How to charge the client - day rate?

[achillea]

I have verbally agreed a day rate with the client but am wondering if it is worth splitting it to make it more dependent on delivery (IR35 test for financial risk).

- Is this a significant IR35 issue?

- What's a good split? I was thinking of say 80% day rate, rest dependent on delivery. I don't want to risk too much as my role is about getting people to use a new process and system which they are not mandated to do.

- Other ideas on delivery measures? Perhaps hitting certain milestones, client satisfaction with work quality?

Ta

[rootsnall]

I think you are getting carried away with IR35, if you are one of the very unlucky ones who cops for a NI bill down the track then you just have to pay up. Just get as many IR35 friendly pointers in your contract as possible, join the PCG or similar, and take the daily rate on offer.

[TheFaQQer]

How well specced out are the deliverables? Have you defined the scope and change control process?

If you know exactly what the deliverables are, and have visibility of the specifications, then you should go for payment based on milestones and deliverables.

If you have no idea about what the deliverables are going to be, or haven't seen the specifications, then I wouldn't go that route. I've worked on projects where the specification that I was meant to work to contained such gems as "there will be a form to manage the returns process" - sadly without describing the form, or what the process was! No chance of doing that on a fixed price basis.

[achillea]

Deliverables not well spec'd out yet and won't be until I start (chicken and egg). From my initial discussions the deliverables are based on stakeholders doing x projects using the new system, a 'comprehensive' pipeline of projects and being self-suffient in using the system... none of these entirely within my control as my role is one of influencer and cajoler.

Maybe I'll just leave it as a plain old day rate....

[malvolio]

No reason not to. A good principle is not to let tax rules damage commercial interests usually rendered as "don't let the taxation tail wag the business dog").

How you get paid is largely irrelevant to IR35, and day rate is basically a convenient way to break up a single piece of work into stage payments. Early termination, zero notice or free rework of faulty work are bigger indicators of financial risk and of course those will be in your contract...

[rootsnall]

No reason not to. A good principle is not to let tax rules damage commercial interests usually rendered as "don't let the taxation tail wag the business dog").

How you get paid is largely irrelevant to IR35, and day rate is basically a convenient way to break up a single piece of work into stage payments. Early termination, zero notice or free rework of faulty work are bigger indicators of financial risk and of course those will be in your contract...

Exactly my point, better to have the work and the IR35 risk ( or NI bill ) than miss out altogether by insisting on this and that.

On the notice front ( recently discussed with yourself mal ) I got a random call this week from a high up manager ( big nasty consulting firm ) asking me what I was working on and what was my notice period. I didn't know and if I'd of been on no notice I think I was out the door, my 20 days notice came in handy, perhaps I will keep it in my next contract after all. Apparently the managers were looking for contractors to cut to meet some targets. I only want to last another 2 months and they seem to have lost interest in chopping me now. Sleepy hollow was in chaos for 24 hours, I even rang an agent.