thinking bout going limited from umbrella

[benlittle]

Im currently getting paid through umbrella and deductions are quite high even with £170 expenses . I was told to call churchill accountants and setup through them.

They said they setup a ltd company help me setup a business bank Account , invoice my agency.

I was like ok how much would I take home and what the fees

they said I was take home 444 from 532 (14ph x 38hrs)
Where as umbrella was 380 ish , there fees is £40pw but that already taken out and they tell me how much n when to tax to and
ni employers ni .

they said they have me on min wage and and I receive dividend weelky .

basically they tell me to pay 444 into my personal account with u can use on whatever u want and the rest in the ltd bank acount is fir tax fees and ni and I get told when and how much to pay for a fee of 40£ a week

Is there a way I can just work out when and how much to pay my self

And is there any info on setting up a ltd company my self

Thanks
ben

ps im using a mobile so sorry for any errors

[cojak]

Welcome!

You'll find a lot of answers to your questions within the CUK website.

On the right you'll find CUK Navigation. >>>>>>>>>

Look down and you'll come to the First Timers section. Have a read through there.

Basic expenses questions answered here: Contractor Expenses - How to claim Travel and other expenses via Limited Company or Umbrella

Then pay particular attention to IR35.

And here are the rules when using company credit cards: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/payerti/exb/a-z/c/cards.htm

If you go into the Accounting/Legal forum you'll discover the thread Basic advice when running your own contractor business.

Guide to Contracts also has some good articles.

And finally - accountant recommendations - Ta-da!

Happy reading!

[TheFaQQer]

They said they setup a ltd company help me setup a business bank Account , invoice my agency.

Getting your accountant to do your invoicing for you sounds dangerously close to being an MSC, which you don't want. Get a different accountant.

they said I was take home 444 from 532 (14ph x 38hrs)
Where as umbrella was 380 ish , there fees is £40pw but that already taken out and they tell me how much n when to tax to and
ni employers ni .

£444 a week doesn't seem to be the most tax efficient salary you could take.

they said they have me on min wage and and I receive dividend weelky .

Well, you can only pay a dividend out of profits. So until you have retained that profit, you can't take a dividend. If you do, then if you were investigated, HMRC would class that as salary that you haven't paid tax or NI on. Make sure you understand carefully exactly what you are signing up to.

basically they tell me to pay 444 into my personal account with u can use on whatever u want and the rest in the ltd bank acount is fir tax fees and ni and I get told when and how much to pay for a fee of 40£ a week

They are incompetent.

Is there a way I can just work out when and how much to pay my self

Speak to a competent accountant - there are lots recommended in the sticky at the top of this forum.

[LisaContractorUmbrella]

WTFS plus you will only be entitled to draw dividends from your Ltd Co if your contracts and working practices put you outside of IR35

[kal]

Stay away from Churchill Knight, you have been recommended to use them because they will be giving a kick back to the person recommending them. I was bitten by this, their fees are very high and service is terrible. Go with SJD or NW.

[AptoAccounting]

Spot on faQQer

What you take home depends on what salary your company pays you and what dividend you declare.

No accountant should dictate that you're on minimum wage. It's your decision what salary your company pays you. If your accountant is dictating what you should pay yourself, they are a managed service company provider and it is likely that any dividends you declare should therefore be subjected to deduction for PAYE and NI.

Lots of accountants and agencies have completely forgotton about the MSC legislation! Incidentally, is anyone aware of any successful challenges from HMRC under the MSC rules?

[Maslins]

Lots of accountants and agencies have completely forgotton about the MSC legislation! Incidentally, is anyone aware of any successful challenges from HMRC under the MSC rules?

I think those two sentences might be directly linked!

@OP - I'd suggest contracting via a Ltd Co might not be for you if you want to take out as much as you can every week. I imagine your accountant wasn't meaning £444 salary per week, probably £444 being the maximum you could take as combination of salary/dividends based upon what you're invoicing...but like I say, IMHO this shouldn't be what you focus on. Consider it like a business, focus on maximising turnover whilst keeping costs low. Yes you will pay tax based on the profit, that's a reality of life, don't consider it a big evil. There should of course be plenty leftover, review the situation, take some out, leave some in.