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UK Accountant / Tax Adviser Needed

  • Posted:
  • Proposals: 23
  • Remote
  • #4519352
  • OPPORTUNITY
  • Open for Proposals
Muhammad U.Dharma Raj K.Happiness Opeyemi J.Hannah F.Fahad H. + 18 others have already sent a proposal.
  • 3

Description

Experience Level: Expert
We are a four-person family business operating in the UK spray-painting industry, and we are currently looking for an accountant who could support us on an ongoing basis as the business continues to grow.

Before deciding on a long-term working relationship, we would first like to arrange a consultation and receive professional advice regarding our current business structure and the best way to operate going forward.

At present, each of the four family members is registered separately as self-employed/sole trader. However, in practice we work closely together under the same trading name. We share premises, equipment, websites and a quoting system, and we usually issue one quotation to the customer.

Each person is responsible for a different part of the business and the work, including customer service, work management, preparation and spray-finishing. Payments are currently divided between us, with each person receiving and keeping payment relating to the work they personally carry out.

Our main concern is to understand whether the way we have been operating up to now is legally and tax compliant, particularly as we work closely together as one family business while remaining separately registered as sole traders.

The business is now expanding and we are planning to employ one or two additional people. Because of this, we feel this is the right time to review our structure properly.

We would like advice on whether we should continue operating as separate sole traders or whether it would be more appropriate and tax-efficient to formalise the business as a partnership, LLP or limited company.

We would therefore like an accountant with strong knowledge of the UK tax system to review our current setup, advise us on the most suitable structure for the future, and explain the tax, National Insurance and legal implications of each option.

If we are happy with the advice and feel that we are a good fit, we would also be interested in establishing an ongoing relationship for accounting, tax and general business support.

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Clarification Board Ask a Question

  • Mona B.

    Hi,

    I’d be happy to look at your current situation together and help you work out the most appropriate way forward, taking into account the different options you mentioned and the tax, NI and practical implications for the family and the business.

    Before I submit my proposal, could I just clarify one point regarding the £576 budget? What were you expecting this to cover — the initial review and advice on the most suitable structure, or also any implementation/accounting work following the recommendation?

    I’m also interested in the possibility of providing the ongoing accounting and business support afterwards.

    Many thanks,
    Mona

  • Muhammad Z.

    Thank you for the detailed explanation. Before assessing the most suitable structure, I would like to clarify a few key points:

    Who contracts and invoices the customer? Is the quotation/invoice issued under one individual’s name or the shared trading name?
    How are customer payments received and divided? Does the full payment go to one person first, or does each sole trader invoice separately for their work?
    How are shared costs handled? For example, premises, equipment, insurance, website and quoting-system expenses.
    What is the approximate annual turnover of the overall operation and of each individual sole trader? This is important when reviewing the VAT position.
    Are the four individuals sharing overall business profits and risks, or does each person independently retain income relating only to their own work?
    Who will legally employ the additional staff, and what is your expected growth over the next 1–3 years?

    These points will help establish whether the current arrangement operates in practice as genuinely separate sole-trader businesses or whether a partnership or another formal structure should be considered. I can then assess the tax, National Insurance, VAT and compliance implications of the most suitable options.