Starting Contracting - In need of serious help!

[DonkeyRhubarb]

Unfortunately it's still pretty common as the 'referral fees' from these companies are so high

Some people in the deGraaf version of the BN66 scheme were steered into it, in 2006 & 7, by one of the biggest recruitment agencies in the country.

[LisaContractorUmbrella]

A bit worrying that the agency appears to be pushing people into a tax avoidance scheme.

I wonder how widespread this is?

Unfortunately it's still pretty common as the 'referral fees' from these companies are so high

[DonkeyRhubarb]

A bit worrying that the agency appears to be pushing people into a tax avoidance scheme.

I wonder how widespread this is?

[LisaContractorUmbrella]

Can I say thank you to everyone. This has been worrying me, I really rather just pay any tax owed rather than trying to exploit a rather stupid loop-holes, my experience is only short, I've only been in the game for 3 odd year's but it's something to keep me playing rather than sitting at home hoping something come's up I'm rather lucky my old colleges took me under there wing and let me work with them as we're going as team.

I've made a appointment to see an accountant tomorrow anyway as I really wanted to seek professional help and someone to help me get my head around all the law's ect.

He recommended over the phone becoming a Limited Company is usually the best route, but this being a short term thing for me I'm reluctant to go through all the loop-holes required essentially and hopefully only a few months where I can join exciting new program's with established company's.

Can I use any umbrella company or does the agency have to aprove it as well? I really have such a small understanding of the contracting side, especially starting as a apprentice contracted to the company.

Thanks for everyone's help I'm really glad I never signed them agreements.

If this will be short term for you then an umbrella company would be your best bet; if contracting works out for you then you can always open a Ltd Co later when you've got the hang of everything. Some agencies will restrict you in terms of which umbrella company you can use - the only thing I would say is that you should do your own due diligence to make sure that you'll be happy working with the company you select - after all it's your money that they'll be handling

There are lots of guides available which will explain how all of this works - there are some on this site - have a look over here -----> and we have some available (this one will be most appropriate for you First Timers Guide to Contracting | Contractor Umbrella. Once you've had a read I would advise you to make a list of questions for the umbrella companies you speak to; they should be able to answer clearly and concisely - if they are vague about the way you're paid or can't answer your questions then I would steer clear.

I know this all seems really daunting at the moment but the right umbrella company should guide you through everything you need to know and it should all seem like child's play in a couple of weeks

Good luck

[Andy Hallett]

I honestly do not know where to start

Bestpay Umbrella Company

If you choose to judge a company by its website

Is your website legal? - UKWDA

In short, all business websites must address the following points to be legally compliant:

Registered information: For a UK registered business, the website needs to display the Company Information i.e. the business name, place of registration, registered number, registered office address and if it is a member of a trade association. For sole traders and partnerships, the address of the principle place of business must be displayed.

Cookies: Recent legislation changes have meant that websites must require user consent to leave cookies on the visitor’s computer unless the cookie is a necessary requirement for the website to function (e.g. shopping cart cookies). For more information on cookies see our in-depth article Taking the biscuit: How to comply with the new UK cookie law.

Privacy Policy: A Privacy policy or data protection notice must be displayed on the website if data is processed and must inform the user what the data is used for and that it is compliant with the Data Protection Act 1988. The Privacy Policy must also explain what cookies will be created and their purpose.

Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (now the Equality Act 2010): All website owners must make sure their content is available to all users – for example the visually impaired – failure to comply may be considered ‘unlawful disability discrimination’.

Disclaimer: Visitors to a website can use the information published on it to the extent stipulated in the disclaimer. This document should also state that the website owner does not accept any liability that may arise from using or downloading information from the website.

Terms & Conditions: Terms, along with a Delivery and Returns Policy are all required as part of the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations and Electronic Commerce Regulations (EC Directive). These terms must state:
Identity of the supplier and address
A description of the service
The contract price inclusive of taxes
Delivery costs (if applicable)
Payment and delivery arrangement
Notification of the right of cancellation
The cost of the means of communication by which the contract is to be concluded (e.g. premium rate telephone numbers)
The period for which the terms are available
Minimum duration of the contract, where it is not of one-off performance
EU Anti Spam Laws: To conform to EU Anti Spam Laws, ensure that email lists are only of ‘opt-in’ email addresses, and always include an ‘opt-out’ instruction on all marketing emails.
- See more at: Is your website legal? - UKWDA

[cojak]

Speak to Lisa. She'll help and won't pressure you into using her company.

