Concern for contractors over reiterated plan to raise national insurance

Advisers either want the tax hike of at least 1.25% stopped or are urging action.

Parasol expects customer service to suffer for another two weeks

Hacked brolly insists it is ‘getting back to normal,’ despite admitting ‘normal’ may take a further fortnight.

Contractors, fortunately contract length is still no real indication of IR35 scope

The off-payroll rules changed in April, but a period of time when you’re automatically caught remains absent in the framework.

Contractors’ Questions: Are recruiters asking us to blog to become Thought Leaders?

Being asked to write about your skill or specialism is a sign your agency is ahead of the game.

Can contractors claim expenses without receipts?

The answer to this popular query by PSCs is a reassuring ‘yes.’ But be across many considerations.

Contractors’ Questions: Can my limited company pay for unrelated voluntary job training?

Five reasons why paying personally to train for a volunteering role beats your business footing the bill.

Contractors, don’t miss this golden opportunity to speak up about umbrella companies

Wisdom of contractor crowds: Officials will find it hard to see your evidence as anything but powerful and persuasive.

Why contractors rarely work as sole traders

Overview of sole trading versus limited company working, through the lens of IR35 reform.

Why contractors should check umbrella company reviews

Reading online reviews of umbrellas is far from a straightforward business.

Contractors use intermediaries to tell HM Treasury about umbrella companies

IPSE, JobsAware and LITRG are helping officials get the hard evidence on brollies that they need.

Parasol’s contractor payroll systems ‘back up and running’

‘Welcome Back’ says the umbrella, now accepting timesheets before refunding its margin to users.

Contractors’ Questions: Should I set up a UK or American company as a Brit living in the USA?

Seeking clients in the States, while living in the States, suggests your business should register in the States.

Contractors should no longer work from home – Boris Johnson

Boris Johnson removes work from home guidance (not that the contractor sector was exactly following to it the letter anyway).

Contractors should no longer work from home – PM

Boris Johnson removes work from home guidance (not that the contractor sector was exactly following to it the letter anyway).

Contractors' Questions: Should I get a new job before New Year is up?

Hard to imagine a better time to make the leap, from freelance to full-time or vice versa.

SJD Accountancy and Nixon Williams confirm hacking

The contractor accountancy firms finally acknowledge being cyber-attacked, just like Brookson and Parasol.

Hacked Parasol and Brookson outline new systems and processes

Despite contractors of the two brollies getting fresh details, the big question for clients of SJD Accountancy and Nixon Williams isn’t being answered.

Software Developer contract opportunities in 2022

Six development gigs you can land right now, plus a preview of what’s next on skills, rates and IR35.

Contractors' Questions: Are my limited company's overdue accounts a valid reason to not pay me?

Claims that it's correct to withhold money to an ‘accounts overdue’ company just don’t add up.

Hackers attack Parasol and Brookson, leaving umbrella contractors unpaid

The FCSA’s two other founder firms, potentially seen as ‘fat’ from IR35 reform like Giant, get hit by cybercriminals.

Changes to Self Assessment deadlines for 2020/21

HMRC have extended the deadlines for late filing and payment penalties in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic.

Growing IT contractor jobs market ‘lost a little fizz’ in December

Festive season slowed growth for freelance techies, yet ‘short term cover’ requirements will pep it up again.

Five Clever Ideas to Attract the Right Employees

If you’re an employer looking to find the best employees, you need to make sure that you are doing everything possible to attract them. By following these five tips, you’ll be able to create a recruitment strategy that will help you find the perfect candidate for the job. So what are you waiting for? Start attracting top talent today!

Create a Positive Work Environment

When it comes to running a recruitment strategy that works, then the first thing that you’ll need to do is create a positive working environment. This can be done by making sure that your employees are happy with their salaries and benefits packages, ensuring that they have opportunities for advancement, and implementing vital training programs to feel comfortable in their roles.

When implementing your recruitment strategy, you also want to ensure that your business is viewed as an attractive place to work and offers the best jobs for millennials. To do this, you might like to consider offering community service opportunities, holding charity events, and providing flexible working hours for parents who need time off for their children’s sports days.

Offer Competitive Salaries and Benefits

To win over strong talent, you’ll need to offer a competitive salary and benefits package. If you have a recruitment strategy that works, then your business should receive applications from plenty of high-caliber employees looking for employment opportunities in your industry. As a result, you need to ensure that your compensation package is strong enough to beat the competition.

