No two accountants charge the same fees for providing a service. Some charge by the hour, while others rate their payments monthly. Their prices vary based on individual experience, services required, and the type of company (hiring party). Additionally, it’ll depend on the scale of activities. You may never know the exact charges but having a fair idea will help you select the right one to work with.
Self-assessment and tax returns
The self-assessment and tax returns system is what HM Revenue and Customs use to collect income tax. In filing tax returns, the law makes it mandatory for businesses and people to report their income. Failure to do so can result in messy litigation with UK tax regulatory boards. In hiring an accountant for this job, they’ll usually charge a one-time fee for this yearly exercise.
The payment you’ll likely make to an accountant ranges from £150 to £250. Sometimes, this range can be exceeded when the accountant in question has years of financial experience and comes in demand. In another breath, you may be required to pay more than £250 depending on how high your income is. Self-employed people with unpredictable income sources often tend to pay more. The more sources of income, the higher the accountant’s fees will be. Typically, any charge not exceeding £250 covers only the basics of self-assessment services.
General accounting charge for small businesses
For a business with a maximum of fifty workers, general accounting charges are delivered as packages. This includes the business’s quarterly VAT returns, the director’s personal tax returns,
corporation tax earnings, monthly and annual tax returns. Others are:
- The small company’s annual accounts.
- Advice on tax avoidance legislation.
- Bookkeeping
Most importantly, the accountant will also consider the daily professional advice they provide to your business. In accounting for this kind of enterprise, expect to be charged anywhere from £60 to £250. The variations in charges depend mainly on service depth, location in the UK, and even turnover. In case you didn’t know, a company with a higher turnover is automatically placed in the higher charge category. The range given here is the standard package fee for this type of service. Other accountants or firms charge notably higher every month.
The cost of payroll services
From the get-go, this cost will depend on the size of your organization or company. A business with less than or up to ten staff members usually pays about £4 per worker monthly. However, for payroll services, be ready to pay anywhere between £5 and £12 per staff. The only variation here will depend on how involved you are with monthly payroll within your company. For a business owner, this should be important to you because it’s the only way charges can be reduced by the payroll provider.
Furthermore, because payroll service is done weekly or monthly and calculated per head, you can explore other viable options. For example, if you stick to paying your staff regularly and with a consistent salary, you may qualify to renegotiate your provider’s rates.
Finally, if your income model is mostly composed of commissions and overtime, it’ll be classified as outside the conventional. You’ll be required to pay a premium charge or premium package rate for that service in most cases. As mentioned earlier in the introduction, that’ll vary depending on who the accountant is.