Contractors’ Questions: Do extended covid Right To Work checks affect me?

‘Great news for contractors’ is soured by a two-tier market risk -- and an oddity.

Put Single Enforcement Body to regulate umbrella companies on a timetable, Treasury told

The brolly call for evidence is answered with ‘naming and shaming,’ dates and outright bans.

Top 10 highest paid IT contracts in 2022

Revealed: the best paying freelance technology opportunities in the UK today.

A contractor’s guide to closing a company with retained profits

Overview to tax-efficiently shutting shop, including if there are retained earnings to consider.

Government extends covid ‘adjusted’ right to work checks until October

Video calls as a way to get your ID documents approved get the all-clear for after April.

As an Optionis customer, how does the ClearSky and Parasol hack affect me?

Legal tips for PSCs puzzled by the material risks of the Optionis hack, including if suing is an option.

Hacked Optionis isn't denying the dark web now hosts 400,000 of its files

Contractors with Parasol, SJD, ClearSky and Nixon eat up tips on what to do, despite no confirmation of their worst fears.

What are payment terms? Guide to getting paid for contractors

Seven contractor payment term essentials to help keep being paid late at bay.

Does the Adrian Chiles IR35 case affect IT contractors?

What limited company suppliers should emulate from a celebrity IR35 winner who failed all three key status tests.

'Frightening' HMRC loses IR35 case to an in-business Adrian Chiles

‘Part & parcel’ of his own PSC, the tele presenter triumphs despite the taxman going to some ‘scary’ lengths chasing £1.7millon.

How do I charge a monthly retainer? 5 tips for contractors

How to charge clients a retainer, while factoring in scope, documents and IR35.

IR35: Lords say government is slow, evasive, and must fix ‘unfair’ off-payroll rules

Peers follow the NAO in rebuking the government on IR35 reform, but this time around, demand answers to a deadline.

Surely the government is out of excuses on IR35, umbrellas and ignoring the Lords

Nothing new in a long letter by peers to HM Treasury just underlines how much pent-up consensus on employment status there really is.

Top 10 tech contractor roles for 2022

Opportunities lay ahead for freelance IT workers – here’s where, and what they pay.

How Thought Leadership can help contractors maximise daily rates

Just like vintage Stella, you need to be ‘Reassuringly Expensive’ to command top whack.

Can I claim tax relief for professional fees, subscriptions or memberships?

Overview to getting back what can be an overlooked monthly or annual cost for contractors.

IT contractor pay wars continue, despite growth in demand dipping

Money talks for new starters, PMs and returnees, yet for some, wage competition may have nearly run its course.

National Audit Office is right to recognise IR35 as a mess, but it will get messier still for HMRC

The taxman has taken on more than he knows, as the private sector is a totally different beast.

IR35: NAO off-payroll report 'shows extending rules to small companies would be madness'

Watchdog exposes ‘serious problems of HMRC’s own making,’ including charging non-compliant contractors the wrong amounts.

Contractors' Questions: What if I'm too modest to market myself as a Thought Leader?

A pep talk worth reading for any contractor reluctant to label themselves as what they probably already are.

The National Insurance Contributions increase on contractors: how much; what it means

1.25%, or 10%? Either way, the April hike in National Insurance has the potential to be painful.

The NICs increase on contractors: how much; what it means

1.25%, or 10%? Either way, the April hike in National Insurance has the potential to be painful.

Claiming computer hardware and software expenses via your limited company

Overview of HMRC expenses rules for reimbursing yourself on technology purchases.

Contractors’ Questions: What if my recruitment agency won’t use my umbrella company?

Agency answers the age-old query of why contractors find their umbrellas blocked.

New public sector IR35 study from HMRC maximises research base, minimises impacts

Off-payroll experts say a 79-page downplaying of the April 2017 rules renders some of the findings ‘unbelievable.’

Optionis notifies contractors of data being copied and leaked

The parent of three hacked contractor brands says details from its systems have been exposed online.

Umbrella companies at risk over holiday pay ruling in Smith V Pimlico Plumbers

The death knell is being heard for some brollies in wake of a court verdict which, for once, favours contractors.

Brookson restores internal systems following two-pronged cyber-attack

The umbrella admits it was showered by DDoS attacks, on top of the initial hack that collapsed its VoIP system.

What are the costs of contracting?

How much you’ll fork out, and on what, if moving from perm to contract for the very first time.

Contractors, does the ruling against Google Analytics affect you?

A legal expert gauges what Google’s traffic-measuring system violating the GDPR might mean for you, and your clients.

Can I refurbish my home office through my limited company?

Overview for directors of the expenses eligible for tax relief when working from home.

What is a disguised employee?

An explainer of the IR35-related term every contractor wants to avoid becoming.

How does IR35 status affect pay? Compare inside and outside IR35 rates

The pay when caught and not caught by the off-payroll rules is heading for a 26% gap.

IPSE warns restless staff against seeing contracting as a quick buck

Doubling your pay as a contractor is alluring -- less so the dozen or so costs that go with it. And then, there’s IR35.