When should I hire an accountant?

[boxingbantz]

I am starting a new contracting job next Monday. This will be my first contracting position and I am operating through a LTD company. I won't be paying myself until, around the, 26th November so, at the moment, there are no finances to be worked out.

When should I first hire an accountant? A week before I am due to be paid or when I'm paid? Obviously, I don't like giving £100+ for a months work when, realistically, they won't be doing much for it?

Any help would be appreciated.

[Clare@InTouch]

Monthly fees tend to be based on an overall annual fee broken down into 12 months, so one month's fee is not representative of the work done in that one month. There are certain times when more is done than other times, for example around April each year when you have payroll returns, tax returns etc.

That being said, if you already have your company in place, have the VAT & payroll scheme set up and have had the contract reviewed, you could delay engaging an accountant until you need one to do something for you (such as set up the payroll itself or advise on dividends). Just be careful of backdated charges, some accountants will charge you a fee equivalent to bring you up to the full annual amount as the overall work they have to do doesn't diminish just because they weren't appointed until month 2 or 3.

[prozak]

Now.

If you need one. then you need one immediately. no point delaying it. They might be able to offer you advice about structure, expenses etc that you haven't already thought about.

go for Clare. She is very helpful and an active member of these boards so if you are not happy you could always come back and post the ubiquitous

"XXX ripped me off.. am I being overcharged.. they even took my donkey!"

type of thread. LOL.

But seriously most of the accountants who post here should know their biz.

[Clare@InTouch]

Now.

If you need one. then you need one immediately. no point delaying it. They might be able to offer you advice about structure, expenses etc that you haven't already thought about.

go for Clare. She is very helpful and an active member of these boards so if you are not happy you could always come back and post the ubiquitous

"XXX ripped me off.. am I being overcharged.. they even took my donkey!"

type of thread. LOL.

But seriously most of the accountants who post here should know their biz.

No pressure there then!

Thanks Prozak!

[Jeremiah@RHJAccountants]

Hire and Accountant

If you need an accountant as has already been said there is no point delaying. Why not compare a few based on price and the services they offer be aware that some accountants charge catch up fees or charge extra for personal tax returns or payroll!

Also make sure that you will have one main point of contact as you dont want to get passed around to a help desk or different members of a firm who are not familiar with you .

Once you have narrowed it down why not give a a few a call and see which is best for you.

Hope that helps and good luck for Monday and welcome to the world of contracting

[craig1]

I am starting a new contracting job next Monday. This will be my first contracting position and I am operating through a LTD company. I won't be paying myself until, around the, 26th November so, at the moment, there are no finances to be worked out.

When should I first hire an accountant? A week before I am due to be paid or when I'm paid? Obviously, I don't like giving £100+ for a months work when, realistically, they won't be doing much for it?

Any help would be appreciated.

I don't go through an accountant as I do it all myself but I'd strongly recommend you get your accountant in place before you start work. Your first contracting role will hit you harder than you think as you'll be rightly expected to hit the ground running and you may not have too much time during working hours to get basic stuff like your accounting set up.

You'll get far more from a good accountant than just your payroll, they may be able to help you with everything from your invoicing to getting VAT set up properly along with all the seemingly minor but important questions around how you treat expenses, structuring your payouts, keeping good books and filing, etc. Having someone already arranged where you can fire off a quick email or call is worth every penny of the money in your first year of contracting.

Once you get the hang of it after your first year then you can think about the cost-effectiveness of saving time/money off the accountancy bills.

[boxingbantz]

Thanks for all of your input. I'll get on it right away.