Hire a Talent Agency

Although building and implementing your recruitment strategy can be done by hand, you’ll receive much better results if you hire a talent agency to assist you. This will ensure that all of your hard work is completed quickly and efficiently without additional costs. It’s also important to note that it is against the law in many countries to ask an employee if they can work legally in the country. Therefore, you should never ask a candidate this question directly. Instead, it would be best if you always looked to use the services of an employment agency that can provide reliable and trustworthy candidates.

Promote Employee Growth and Development

When it comes to implementing a recruitment strategy that works, you need to make sure that your employees can grow and develop within the company. By offering regular development opportunities, you can ensure that your employees have plenty of career-related goals and objectives which they can work towards achieving during their time with your company to help your business work efficiently.

You can do this by organizing in-house training sessions and workshops so that your employees can learn new skills and brush up on current ones. We also highly recommend offering your employees the opportunity to study for professional qualifications such as diplomas and degrees through your company’s tuition reimbursement program. This will ensure that they are constantly engaged with their work and that you’re helping them to secure a well-paid and rewarding career.

Of course, it’s also important to note that when promoting employee growth and development, you should avoid favoritism at all costs. If your employees feel as though they are being judged based on their gender or ethnicity, then this could result in them looking for employment opportunities elsewhere. By ensuring that all employees are treated equally, you’ll ensure that all of your employees are happy and engaged with their work.

Create a Clear Job Description

When creating a recruitment strategy that works, you should always make sure that your employees know the duties and responsibilities related to their role. This will help them better understand what’s expected of them when they start work with your company, resulting in higher levels of engagement.

As part of this process, it might be worth having one-on-one meetings with each of your employees to ensure that they understand their responsibilities. By doing this, you’ll be able to identify any doubts or concerns related to the role and work hand in hand with your employees to ensure that a strong working relationship is established from day one.

These are just some of the best ways to bring in the best talent. When you hire the best talent, it’s best to be prepared for anything. We suggest you start looking at creative ways to motivate your best employees and create innovative ways for your business to stand out from the competition.

Contractors’ Questions: Can I claim my flights to the client site as a business expense?

Tax tips for a contractor whose home-based role requires two trips to the Middle East.

IR35 reform ‘bedding in’ sent contractor confidence into the red

Professional freelancers’ faith in the economy, and themselves, nosedived just after the off-payroll rules hit.

Tell-tale signs you’re using a tax scheme, not an umbrella company

It’s often PSCs that prep for a new tax year, but it’s umbrellas who risk heavy April showers if they don’t doublecheck now.

Contractors’ Questions: Who’s liable for IR35 if I felt like a disguised employee before April 2021?

Ex-inspector says HMRC hasn’t totally ruled out historically probing contracts that last year went from outside to inside.

Chris Bryce replaces Phil Pluck as CEO of FCSA

Well wishes issued to IPSE’s former boss, and an alert: ‘Changing personnel will not remove FCSA’s challenges.’

Call for evidence on umbrella companies echoed, as cloning spreads to comparison sites

Contractors specifically asked to respond to HM Treasury’s call on the brolly sector, even if it is overdue.

Contractors’ Questions: Is my employment status for rights separate to my status for tax purposes?

How you regard yourself won’t necessarily show in the client’s assessment, and that assumes an assessment will actually be made.

Why HMRC’s IR35 'soft landing' ending should help contractors in 2022

Clients soon compelled to a ‘by the book’ approach looks like a boon for lots of truly off-payroll workers.

Public sector IR35 mistakes: why government departments keep fudging the off-payroll rules

Hiring managers ticking the substitution box is central to why even the government can’t get HMRC’s rules right.  

Contractor Mortgages: advice, information and quotation 2022

Mortgages for contractors that use your best asset: your contract rate!

Contractors’ Questions: What contractor marketing techniques are best for 2022?

Know these three CV and LinkedIn must-dos for a fruitful 12 months’ contracting.

Top 10 contractor business tips for 2022

The best advice on the market to help make your next 12 months of contracts a doddle.

Defra hit with £48million tax bill over IR35 status ‘inaccuracies’

Latest department to bodge the taxman’s off-payroll rules takes his public sector windfall for IR35 non-compliance to a colossal £241million.

Government makes digital right to work checks permanent

Home Office says all engagers can use Identification Document Validation Technology on April 6th and beyond.

Online right to work checks being here to stay is a historical boost to digital recruitment

A nine-week countdown to a new era of contractor hiring has already begun. So get your gig sorted for April 6th.