new company info please

[JJ]

I have a Limited Company and am soon to start on a contract.
No accountant yet.
Is it possible to make do without one ?
How do you go about paying salary and dividends ?
What happens about NI between contracts ?
Re: IR35, does the agency set up the contract details ?
Is there a good (easy to understand) book about company start up and all these things and tax efficiency ?

[xoggoth]

Possible to do without one if you are prepared to put the time in to learn how to do it yourself. Not that it's difficult generally, just hard to find the information.

If you are earning a decent wack probably best to pay one to do the final accounts and corporation tax because it really is dead boring and very time consuming if you are unsure, but that decision does not have to be made for some time, you have nine months after the end of first company year.

The interim tasks are certainly DIY.

1 - know your deadlines for PAYE & VAT payments, end of year tax returns, and Companies House Shuttle return. You can be fined if you miss some of these.Your bank or business centre should be able to give you a copy of 'Director's Briefing - key dates'. Being a director will also make you liable to fill in tax return too.

2 Expenses you can claim are in mostly in the IR booklets 480 and 490. On IR website or CD they send you with new employer's pack.

3 PAYE and VAT are all explained pretty comprehensively in the packs the IR/HMCE send you, you just have to read them. (See what I mean about boring).Plenty of PAYE programs about, or use Excel. Can send you PAYE sheet if you email me on my link.

4 For dividends, apart from paying yourself the dosh, just a brief minute of decision, and a tax certificate. Avoid paying too much to yourself other than as salary/dividend. Loans over 5k are taxable.

5 There is no obligation to pay NI unless paying yourself a salary.You can pay salary at about threshold (about 4500ish a year) to preserve state pension rights for what they are worth.

6 IR35. Depends how much they/the client wants you and how bolshie you can afford to be in insisting on changes to unfriendly clauses. No harm in asking.