Am i really inside Ir35

[SlipTheJab]

Also check that the agency contract doesn't stop you from going direct, considering you found the role it shouldn't but they can be sneaky buggers! I had that when I was forced to use an agency despite finding a direct role a while back, told them to shove their exclusivity clause (and the opt out for that matter)!

[ASB]

What are my chances of getting out of this IR35 zone if I go direct to client?

Slim. Very slim from your description of being in the same role.

However it is not impossible. If you agree terms which genuinely provide you with the opportunity to profit or loss then your chance are much improved. Obviously this would be a radically different arrangement to that which you currently have.

e.g. fixed price pieces of work would help. Not a silver bullet by any means but much more defendable.

[VectraMan]

What are my chances of getting out of this IR35 zone if I go direct to client?

I'm doing this. After a lot of thought I decided I couldn't justify not paying up even though the chances of being caught are slim. It's still worth doing and WFH offsets a lot of the money I lose vs. a different outside IR35 contract and having to commute, plus I haven't wasted any money on contract reviews or QDOS/IPSE or accountants.

The old Business Entity Test (which in theory isn't used any more) says pretty explicitly that if you worked for the same client as an employee in the last year and the role isn't significantly different (a change of location doesn't count as different otherwise I'd get out of it on WFH) then you lose a bunch of points. Fixed price work would probably get you out of it IMO as an employee would never work that way.