Dealing with a Hong Kong company, do I need to worry about IR35 stuff?

[d000hg]

A former client has just contacted me about some consulting work; these days he's operating a company out of Hong Kong. His standard consultant/contractor master agreement contract is set up between his company and the consultant, rather than a B2B one.

I would I think still supply services through MyCo Ltd (I assume this is preferable?) so any contract needs to reflect this, however realistically how much do I need to fuss about with IR35-proofing when the reality is I'm being personally hired as a consultant. His is a small company and neither of us is going to be taking legal action across the continents so is it pragmatic just to get something signed, or would you still get all the is dotted and ts crossed?

[Lance]

offer him a contract based on the IPSE template. That ought to suffice.

[northernladyuk]

A former client has just contacted me about some consulting work; these days he's operating a company out of Hong Kong. His standard consultant/contractor master agreement contract is set up between his company and the consultant, rather than a B2B one.

I would I think still supply services through MyCo Ltd (I assume this is preferable?) so any contract needs to reflect this, however realistically how much do I need to fuss about with IR35-proofing when the reality is I'm being personally hired as a consultant. His is a small company and neither of us is going to be taking legal action across the continents so is it pragmatic just to get something signed, or would you still get all the is dotted and ts crossed?

If the reality is that you're personally being hired, then you're inside IR35.

If there is an alternative reality in which you're outside IR35, you need a B2B contract. Send him the IPSE template one.

Or you could just get a purchase order to YourCo for up to x many days professional services over y months (people will advise against this I expect but I would be content with this).

[Lance]

Or you could just get a purchase order to YourCo for up to x many days professional services over y months (people will advise against this I expect but I would be content with this).

a valid invoice = an agreement to purchase (PO) + proof of delivery (timesheet) + the invoice itself

so no contract required, and I'd also be happy with that.

[northernladyuk]

a valid invoice = an agreement to purchase (PO) + proof of delivery (timesheet) + the invoice itself

so no contract required, and I'd also be happy with that.

You would want some terms in the PO (payment terms) and make sure there is no mention of the individual consultant.

The purists may disagree of course.

[d000hg]

If the reality is that you're personally being hired, then you're inside IR35.

Regardless of where the client is based? Because whey wouldn't be paying employer NI anyway - or would they, no idea how international employment law works?

[northernladyuk]

Regardless of where the client is based? Because whey wouldn't be paying employer NI anyway - or would they, no idea how international employment law works?

Are you physically working in UK or HK (I've assumed the former).

[d000hg]

Yep.

I mean this is a proper freelance type thing... it's me personally they want but dictating my own hours, using my own equipment, totally MOO so I'm not super concerned.

In the event one was definitely IR35 caught and the Ltd became an annoyance rather than a help, would it actually be worth working directly rather than through MyCo? I'm not sure if it'd even be sole trader or if for a one-off job I can simply get paid directly and declare it on SATR? It does seem that when I talk to people in other countries, they're much less used to individuals working through companies whereas here in the UK it's virtually a requirement.

[northernladyuk]

Yep.

I mean this is a proper freelance type thing... it's me personally they want but dictating my own hours, using my own equipment, totally MOO so I'm not super concerned.

In the event one was definitely IR35 caught and the Ltd became an annoyance rather than a help, would it actually be worth working directly rather than through MyCo? I'm not sure if it'd even be sole trader or if for a one-off job I can simply get paid directly and declare it on SATR? It does seem that when I talk to people in other countries, they're much less used to individuals working through companies whereas here in the UK it's virtually a requirement.

Tell them it needs some kind of UK employer, and rather than them go through the bother of setting up a UK payroll, you'll do it via YourCo. And send them IPSE contract as your standard contract.

[TheCyclingProgrammer]

The reality is that most of us are being personally hired - this in itself is not a pointer to being inside IR35. There's more to IR35 than just personal service.

As somebody else said, offer him your standard B2B MSA based on the IPSE template, maintain a level of direction and control over your own work (should be easy enough being so remote from the client and you're unlikely to be supervised) and you should be fine.