How to prove i'm a sole trader?

[TSUK]

Hello All,

I have had dealing with a company and they are now asking me to prove that i am a sole trader.

How can i prove i am a sole trader? They are not being helpful and actually asking for something specific?

 

[MOIC]

Your VAT registration form (If you are registered for VAT)

 

[andygambles]

Letterheaded paper

Crossed through cheque showing Mr A Smith t/a SH Mail Services

Direct them to a page on your site that has your name showing you are trading

 

[businessfunding]

Tax return
VAT certificate
Any legal or official documentation.
Letter from accountant or solicitor

 

[ITsoldUK]

Send them an invoice for wasting you time.



on letter headed paper of course.

 

[MyAccountantOnline]

Hello All,

I have had dealing with a company and they are now asking me to prove that i am a sole trader.

How can i prove i am a sole trader? They are not being helpful and actually asking for something specific?

If you are happy to do so I suggest a letter from your accountant or give them your Unique Tax Payer reference (UTR) which HM Revenue & Customs will have advised you of when you registered as self employed.

 

[JDX_John]

Letter from accountant would be my vote. VAT number does not prove you are a ST.

 

[MOIC]

Letter from accountant would be my vote. VAT number does not prove you are a ST.

Your VAT Registration Certificate should have your personal name on it, unless you are a Limited Company, then it would have the name of the Limited Company.

 

[JDX_John]

Oh yes the certificate itself would prove it. Actually - now I think of it the number itself can probably be looked up too?

 

[Rufford]

Hello All,

I have had dealing with a company and they are now asking me to prove that i am a sole trader.

How can i prove i am a sole trader? They are not being helpful and actually asking for something specific?

.... guess is begs the question; what is a sole trader anyway. A person who derives income from his|her own efforts and prefers to use 'none de plume' as it were. True they are in business but don't own a business per say.

Wikipedia: A business (also known as enterprise or firm) is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit or state-owned. A business owned by multiple individuals may be referred to as a company, although that term also has a more precise meaning.

that's that then

 

[AndyBlue]

instead of asking us what you can provide, why not ask them what they would accept as proof. If they are that bothered that you are a sole trader (and i can't think of any reason why it makes a difference, apart from credit and surely if this was the case the credit search would show your status anyway) then they will probably be wanting to see something in particular.

 

[rizbit]

Ive been asked for documents showing incorporation of 'organisation' in uk, by Google, however sole traders do not have incorporation documents. Why cant Google understand this?

 

[fisicx]

Ive been asked for documents showing incorporation of 'organisation' in uk, by Google, however sole traders do not have incorporation documents. Why cant Google understand this?

Why do they want the documents? Is this for your ongoing appeal?

 

[fantheflames]

You can use a letter from HMRC or a recent tax return. I'm not sure if a bank statement would work, but HMRC letters have worked with us.

 

[Gecko001]

Back in the day I applied for a cash and carry Makro card where you had to prove that you were a business. I think I just showed a letter headed letter and referred to my business entry in the Yellow pages.

Here is an excerpt from Google search for their latest requirements:

"How do I get a Makro account? You will need a trade card membership to shop at one of our Makro branches. To qualify for a card you will need to be in business, self-employed, a registered charity, or an OFSTED registered school or child minder/organisation with a business bank account."

 

[Tomwirral]

Hello All,

I have had dealing with a company and they are now asking me to prove that i am a sole trader.

How can i prove i am a sole trader? They are not being helpful and actually asking for something specific?

A sole trader would have invoices tax returns, etc

 

[Rekkovitch]

Send them an invoice for wasting you time.



on letter headed paper of course.

haha, this !

 

[rizbit]

Why do they want the documents? Is this for your ongoing appeal?

no thats another story... this is to verify business account

my appeal has not been accepted. Then after I requested to take the dispute to the CEDR (which they themselves advise people to use) for online dispute resolution, they took 5 months and several attempts to contact them to finally get back to me and refuse the request.... I wonder why..... It because they know they are wrong.... all I have to do is show the resolution a video or live stream of the app working and its case closed and win for me.

 

[rizbit]

You can use a letter from HMRC or a recent tax return. I'm not sure if a bank statement would work, but HMRC letters have worked with us.

when you say worked for us, do you mean you have used this document to verify sole trader business with Google?

The problem with a letter from HMRC is that they most likely will reject it because the addressed to name on that document/letter will be your personal name and will not match the developer name used for the account with google

 

[fantheflames]

when you say worked for us, do you mean you have used this document to verify sole trader business with Google?

The problem with a letter from HMRC is that they most likely will reject it because the addressed to name on that document/letter will be your personal name and will not match the developer name used for the account with google

Not usually the case. If you can provide those documents and speak to a Google representative (if rejected), then you will be able to confirm your sole trader business.

 

[rizbit]

Not usually the case. If you can provide those documents and speak to a Google representative (if rejected), then you will be able to confirm your sole trader business.

The problem there is "speak to a Google representative".

If you are lucky to get through on one of their phone numbers, first you will have to wait over 2 hours, if you havent given up by then, then you will be confronted by a customer service operator in hydrabad, india who wont have a clue how to help you, but will be very polite and tell you they will get back to you.

When they back to you by email they wont have answered any of your questions, they will give you the same information they started off with which wasnt helpful, hence youve been sent round in a circle.

When you email them, replies you get are as though they are from AI, bots or copy/paste templates responses. You can test this by asking a specific question, in their replies they will avoid answering that question by giving a generalised answer like 'We have given you all the information we could in our previous email to you, thanks for your understanding"

I mean I could post the replies i got from them, it was over the span of about 2-3 weeks and we just went round in circles, but I was also offered information which wasnt true (checked with their support forums). Then the support stafff decided to stop replying.

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

sole traders do not have incorporation documents

What is meant by 'sole trader'?

Whilst self employed is (you will have a UTR number), you can be a director of a company and the only one in that company. SOle trader really relates to you working by yourself, not your trading/registration structure.

 

[DontAsk]

What is meant by 'sole trader'?

Whilst self employed is (you will have a UTR number), you can be a director of a company and the only one in that company. SOle trader really relates to you working by yourself, not your trading/registration structure.

Pedantry rules!

I suspect most people on the forum understand what is meant by "sole trader".

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

I suspect most people on the forum understand what is meant by "sole trader".

In my experience many people do not know the difference between sole trader and self employed and think they are the same.

 

[fisicx]

Mr Starmer says this on the government website:

Set up a business

Choosing a legal structure when you're starting a business: the differences between being a sole trader and a limited company, including legal risk, registration and taxes.

www.gov.uk

 

[GriffithAccts]

Hello,

This should come from your accountant.

If they are completing your self assessment they should also be producing sole trader accounts for you with an accountants report, and this should be signed.

Together with this they should also provide the SA302, tax summary.

Best

Daniel Griffith FCA