Help please regarding self employment

Vimes

Hello

Can anyone please help with some advice that I can offer my Son..?

He has found himself in a position where is employer has decided to not renew his contract or employment, he gave my son three days notice of that.

So for Monday of this week my Son is now unemployed.

However he has all the qualifications needed to be a plumber and gas fitter, he was Corgi registered but as his employer paid for that they cut his Corgi card up as it was only applicable for when he was working for them.

Looking at the Corgi website he has noted that he has the correct qualification for him to buy (around £500) his Corgi registration and so that will enable him to be at least legally allowed to work on gas appliances for people, althoough it does seem that he will need a company name..?

Not having any experience of self emplyment I have no idea, apart from this board, of where to start to at least point him in the right direction.

Could anyone be generous enough to give a few tips please...?

Many thanks for your time.

richt71

For free advice on everything he needs business wise I'd recommend your local business link. They are free business advice centres run by the government. They are in most large towns and you can usually find them in your local telephone book.

windswept

He doesn't NEED a company name unless he is actually forming a company, he can simlpy register as self employed with hmrc. he could register as Joe Bloggs - gas fitter, if he so desired or he could make up a business name, but tell him to be careful and check the yellow pages, he doen't want to have the same or similar name to another business.
the hmrc website is a very good starting point, it will tell him all he needs to know about going self employed, I would recommend a separate bank account for his earnings as well, just to simplify matters.
A landline telephone number for his business will give him more credibility and peace of mind for his customers, a mobile number only, looks very dodgy.
he can get himself some business cards very cheaply from vistaprint online.
If he's good on a computer he can make a template for his invoices, he will also need a trade account with a plumbers merchant, presumably he already knows of some. that's all I can think of for now.

Vimes

Thanks VERY much to you both for the time taken to give some REALLY good advice.

I have found the business link close to us...

http://www.blgm.co.uk/

and the advice about not needing a company name and landline number, along with a seperate bank account is invaluable.

If, and I have to think of these things, things don't go to well for him with this business what would his liability be in terms of debt..? As he still ives with us, and if he wanted to get a phone line put in here, for his business, would that have any implications on the liability of his business on our property....?


Thanks again

saraharrow

Hi

Good luck to your son and his new venture. When he talks to business link make sure he finds out if there are any grants that he can get for his £500 cost, some organisations give them interest free loans, and the princes trust provide great business mentors if he is under 30.

Kind Regards

Sarah

seaweasel

Scottish Enterprise having been giving £1000 grants to startups, there might be a similar scheme in your area. He could also try speaking to the Prince's Trust for a loan.

Astaroth

As a sole trader there is no legal seperation between him and the business and therefore anything one owns the other does too... if things didnt go well in terms of debts/ being sued etc then anything he himself ownes would be able to be considered for repossession to cover the debts irrespective of it is business related or not. I assume that he doesnt own a share of your home and therefore that would be "safe".

If he was to form a limited company then the company is a seperate legal entity to himself and therefore his assests are seperate to the companies so if the business runs into problems then his liability is limited to his share holding in it (hence the term limited) but at the same time he cannot simply take things from the business as they are owned by the company and not him... there are tax reasons to consider and for many it is advantageous to form a Ltd

Vimes

Thanks again for those that have replied with help, it really is most appreciated. Thanks also for wishing my Son well in his venture

All the advice is building up nicely into a rough draft of what is needed to be considered by my Son in his plans to be self employed.

It may seem a little naive but I now have some understanding about a ltd company and so that will be asked at the meeting to be arranged with the people at business link.

richt71

Vimes wrote: »

Thanks again for those that have replied with help, it really is most appreciated. Thanks also for wishing my Son well in his venture

All the advice is building up nicely into a rough draft of what is needed to be considered by my Son in his plans to be self employed.

It may seem a little naive but I now have some understanding about a ltd company and so that will be asked at the meeting to be arranged with the people at business link.

I'm sure business link will advise on this but it might be worth also seeing an accountant. Many will give a free 1 hour consultation on the best ways to set up the structure obviously in the hope your son will use their services.
As to a limited company here's my view (and it may not be correct but I have 2 limited companies). If your son starts to earn a very good living then paying to set up a limited company (£20-£40 to form) and filing accounts and paperwork each year and the costs this involves (£15 to companies house online - £30 off line plus accountant costs) may be worth it. The big thing with limited companies is he can take dividends that are tax free in effect BUT he'll have to pay corporation tax on these profits @ 19%.

stamford

Vimes wrote: »

Hello



However he has all the qualifications needed to be a plumber and gas fitter,

If he can speak the lingo there's a shortage of plumbers in Poland he could earn loads of Zlotys
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=441843&in_page_id=1770
http://!!!!!!!.com/yvofnq

martindow

Three days notice sounds very short. Should he not have received more notice than that?