It might seem simple, but if you’ve never produced an invoice before, how would you know what to include? Should I include the word ‘Invoice’ in big letters at the top? All invoices should be clearly marked with the word ‘invoice’ to make it obvious to the recipient that it is a request for payment. Using sufficiently large letters at the top of the page is a good … [Read more...]
What is a dormant company?
I regularly see the term dormant company used incorrectly. In my experience the term is widely misused and misunderstood. Things like: “Can I declare my company dormant?” “I have a few transactions but want to file dormant accounts” So what is a dormant company? The definition of importance is the Companies House one: A company is dormant if it has had no 'significant … [Read more...]
Just How Do You Start An Accountancy Practice?
Starting any business requires a lot of hard work. An accountancy Practice is no exception to this. As a sole practitioner there are four main routes available to you to get your Practice off the ground: Start from scratch Buy A Franchise Buy a Block of fees Purchase an existing Practice Let’s look at each of these from the view point of the three … [Read more...]
CheapAccounting.co.uk shortlisted for Innovative Firm of the Year, Practice Excellence Awards 2014
We are delighted to announce that we have been shortlisted for an AccountingWeb Practice Excellence Award - Innovative Firm of the Year. This comes fast after being shortlisted for the Online Accounting Award at the British Accountancy Awards 2014 and compliments our Award for Cloud Accounting Innovation Excellence from Acquisition International Magazine in their 2014 Finance … [Read more...]
CheapAccounting.co.uk Short Listed for British Accountancy Awards
We’ve very proud to announce that we have been short listed for the Online Accounting Award at the British Accountancy Awards 2014. … [Read more...]
Don’t merge your accountancy practice – change it
A recent article on Accounting Web hailed the end of the mid size accountancy practice with fee income of £500,000 through to £3m. An utterly depressing article seemingly suggesting that the number of SMEs was in decline due to the costs of setting up any business. Read the full article - click here Luckily we and many others, such as Lord Young do not share this view; in … [Read more...]
Accountancy Franchise – Net profits for Jackie
Lancashire-based chartered accountant Jackie Stopyra was faced with the stark reality of decreasing client numbers and fees, which were severely affecting her traditional accountancy practice. She says she knew that she needed to do something, but admits to being unsure about what to do for the best. Jackie found out about CheapAccounting.co.uk and since launching … [Read more...]
Breaking – HMRC web site will be migrated to gov.uk
Yes, apparently the HMRC web site as we know it will disappear, as it is destined to be migrated over to the newly launched gov.uk website. How do I know? All week comments have been made on the errors and misleading information on the new gov.uk web site via the UK Business Forums web site. You can read all about these by clicking here to go the UK Business Forums … [Read more...]
Five top tips for doing your own books
Maintaining your own financial records – AKA doing your books – can seem daunting when you’re new to it. However, it’s an essential part of running your business and ignoring the accounts will lead to big problems later. Start From Day One As soon as you set up your business, start recording your all costs and sales you make. In fact, you may incur costs before you … [Read more...]
A very quick introduction to VAT
When To register Any business, not just companies, whose turnover exceeds the VAT threshold in the previous 12 months has to register and account for VAT. The most common mistake made here is assuming that the need to register relates to the accounting year rather than the previous 12 months from the current date. You must also register for VAT if: you think your … [Read more...]
Limited Company – Annual Events
When you decided to set up your limited company, whether you were aware or not, as a director of that limited company you agreed to become responsible for a plethora of administration. Here’s a quick explanation of some of the things that you will need to do! An Annual Return This is a snap shot of information about the Company at a point in time e.g. who are the … [Read more...]
Do you understand the 10% tax you pay on dividends?
A question that we are frequently asked by directors of limited companies .... When I pay a dividend what happens to the 10% tax credit on that dividend? Do I need to pay it to HMRC? Answer Companies pay dividends out of profits on which they have already paid (or are due to pay) corporation tax. The tax credit takes account of the fact that corporation tax has … [Read more...]