What is a Limited Company?

Firstly a Limited Company is not you personally! It is a separate legal entity to yourself, it can own assets, have liabilities and generate income in its own right. A Limited Company will have owners, these are its shareholders.It will also require managing which is done by its directors, or in larger companies by managers and other employees put in place by the Directors.

All Limited Companies are required to operate by rules and regulations. These are set out in the Companies Act and those specific to the individual company are set down in the company's Memorandum and Articles of Association.

Choose a Company name

When forming a company the first thing that you will need to decide on is your Company’s name. You should apply some common sense when choosing a name, things that you need to consider are that it should be useful for marketing purposes and also there are certain sensitive words that Companies House will not accept, for example a name cannot be offensive or imply connection with central government nor can it be the same or similar to a Company already on the register.

Registering the business

You can register your Company at Companies House yourself or use a Company formation agent. There are certain forms that need to be completed, such as the memorandum and articles of association. There is sufficient scope to form your company incorrectly and so unless you have expertise in this area you should instruct your accountant to do this for you to prevent it turning into a big headache down the line.

Obtain a business bank account

Your company will need its own bank account, it is a legal requirement. You will need to present your company incorporation certificate to the bank you select. We are happy to organise a bank account for you with HSBC, Barclays or Cater Allen should you require.

Registering the business with HMRC.

Once it has been formed the business will need to be registered with HMRC. This is done by completing a form (CT41G) which will arrive at your registered office normally within ten days of your Company being incorporated. You may also need a payroll registering for your company and a VAT registration if required.

We can form your Company for you, and register it with HMRC for £100+vat.

Freelancer Accounting is a specialist provider of fixed fee accountancy services to freelancers and contractors in London and the South East of England.

We understand that tax is complicated and we are happy to offer you face to face meetings at one of our office locations convenient to you.

You will have your own dedicated accountant as a point of contact.

We are accredited by the Professional Contractors Group (PCG) and are an ACCA Practice, so you will never have to worry about you tax and accounting affairs again.

If you are thinking of contracting or an existing contractor with questions and would like further advice, please do not hesitate to call your local Freelancer Accounting office on 0800 1357157 or email martyn@freelanceraccounting.com