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Business Legal Services
Employment Status and IR35
Making mistakes relating to the application of IR35 can be costly for your business. Minimise these costs with guidance from our employment law experts.
Information about IR35 – this area of law now applies in both the public and the private sector. If you would like help in better understanding this area of law, as well as guidance on how to comply with IR35 related obligations, please get in contact with us and let us know.
Assessing the employment status of those who work for and with you – it is critical for tax purposes to ensure that you have assessed the status of those who work with you correctly and failure to do so could leave your business liable for future payments to HMRC. We have extensive experience in assessing employment status and the process of approaching those who work with you to discuss this.
Drafting templates – we can draft documents such as contracts which contain provisions regarding employment status and tax obligations, together with indemnities to protect the company in the event of a dispute.
What are the benefits of seeking professional IR35 advice?
Save time and money
Reduce time spent on trying to research the changes relating to IR35 and how they might apply to your business. One of our employment solicitors would be happy to discuss your specific circumstances and can advise you on any relevant IR35 provisions and how to deal with these, whilst you continue to focus your time and energy on running your business.
Reduced risk of non-compliance
Instructing Harper James Solicitors will provide you with peace of mind in knowing that you are in safe hands with solicitors who will advise you of IR35 requirements and how best to comply with them.
Audit your existing intermediary arrangements
We can carefully review and analyse the risks related to your current intermediary arrangements and, where appropriate, advise you on alternative arrangements and strategies for resourcing your business.
Clear templates
Once we have discussed your resourcing requirements and the best options for your business, we are able to produce the templates you require in a clear and precise way which are easy for you to follow.
What are employer’s responsibilities relating to IR35?
From 6 April 2021 the off-payroll working rules were extended to large and medium-sized companies in the private sector. This means that medium or large-sized organisations which have a turnover of more than £10.2million, a balance sheet total of £5.1m and/or more than 50 employees have more responsibilities under IR35.
Instead of Personal Service Companies (or ‘PSC’s’) determining the status of payments made after 6 April 2021 (regardless of when the work was carried out by the contractor), that responsibility and the accounting for tax and national insurance contributions is now the responsibility of the medium or large company which is the end user client or ‘fee-payer’. There is also now a legal obligation on the end user client to respond to a request for information about their size from the agency or worker.
If your business is medium or large, it will be responsible for carrying out status determination exercises on contractors. Where your business changes a contractor’s status as a result of carrying out a status determination exercise, the contractor may disagree with the status change. In this instance you will need a status disagreement process in order that a contractor can make a complaint and will need to ensure that you respond within 45 days of receiving such a complaint.
What if my business does not comply with IR35?
It is possible for HMRC to go back at least six years and evaluate past contracts to see if the legislation relating to IR35 applies, and where applicable demand income tax, NICs, penalties and interest and so it is worth ensuring your business complies.
Who we help: Employers with growing teams across the UK
At Harper James Solicitors, we champion ambitious businesses, and are able to support them at each stage of their development. So as your team starts to grow and you need to get your HR policies off the ground, we’ll be there to support you, getting to know your requirements and aligning your employment documents with your longer term, commercial goals. By plugging any gaps in your legal knowledge or supporting you where you don’t yet have the resource, we can help you successfully build your team. We’ll help you put the legal fundamentals in place so that you know, right from the off, that you’re compliant with current legislation and not putting your business at risk.
Why you should choose Harper James
We have an experienced employment team who are well versed in dealing with contentious and non-contentious matters before, during, at the end of and after employment. Our team is particularly skilled at understanding and dealing with complex legal situations promptly and providing advice in a friendly and down to earth way.
Employment status advice you can trust
All of our employment lawyers previously worked for a top 100 UK law firm or in-house at large international businesses. Many having achieved partner level or beyond, with at least 10 years post qualified experience. Find out more about the employment law team here:
Pricing plans
Legal support designed
to fit your business needs
Our three transparent pricing packages are designed to give you the widest possible access to high-quality legal advice, whatever the size and nature of your business:
City
Straightforward access to senior solicitors at a competitive rate.
An affordable solution for businesses needing one-off legal support. Receive ‘City’ partner-level expertise at a fraction of ‘City’ prices.
Enterprise
Have legal peace of mind for £215 per month with additional support from £145 per hour.
A monthly subscription legal support package specifically designed for start-ups and smaller businesses.
On-Demand
Providing you with priority access to a dedicated panel of highly experienced solicitors.
Fully account managed quarterly subscription service for businesses with more complex legal needs.