Close limited company or not...

[TheDude]

I closed my limited company after accepting I would probably never get another outside gig.

Six months later I got another outside gig - which due to sharp practice by a vendor is only going to last six weeks.

Not only do I have a Ltd company with very little capital in it, I lost 10k of business asset disposal relied when I opened the new company. I was willing to accept that for a years worth of work but not six weeks.

[Cookielove]

that is dreadful! they dropped you after 6 weeks....i took the reluctant decision to shut my limited company....

[Cookielove]

My accountants have advised that I change my registered address to their offices before I close my company otherwise it stays as a public record for 20 years...currently have the registered address as my home address...anyone else had this when closing down? guess it makes sense....

[mogga71]

Not finding any outside roles and been on umbrella basis for my latest role. Accountant preparing my latest accounts and asking if I want to keep or close my company as I am not using it....doubt I will be for the foreseeable...it has been 18 months since I had an outside role.

Is it worth keeping it their advice is to close it given so few outside roles these days... lot of their clients ave thrown the towel in so to speak...any thoughts/advice? thanks

I would close the Company. Outside is dead. I closed mine down a few years back as I knew I would never get another outside gig. It's a disgrace really .... let's not all forget what Outside actually means ... which is often forgotten .... 'you are not an employer .... you are a disguised employee .... but you have to play the employer NI .... not your disguised employer via an Umbrella Company.'

[escapeUK]

I would close the Company. Outside is dead. I closed mine down a few years back as I knew I would never get another outside gig. It's a disgrace really .... let's not all forget what Outside actually means ... which is often forgotten .... 'you are not an employer .... you are a disguised employee .... but you have to play the employer NI .... not your disguised employee via an Umbrella Company.'

Its utterly disgraceful. How can one be a disguised employee, but simultaneously get no employee rights (holiday / sick pay / notice / redundancy) and have to pay the employer's share of NI? How can this not be laughed out of court?

[mogga71]

Its utterly disgraceful. How can one be a disguised employee, but simultaneously get no employee rights (holiday / sick pay / notice / redundancy) and have to pay the employer's share of NI? How can this not be laughed out of court?

I have often thought the same thing. We all know there are many 'unfair' taxes in life but this one surely takes the biscuit ... it's ludicrous and yet is seldom talked about.

[Eirikur]

Closed mine end of last year, got an outside contract in July, so opened a new one. probably just made a profit out of going through the whole closing cycle and not having to pay an accountant for a while, but had I known I wouldn't have closed it.

[oliverson]

Music to my ears all this talk of shutting down Ltd companies. Supply and demand. Means that should the market lift in 2025, there'll be fewer of us going for more contracts :-D

[gables]

Music to my ears all this talk of shutting down Ltd companies. Supply and demand. Means that should the market lift in 2025, there'll be fewer of us going for more contracts :-D

Umm... maybe not; £50 quid and 30mins on Companies House to register, usually turned around in 24hours, bank account easy enough these days. Obvs those that have dissolved in the last 2 years are out (which is why I wouldn't be too hasty closing a ltd if I had one on the go), but plenty of us can do it if needed :-)

[avonleigh]

Music to my ears all this talk of shutting down Ltd companies. Supply and demand. Means that should the market lift in 2025, there'll be fewer of us going for more contracts :-D

Wouldn't have thought so. People are closing down companies cos they don't think there will be any outside roles anymore. They are still contracting. It takes minutes to start up a new ltd company too if they did find an outside gig.