sole trader business help

top1900

Hi I have a few questions regarding new a business

I have been working for firms for years in the building services , like plastering ,plumbing,tiling,heating,painting, so I would like to go out on my own , so be gentle with me as some of my questions might seem really silly and obvious

I would like to start up my own business as I have been made redundant and would like to give it a go as a sole trader

I don't want to have a business account as banks charges after 12-18mths are a lot for a small business's, so a couple of questions.

1 I will be a sole trader so My name is joe bloggs and my soletrader name for hmrc will be joe bloggs , any cheques i receive will be in the name joe bloggs

2 As a company's name always looks better for new customers Can i use a personal bank account as joe bloggs and have a van signwritten jb building services and business cards jb building services and invoice and estimate pads as jb building services and still be a sole trader for hmrc as joe bloggs

3 Or is it best to have a business name and pay what business fee's will occur in 12-18months time , jb building services and get a business account and tell hmrc your trading name is jb building services

4 How to keep job records , i don't want to do computer accounting , can i just keep a diary of what job i have done when and how much , and then fill a separate bit of paper out with the same info and put it in a calendar 12 month file with receipts , so it will be organised for a accountant

5 When your books are looked at by an accountant each year say in September when do you pay the tax ? is it 1 payment or 2 payments a year

Thanks for your help everyone , starting a new company is confusing

InsideInsurance

1) Fine but in most cases personal bank accounts prohibit their use for business activities. If they'll catch you is another matter

2) Having a trading name is fine but invoices and contracts etc must correctly identify the legal entity the person is trading with. So the headed paper can be JB Building Services but somewhere, normally the footer, you will have to state Joe Bloggs t/a JB Building Services

3) As per (1) above, there is a small risk involved in not separating it. It does however make life easier to have a single account that only business transactions go through. Whilst many banks give 18-24 months free banking you can of cause switch banks every 18-24 months

4) Why dont you want computer records? It'll make life a lot easier for you! Alternatively you can keep paper records if you prefer and buy a ledger book for noting the financial transactions. For a small business like this I wouldnt expect an accountant to be involved but obviously they will charge a lot more if they are given a mountain of paper records rather than neatly compiled electronic records. They will be making computer records

5) It depends what taxes you need to pay. NIC class II is paid monthly or bi-annually. VAT is quarterly. Self Assessment is done annually, year 1 is paid as a single lump and year 2 on is paid with 2 advance payments (Jan and July) with any adjustment necessary made in the next Jan.

Wywth

top1900 wrote: »

Hi I have a few questions regarding new a business

I have been working for firms for years in the building services , like plastering ,plumbing,tiling,heating,painting, so I would like to go out on my own , so be gentle with me as some of my questions might seem really silly and obvious

I would like to start up my own business as I have been made redundant and would like to give it a go as a sole trader

I don't want to have a business account as banks charges after 12-18mths are a lot for a small business's, so a couple of questions.

1 I will be a sole trader so My name is joe bloggs and my soletrader name for hmrc will be joe bloggs , any cheques i receive will be in the name joe bloggs

2 As a company's name always looks better for new customers Can i use a personal bank account as joe bloggs and have a van signwritten jb building services and business cards jb building services and invoice and estimate pads as jb building services and still be a sole trader for hmrc as joe bloggs

3 Or is it best to have a business name and pay what business fee's will occur in 12-18months time , jb building services and get a business account and tell hmrc your trading name is jb building services

4 How to keep job records , i don't want to do computer accounting , can i just keep a diary of what job i have done when and how much , and then fill a separate bit of paper out with the same info and put it in a calendar 12 month file with receipts , so it will be organised for a accountant

5 When your books are looked at by an accountant each year say in September when do you pay the tax ? is it 1 payment or 2 payments a year

Thanks for your help everyone , starting a new company is confusing

Read the terms & conditions of your personal bankl account, or check with your bank.

Most banks prohibit the use of personal accounts for business purposes. When the banks discovers it is being used against the terms, it could suspend the account, although more usual is to make it into a business account anyway - then the bank will charge you for all transactions, business & personal.
And what will you do with those cheques made payable to jb building services, which you will surely be given at some point? :huh:

So just pop along to your bank and ask

If you don't want a business account, it sounds like you don't really want to go into business :cool:

With regards to accounting, I suggest you see an accountant. It appears you will be needing one. The accountant may even offer to open a business bank account for you

tiger_eyes

top1900 wrote: »

4 How to keep job records , i don't want to do computer accounting , can i just keep a diary of what job i have done when and how much , and then fill a separate bit of paper out with the same info and put it in a calendar 12 month file with receipts , so it will be organised for a accountant

I'm a sole trader and I can't recommend enough that you create a spreadsheet that keeps track of work done and calculates tax and National Insurance for you. It might take an hour or two to set up, but there's no substitute for knowing what you owe the Inland Revenue to the penny at all times.