DSS authority

Re: Retained profit

Your first mistake was telling them you have a company.

I would have written myself out a P45 and plodded off down there saying I'd been sacked.

Re: Retained profit

Amazing isn't it.
Spend the money on women and booze and you can get money from the DSS.

Look after it and be prudent with your money and the DSS tell you to s0d off.

Says it all really !

Go out and buy a new car saying you need it to go to interviews.
Money spent. DSS gives you money

Remember Liebore and "Fairness" for all.

Re: Retained profit

Indeed.

I have a fine collection of NL canvassers buried in the compost heap.

They don't make very good compost either.

The other question is, that once you've paid all this money as salary, who pays the accountants fees?

From October 2002 to March 2004, the only people making money out of my company were the accountants, who took £57+vat every month for basically doing bugger all.

Re: Retained profit

Pay your salary out of it. Whack as much as you can into your pension fund if you really think building up a pot of money for a pension company to steal when you die is a good idea.
This is one of the risks of being in business.
Don't forget that when you're in your next contract and the IR come knocking because you are magically 'a disguised employee'.
Nor should you forget it when the NL canvasser knocks on your door come election time.

The problem is that the money is there to try and keep my pension going for a few months until a permanent/contract job comes up.

Good question.

I suppose you could pay out the cash & close the company.

Like I did.

Or put it into suspended animation, an option suggested by my accountant.

Like many of my collegues, I am out of contract and have had to suffer the indignation of applying for Job seekers allowance until the market picks up. Unfortunately I have been refused because I have some money in my company account which the DSS say I could use to pay myself a salary. Does anyone know the legality of the DSS specyfing how limited company funds should be spent and of course whether the “claims assessor” is qualified to make such a decision. I would have thought that only a chartered accountant would be qualified for this.