Good luck!

[Nutmegg]

Can I say thank you to everyone. This has been worrying me, I really rather just pay any tax owed rather than trying to exploit a rather stupid loop-holes, my experience is only short, I've only been in the game for 3 odd year's but it's something to keep me playing rather than sitting at home hoping something come's up I'm rather lucky my old colleges took me under there wing and let me work with them as we're going as team.

I've made a appointment to see an accountant tomorrow anyway as I really wanted to seek professional help and someone to help me get my head around all the law's ect.

He recommended over the phone becoming a Limited Company is usually the best route, but this being a short term thing for me I'm reluctant to go through all the loop-holes required essentially and hopefully only a few months where I can join exciting new program's with established company's.

Can I use any umbrella company or does the agency have to aprove it as well? I really have such a small understanding of the contracting side, especially starting as a apprentice contracted to the company.

Thanks for everyone's help I'm really glad I never signed them agreements.

[aoxomoxoa]

Kudos to the OP for stopping to think, and for having the nous to get on this forum to seek advice.

Good luck!

[LisaContractorUmbrella]

I did hear a rumour last week that the company the OP mentioned has gone or is on the verge of going down the tubes - a contractor had contacted us as he needed to find another umbrella company as the company in question weren't making payments any more. True or not companies offering loan schemes of this sort will take you down a very nasty and painful road that has HMRC waiting at the end of it.

Thanks guys for the recommendations and if the OP wants a chat about how we work it's lisa@contractorumbrella.com or call 01206 761326

[TykeMerc]

What they've all said AVOID, AVOID, AVOID, run like hell from that sort of scheme.

There are genuine Umbrellas that (assuming the agents will deal with them) will provide a sensible payroll service with no risk of scheme involvement.
If the agency won't deal with them and it's Ltd or nothing then that's a difficult place to be as you're only looking to contract as a stopgap.

[Pherlopolus]

What all the others said.. and in capitals...

That aside, how much experience are we talking here?

I do believe contracting too early can be real issue and can easily constrict you to lower roles and never get to achieve levels you could if you stayed permie awhile. I always think contractors should become as good as they can be and then go out and ply their trade at the best rate possible. You've got 40 odd years of work ahead of you and you are starting off on the lowest possible rung. It's going to be a long hard slog to get to where you could possibly be.

Totally agree, I went contracting after 3 years in mainframe ops. seemed to be stranded at the "doing" end rather than the "thinking" end after 10 years. Took a permie job for 11 years and now contracting at the thinking end, which would have been impossible before.

[northernladuk]

What all the others said.. and in capitals...

That aside, how much experience are we talking here?

I do believe contracting too early can be real issue and can easily constrict you to lower roles and never get to achieve levels you could if you stayed permie awhile. I always think contractors should become as good as they can be and then go out and ply their trade at the best rate possible. You've got 40 odd years of work ahead of you and you are starting off on the lowest possible rung. It's going to be a long hard slog to get to where you could possibly be.

[cojak]

DO NOT DO THIS!

Contact a reputable umbrella. Lisa from Contractor Umbrella will be able to help you.

View Profile: LisaContractorUmbrella - Contractor UK Bulletin Board

Contact her ASAP.

And then read this.
http://forums.contractoruk.com/hmrc-...following.html

[malvolio]

Walk away. Very quickly.

Go with Contractor Umbrella, or some other legitimate umbrella. Expect to keep 65% or so of your day rate at most. To do anything else is foolish in the extreme.

And for future reference the tax doesn't disappear, it is merely deferred - usually to a point where you can no longer afford to pay it...

[Nutmegg]

To cut a long story short, I completed my apprenticeship gained some experience and the company folded up, making me redundant.

Some of the guys I used to work with originally did sub-contracting, and have gone back to it while bringing me into it.

We've been offered a contract by a agency, where-as the other guys have all gone Limited Company's, this is something I really rather no peruse especially because this is not a long-term goal, more something to get through Christmas months and company's will be recruiting to go back on the cards.

For this agency to pay me, they got their umbrella company to contact me and set me up.

They want to use a 'Employee Loan Agreement' & 'Employee Contract Agreement'

The contract agreement state's I'll be paid £50 a day (Minimum wage) and the rest will be paid via a bonus?

I really don't understand how any of this work's, especially the loan agreement what seem's to dodgy as hell! The umbrella company is called "BESTPAY"

I would really appreciate some help, I've tried looking up and researching the best I can but I never really understand what people are talking about.