Fixed Price Contract (FPC) offer

[Geekman]

Hello all,

I contract for an investment bank in London. In the up coming IR35 blanket move - I have been offered 2 choices:

a) move to umbrella company
b) Fixed Price contract (FPC) - the bank will write a SoW (statement of work). this will be via an agency in between.

Though I understand FPC conceptually/in theory, don't have any practical experience. I am a business analyst. I have 2 main concerns:


1) Though there is a lot of work ahead, there is no modular work/project type work that can be scoped/estimated. (It's more like constantly streaming work). I myself don't know what will I be working in 2 weeks time. So not sure what the client will put in the SoW?

2) I myself can not just own a piece of work and deliver as my work is dependent on a variety of people around me to get it completed.

Hence worried how will it work in practice? or is it just a way to circumvent IR35? I don't even know how will I estimate and quote price?

Any advice/stories will be appreciated from the point of view of my concerns above.

Thanks,
Geekman

[hugebrain]

Hello all,

I contract for an investment bank in London. In the up coming IR35 blanket move - I have been offered 2 choices:

a) move to umbrella company
b) Fixed Price contract (FPC) - the bank will write a SoW (statement of work). this will be via an agency in between.

Just take the fixed price contract. It will put you far enough outside IR35 that the tax man won’t bother pursuing you (they like easy pickings).

Similarly, if you don’t quite deliver it won’t be in the bank’s interest to quibble.

P.S.

[GhostofTarbera]

Hello all,

I contract for an investment bank in London. In the up coming IR35 blanket move - I have been offered 2 choices:

a) move to umbrella company
b) Fixed Price contract (FPC) - the bank will write a SoW (statement of work). this will be via an agency in between.

Though I understand FPC conceptually/in theory, don't have any practical experience. I am a business analyst. I have 2 main concerns:


1) Though there is a lot of work ahead, there is no modular work/project type work that can be scoped/estimated. (It's more like constantly streaming work). I myself don't know what will I be working in 2 weeks time. So not sure what the client will put in the SoW?

2) I myself can not just own a piece of work and deliver as my work is dependent on a variety of people around me to get it completed.

Hence worried how will it work in practice? or is it just a way to circumvent IR35? I don't even know how will I estimate and quote price?

Any advice/stories will be appreciated from the point of view of my concerns above.

Thanks,
Geekman

So you currently work like a permie BA would do but claim you are outside IR35 - that’s interesting for a start

Is the SOW option also inside IR35 ?


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[jayn200]

So you currently work like a permie BA would do but claim you are outside IR35 - that’s interesting for a start

Is the SOW option also inside IR35 ?


Sent from my iPhone using Contractor UK Forum

How can a sow be inside?

[Old Greg]

So you currently work like a permie BA would do but claim you are outside IR35 - that’s interesting for a start

Is the SOW option also inside IR35 ?


Sent from my iPhone using Contractor UK Forum

WTF

[Paralytic]

Are you sure its not a FTC (Fixed Term Contract)? Sounds like a funny mix of 2 options.

If it is a FPC with an SOW and you'll be self-declaring outside, you'd better ensure your working practices are nailed down - no matter how generic the SOW wording is.

[mudskipper]

Are you sure its not a FTC (Fixed Term Contract)? Sounds like a funny mix of 2 options.

If it is a FPC with an SOW and you'll be self-declaring outside, you'd better ensure your working practices are nailed down - no matter how generic the SOW wording is.

No, the bank will be responsible for making the determination post April.

[WTFH]

How can a sow be inside?

By being so vague that it doesn't define the actual requirements/goal.

The OP says he doesn't know what he's doing from one week to the next, so any SoW is either going to be false, out of date or extremely vague, e.g. "to deliver IT services to meet our long-term strategic goals"

[northernladuk]

How can a sow be inside?

WTF

[jayn200]

By being so vague that it doesn't define the actual requirements/goal.

The OP says he doesn't know what he's doing from one week to the next, so any SoW is either going to be false, out of date or extremely vague, e.g. "to deliver IT services to meet our long-term strategic goals"

Yeah I guess, I have just never seen a SOW like that, although I guess if they are just using it as a tool to bypass ir35 it's possible.