When to register for Corporation Tax
New limited company? HMRC expects to hear from you within three months of starting to trade. What counts as trading, and what happens next.
Insights
Tax and business updates
Short, practical notes on the rules and deadlines that affect owner-managed businesses. No jargon, no padding, and nothing published for the sake of publishing.
The VAT registration threshold, explained
When turnover approaches £90,000 the clock starts ticking. How the rolling twelve-month test works and why timing your registration matters.
CIS: what contractors must do every month
Verification, deductions, statements and the monthly return. The routine that keeps construction contractors on the right side of HMRC.
How do I start my own business?
Structure, registration, bank accounts, records and the tax habit that prevents the January panic. The practical steps, in the right order.
What is Self Assessment?
Who has to file a tax return, the deadlines that matter, and the payments-on-account surprise that catches first-timers.
Sole trader or limited company?
Liability, tax, admin and credibility: the real trade-offs behind the first structural decision every business faces.
What business expenses can I claim?
The wholly-and-exclusively rule, the categories most businesses can claim, and the traps that invite an HMRC enquiry.
Hiring your first employee
Registering as an employer, payroll and RTI, pension duties, minimum wage and the insurance the law requires from day one.
Making Tax Digital: what it means for you
Who MTD already covers, how the Income Tax rollout works, and why well-kept records make the whole subject a non-event.
How much does an accountant cost?
The three pricing models, what actually drives your fee, and why the cheapest quote is rarely the cheapest accountant.
Bookkeeper vs accountant: the difference
One records and reconciles, the other analyses and files. What each does, and why the best answer is often both under one roof.
How to improve small business cash flow
Invoice faster, chase properly, set tax aside and forecast. The levers that decide whether you can pay wages on Friday.
What is a confirmation statement?
Every company must file one yearly, it contains no accounts, and missing it can end in strike-off. The annual filing explained.
Dividends vs salary for directors
How director-shareholders take money out, the rules that make dividends lawful, and the mistakes that cause real trouble.
What records must a company keep?
The records the law requires, the six-year rule, and why photographing receipts as you go beats every other system.
Understanding your profit and loss
Revenue, margins and the layers between them. How to read the account in ten minutes, and why profit is not cash.
Common VAT mistakes small businesses make
Late registration, blocked reclaims, missed reclaims, scheme misfits and returns that do not reconcile. The expensive classics.
The domestic reverse charge, explained
Who accounts for VAT in construction chains, what invoices must say, and the cash flow effect on subcontractors.
For questions about how any of this applies to your business, get in touch; guidance on this page is general and is not a substitute for advice on your specific circumstances.