Personal service companies

Accountants for contractors and one-person companies

Accounts and tax for contractors, consultants and interims working through their own limited company, including profit extraction and the off-payroll rules.

Core + covers it all

Accounts and corporation tax

Director payroll

VAT returns

Your self assessment

Profit extraction, reviewed yearly

One fixed fee from£250a month + VAT

Problems we solve

What contractors ask us most.

Running a one-person company should be simple. These are the questions contractors bring to us most often.

“I’m not sure how much I can safely take out.”

We work out the salary and dividends that suit your figures each year, including the dividend tax increase from April 2026 and the personal allowance taper above £100,000.

“My director’s loan account is overdrawn.”

We show you where it stands and how to clear it, with a properly declared dividend or a repayment, before the year end so you avoid a section 455 charge.

“My client says I’m inside IR35.”

We explain what the determination means for your company’s figures, handle the payroll and tax that follow, and make sure the same income is not taxed twice.

“I don’t know what I can claim through the company.”

We go through your costs with you, including home office, mileage, equipment and professional fees, and flag anything that would create a benefit in kind before it is paid.

“Should my spouse own some of the shares?”

It can make use of their allowances and basic rate band. We set it up properly from the start so it stands up to HMRC’s settlements rules.

“The paperwork keeps catching me out.”

Accounts, corporation tax, payroll, VAT and your self assessment are diarised and filed ahead of every deadline, so nothing arrives as a surprise.

What it involves

A straightforward set of filings.

A one-person company does not need much. We look after the filings, and help with the decisions in between.

Accounts and corporation tax

Statutory accounts, corporation tax return and confirmation statement, filed ahead of the deadline.

Payroll and your own salary

Director-only payroll, RTI submissions and the payroll year end. The salary level affects the personal allowance, employer NI and whether the Employment Allowance is available.

VAT, if you are registered

Quarterly returns under Making Tax Digital. We check whether the flat rate scheme or standard VAT accounting suits you better.

Your self assessment

Planned alongside the company, as dividends and your personal tax need to be considered together.

Bookkeeping and records

Bank feeds reconciled, invoices raised and receipts captured through the year, which avoids errors and missed claims at the year end.

Expenses the company can claim

Home office, mileage, equipment, software and professional costs. The rules are narrower than many expect, and personal costs paid by the company can create a benefit in kind.

Getting paid

Salary, dividends and when to take them.

Dividend tax rates rose by two percentage points in April 2026. The right split depends on your other income, your spouse’s position and whether pension contributions are being made.

+2 pts

dividend tax rates from April 2026

The extraction decision

We model salary and dividends on your own figures, including the effect of the personal allowance taper if your income is approaching £100,000.

Pension contributions

Company pension contributions are often an efficient way to extract profit. We can explain the tax position and work with your adviser, but we do not advise on specific pensions or funds.

Retained profit

You do not have to take all the profit in the year it is earned. Leaving some in the company can make sense, particularly if income varies from year to year.

Your director’s loan account

Money drawn during the year without a dividend being declared leaves an overdrawn loan account and a possible s.455 charge. This is easier to avoid than to correct.

A spouse or partner in the company

Shares held by a spouse can use their allowances and basic rate band, provided the shareholding is genuine and dividends are properly declared. Set it up correctly from the start to avoid challenge under the settlements rules.

When you take it, not just how much

A dividend declared either side of 5 April falls into a different tax year. Where income varies, timing can matter as much as the split.

Off-payroll working

IR35: who decides, and where we fit.

Since April 2021, where the end client is a medium or large private sector organisation, or any public authority, it is the client who determines your status and issues a determination. Where the client is small, the responsibility sits with your company.

What we do

Handle the consequences.

We explain how a status determination affects your company’s figures, deal with the payroll and tax consequences if an engagement is inside the rules, and make sure the same income is not taxed twice.

What we do not do

Give status opinions.

Status depends on how the work is carried out in practice. Where it is uncertain, we recommend a specialist review.

Common questions

Contractor accounting questions.

Who decides whether my contract is inside IR35?

Where the end client is a medium or large private sector organisation, or any public authority, the client determines your status and issues a determination. Where the client is small, the responsibility sits with your own company.

Do you give IR35 status opinions?

No. Status depends on how the work is carried out in practice, and where it is uncertain we recommend a specialist review. We deal with the payroll and tax consequences of a determination and make sure the same income is not taxed twice.

How should I split salary and dividends?

It depends on your other income, your spouse’s position and whether pension contributions are being made. We model the split on your own figures each year, including the personal allowance taper above £100,000 and the dividend tax increase from April 2026.

What happens if my director’s loan account is overdrawn?

Money drawn without a dividend being declared leaves the loan account overdrawn and can lead to a section 455 charge. We show you where it stands and how to clear it, with a properly declared dividend or a repayment, before the year end.

Can my spouse own shares in my company?

Yes. Shares held by a spouse can make use of their allowances and basic rate band, provided the shareholding is genuine and dividends are properly declared. It should be set up correctly from the start to stand up to HMRC’s settlements rules.

How much does a contractor accountant cost?

Core +, from £250 + VAT a month, usually suits a one-person company and covers accounts, corporation tax, director payroll, VAT returns and your self assessment. Core, from £100 + VAT a month, suits you if you keep your own records.

Usually the right fit · Core +

From £250

+ VAT a month

Accounts, corporation tax, the director payroll, VAT returns and your self assessment on one fixed fee, with profit extraction reviewed each year.

Get a fixed quote Compare the packages

Keep your own records?

Core, from £100 + VAT a month, covers the statutory work if you do the bookkeeping yourself.

Fixed before the year starts

The fee is agreed up front, so a question in March does not turn into an invoice.

Changing accountants mid-year?

We handle the handover with your current accountant.

How it works

What working with us looks like

A free first call

Twenty minutes on your contracts, your company and what you want to take out of it.

A simple switch

We take over from your current accountant and set up Xero and payroll, even part way through the year.

An annual pay plan

Salary, dividends and pension mapped out for the year, so you know what to take and when.

Filed early

Company accounts, corporation tax, payroll and your own return all done ahead of the deadlines.

Accountants for contractors and one-person companies

What contractors ask us most.

A straightforward set of filings.

Accounts and corporation tax

Payroll and your own salary

VAT, if you are registered

Your self assessment

Bookkeeping and records

Expenses the company can claim

Salary, dividends and when to take them.

The extraction decision

Pension contributions

Retained profit

Your director’s loan account

A spouse or partner in the company

When you take it, not just how much

IR35: who decides, and where we fit.

Handle the consequences.

Give status opinions.

Contractor accounting questions.

Who decides whether my contract is inside IR35?

Do you give IR35 status opinions?

How should I split salary and dividends?

What happens if my director’s loan account is overdrawn?

Can my spouse own shares in my company?

How much does a contractor accountant cost?

What working with us looks like

Work out what you can take out this year.