say a grand a year for medium/small business. In the first instance keep ALL receipts. Accountant will tell you what you can claim etc. A decent accountant should use his skills to save you money.

Best to arrange NI by Direct Debit.

If you are self-employed/sole trader than you don't need audited accounts. VAT registration is not mandatory if turnover is below something or other (??) but should be considered.

Think about joining FSB and use all the free help/advice you can get.

If you start to make any real money do keep some back for when the tax bill arrives which could be in a couple of January's time.

Best of luck. dl

cuttsysti

Find yourself a good accountant mate. I've been self employed for about six years now and i've never looked back. The amount that an accountant will cost you should be greatly outweighed by the savings their knowledge will bring. They will also be able to advise you on the best way to operate, ie, sole trader or Ltd co. etc. As you work in the construction industry you will be included in the recently revamped CIS scheme, which is fairly simple in itself but it'll be a lot easier if you get some professional advice.
Good luck.

zip106

I've been self-employed for 12 years now as a decorator.
Definately get an accountant but one that knows the new CIS scheme inside out - there are lots that know bugger all about it!

My accountant costs me about £400 pa but claims for allsorts that I wouldn't have done, she also does the profit/loss account and does my self assesment form and files it to HMRC etc...etc...., so it's well worth the money.

I supose you've all ready registered with HMRC for the CIS scheme?
Re your car- you'll only be able to claim a percentage of costs UNLESS you can prove you only use it for work. If it was a van then 100% claim.
I've got a pick-up and even though the Govmt. class it as a commercial vehicle, because it has rear seats I have to keep a log of private/business use even though I use another car for private.....work that one out

Good luck and hope it goes well. I've NEVER regretted doing it yet....

Butty

iTrader: (2)

If you are setting up in the same business then I presume there will be relatively high start-up costs.
I'd recommend being VAT registered to reduce your first year costs down, even if your T/O will be under the VAT limit.
There will be extra form filling every quarter, but it may be worth the savings.
As for the car, keep ALL reciepts and confirm with your accountant a suitable % claim for the business.
I claim 90% of car costs for my sole tradership, but it is my major overhead.

nick

Scoobychick

iTrader: (1)

I found Business Link very useful when I first went self employed three years ago, also make an appointment to talk to an accountant as they will give you valuable advice before you start.

I also did a couple of one day courses on taxation and bookkeeping which made me realise that paying a good bookkeeper to do it for me was the way to go as I find that side of things really, really dull

And don't do what I did and spend every penny you earn on holidays and luxuries in the first year so that you have none left to give to the tax man We did have a very enjoyable year though

I love being self employed but you do need to be very self disciplined in all aspects of the business not just the work you do, my biggest downfall is not doing the paperwork when I should, I then struggle just to get it prepared for the bookkeeper in time

Good luck

LG John

I'm going to face the same problem as well but I have slightly different angle.

I'll be playing poker for a living which does not constitute a trade or business and is not taxable as a means of income. So how does that work with regards to NI if it is income tested?

pwhittle

You'll need to pay class 2, otherwise if you miss for too long you'll never get a full state pension. It's only £2 / month. If you're earnings are genuinly not NI-able, then that should siffice. HMRC are pretty helpful anyway if you phone your local officer

as for paying a book-keeper - you have to keep records of everything anyway (and there's a much bigger fine for keeping bad records than for not paying enough tax), so I couldn't see the benefits personally.

LG John

Thanks, I had read some of their website at lunchtime and reached a similar conclusion but will seek the advice from the horses mouth before I rely on it. I figured I might need to pay Class 3 though; voluntary since Class 2 relates to being self-employed and thus earning a taxable profit (assuming its enough). Since poker isn't a trade or business I night not qualify as self-employed and what I earn is probably not viewed as profit. A tricky one which I'm sure HMCR have dealt with several times before by now and thus will have a proceedure for.

A few bucks a week seems fair to keep it going. I have no idea what the benefits of NI are but I'm not going to stop paying in case I miss out!

NeilP1

Thank for the help all info was good will be sorting out accounts next week and doing the cis card as soon as i can get time got some help line numbers today for N.I cant be missing out on the rebates can i lol