Sanzar?

[peterc2609]

Hi

I've been in my current contract for 3 years and 2 months . . . usually 3 month renewals. I'm Ltd company and a bit worried about IR35.

I suppose the easiest thing would be to get a job somewhere else, but its really quiet at the moment!

So I was thinking of going to Umbrella company - mainly as I hate doing accounts etc.

Someone has recommended Sanzar in the IOM to me....

I've spoke to them and it sounds quite good, but then I come on here and see threads about Montpelier etc...

Is it safe to go with Sanzar?

[Archangel]

Hi

I've been in my current contract for 3 years and 2 months . . . usually 3 month renewals. I'm Ltd company and a bit worried about IR35.

I suppose the easiest thing would be to get a job somewhere else, but its really quiet at the moment!

So I was thinking of going to Umbrella company - mainly as I hate doing accounts etc.

Someone has recommended Sanzar in the IOM to me....

I've spoke to them and it sounds quite good, but then I come on here and see threads about Montpelier etc...

Is it safe to go with Sanzar?

Depends if you want to sleep soundly.

have you had your contract reviewed?
have you joined the PCG?
What are your working arrangements?
You say you've read the Montpelier etc threads, please reread them and answer your own question.

If you do decide to go with Sanzar, i have some magic beans you may be interested in.

[Jubber]

If you do decide to go with Sanzar, i have some magic beans you may be interested in.

Exactly

This has to be bull. OP, do you work for Sanzar?

For the record, Hector could do the IR35 shake down on your Ltd whether you change to an umbrella or not. Why someone would even consider changing from a Ltd to an umbrella just because they were getting work is beyond me.

[LisaContractorUmbrella]

In a nutshell it is not safe to use any third party solution that doesn't pay you through PAYE.

[sal626]

Do a search on Sanzar in these forums, but be aware that they are planning to change thier scheme to a loan based one, from next month I think.

I had a brief chat with them last week - thier current scheme may be affected by BN66 and what is happening with Montpellier - although at the moment they are not being queried by HMRC. I guess they are anticipating what is going to happen and moving to a loan based scheme. But interestingly it doesn't involve EBTs and the loan is "settled" at the end of the tax year. How it is settled they wont tell you until you join and sign a NDA. I'm considering doing it just to find out!

There is obvioulsy a risk with going with any off shore scheme but is there also not a risk with IR35 invetigations with ltds? Umbrella seems to be the safest...but least reward. Loan schemes are also not affected by BN66....there are certain providers who are being queried....but this is a different track to BN66....

But, despite all the negative comments about off-shore loan schemes, I'm not aware of one person/scheme/provider who has actually been done by HMRC yet. Is anyone else?
Also, the BN66 thread is not all doom and gloom, there is a good chance that HMRC will be defeated...

[Jet Setter]

I had a look at these guys and it looks like they do exactly what Montpellier were doing. As suggested before, take a look at the BN66 thread before you decide whether to jump into bed with them.

[Emigre]

Lets be clear here. The fight over BN66 is about the retrospective element. The prospective elements are accepted and it closes down that particular tax planning opportunity with effect from 12 March 2008.

Loans are a relatively new planning arrangement that HMRC have not publicly attacked at this time which is why there isn't much information on them.

If you are looking at a solution beyond umbrellas/PAYE/PSC etc do some research into the companies providing the solution. Many of the companies out there purporting to provide a contractor solution offer that as their only piece of tax planning. It is very likely that they are leveraging off someone else's intellectual property, do not actually have Counsel opinion addressed to them, and are unlikely (being one-trick ponies) to be around when HMRC hits the fan. Find a company who has a true international presence where they are promoting a wide variety of planning options and services.

[peterc2609]

Depends if you want to sleep soundly.

have you had your contract reviewed?
have you joined the PCG?
What are your working arrangements?
You say you've read the Montpelier etc threads, please reread them and answer your own question.

If you do decide to go with Sanzar, i have some magic beans you may be interested in.

I'm really new to this side of things... I just originally set up my LTD and started to work and get paid, and accountant deals with things.

I'm just wary of IR35.

Contract reviewed? By whom, I've been on the same one since I started all this - I do remember the accountant making some changes to it for IR35 though.

PCG? What is this?

Working arrangements? At the moment I am office based with a few days now and again off to different sites.

I don't work for Sanzar - just a colleague has decided to sign up with them, and I was thinking of going with an umbrella, and this one sounded good (to start off with!)

Yes I have work but I thought if I changed to an umbrella I'd be safe from IR35?!? Its only cos I've been here so long!

So if Sanzar go to a loan scheme does that mean it's safer!?!

All these comments are helpful, but a bit over my head.

Can someone explain to me in laymans terms, the best and safest way to avoid IR35 whilst contracting for the one company... and also to earn the most money whilst doing it!!

[ASB]

Loans are a relatively new planning arrangement that HMRC have not publicly attacked at this time which is why there isn't much information on them.

I think they've had quite a go at loans in general, eg employee loans, loans in a depreciating currency, I think where they might not be quite so well attacked is family based loans. If memory servers correctly montpelier won a case on this last year (though the employer was not granted a CT deduction on the payments that funded the family loans - this is currently going through appear).

So, whilst there may be effective loan based schemes I would expect them to get attacked, and I would also expect the attack to be retrospective to the start of the the disclosure regime. Of course whether that happens is a different thing.

[PhilAtBFCA]

Offshore, Limited & Umbrella

Hi Peter,

If you are looking at offshore schemes and Sanzar then take a good read of the forum threads and see how much potential hassle you can have from HMRC investigations and ask yourself if its really worth it. It seems to me that the comments by most people would suggest that the price of an unbelievable return on your contract rate is high.

Ask yourself as well who still earns fees from providing the service, whether it works for you or not.

IMHO If you are going to be a long term contractor think about running a real UK business that is compliant and easy for you to manage, take a good look at the PCG and get a good advisor that supports your business. If you just doing this before going perm somewhere think about a UK based PAYE Umbrella, but make sure it is highly recomended and big enough to survive the risks in this business climate.

Phil