LTD Formation Advice

[Keep It Spicy]

Hi,

Looking to set up an Ltd and would love some advice on what route to go

1) Self formation via one one of these formation companies like 1st formations

2) via an accountant

I have had quotes from 5 local accountants, for company set up, including all the shares, legals, taxes, employees, payrolls, year-end, self assessments, etc etc etc and it comes in at anywhere from £1000 to £1700 pa

But having looked a bit deeper, I think I could significantly reduce these costs via the DIY route, using a formation company to set up the Ltd + legals, and use quickbooks for taxes, payroll, VAT returns. and only use an accountant for year end / self-assessment @ £300-500 pa

Just after peoples advice on the pros and cons of route 1, and lessons learned from mistakes.

Thank you. (sorry for typo's, written in a hurry)

 

[finleydesign]

Go with option 1, you can set it up in about 10 minutes

Plenty of basic accounts packages available online, just depends how complex your business setup is, then use an accountant for end of year but again depends how complex your accounts will be, if they are simple you can do it yourself

Would not entertain the accountant route, formation is a pretty simple process

 

[Mr D]

You could try Companies House. £12.
https://www.gov.uk/limited-company-formation

 

[mattk]

My advice would be accountant. Let them do everything the first time and then having seen what is involved decide for yourself what you want to do going forwards.

For example, having seen how easy it is to do VAT (I only have a handful of invoices a month) I do that myself each quarter, but having compared relative costs of my accountant running payroll and me doing it, I've decided to allow the accountant to continue.

For the sake of a few hundred quid, it seems false economy.

Saying that, I don't use any software which may make things easier, but when I looked at what was available I couldn't find anything which recorded everything in a format I liked compared to a spreadsheet.

The other benefit of getting an accountant to do it is that they will then know your structure going forwards for when you inevitably have queries.

 

[heidi hine]

Hi!

You are correct, there are 3 main ways to incorporate your limited company: pay a formations agent, do it all yourself via Companies House or your chosen accountant will be able to form a company on your behalf for a fee (similar to a formations agent fee) or for free if you sign up to their accountancy service.

Now we come to your query - do you need an accountant? The real questions to ask are can you do the accounts and tax returns yourself and do you have the time? They can be complex to understand, especially for the first timer and they do change nearly every year.

Do you want to be spending the time keeping up to date with the latest rates, legislations and new policies or would your time be better spent running the business? If you have an accounting background then you may want to get your teeth into your own books, but if you don’t have any knowledge in this area then it may be as well to leave it to the professional, especially as getting it wrong can mean hefty fines levied by HMRC who do not accept ignorance or lack of knowledge as any excuse.

Hope this information helps

 

[g]

While forming a company can easily be a DIY task, a good accountant is always a worthwhile expense.

 

[TODonnell]

Using an account to set up a company you are paying for his years of expertise, but to do a simple job: setting up a company. It would be like using a lawyer to send a payment demand.

You just need to make sure that your landlord allows the use of his address in this way, if that's applicable.

An accountant comes into the picture when you have to do your annual returns and you're finding the process a chore, perhaps.

 

[TargetICT]

For the first time I would advice using an Accountant!

It would save you a lot of time you can spend on getting Clients to afford the Payments.

 

[Jeremiah@RHJ Accountants]

I would agree with the above but I am biased!

Or at least have a free initial consultation with an accountant.

 

[Chris Beck]

Hi there,

You can keep all the important features together, ie company registration/paperwork/VAT & Corporation tax advice/address services for privacy.

More than happy to talk through with you - 0115 721 0957 (setupacompany)

Thanks
Chris

 

[Newchodge]

You are mixing up 2 different things - forming a limited company and, separately, complying with Companies House and HMRC requirements at year end.

For forming a company I wouldn't touch a formation company - you can do it yourself online in 5 minutes.

For year end accounts I would definitely go with an accountant, at least for the first year. Whether you need the accountant to do the book-keeping, payroll etc, is arguable. You can outsource those as some accountants charge heavily as they don't really want to do them.

After the first year you can then have a re-think.