UK Starting Business

Registering as a sole trader is a reasonably straight-forward procedure and is best effected online via Revenue and Customs website.

There are certain details which will be required before a successful form can be submitted. These are covered in greater details below.

When to Contact Revenue and Customs

When starting a business it is important that contact is made with Revenue and Customs as soon as the operations begin. The effective limit for registering as a sole trader is within 90 days from the commencement of the business. Leaving matters beyond this time may result in fines being payable.

The business will deemed to have started at the earliest point of the first invoice being issued, the first payment received or material expenses have been incurred in setting up the operations.

Information Required:

When notifying an intension to become a sole trader via the online portal certain pieces of information are required and it is best if preparations are made in time to ensure that all details are to hand.

This way it will save time not having to restart the registration procedure again because certain essential bits of information could not be imputed at the first attempt.

The following is a list of the information required to register as a sole trader:

• Sole trader’s full name
• Residential address
• Telephone number where the applicant can be reached should revenue and Customs have any queries.
• Valid email address
• A description of the principal business activities the business will engage in.
• The address where business operations will be conducted if this will be a different location from the sole trader’s residential property.
• The exact date the business started.
• The NI number of the sole trader.
• Any previous tax references which were issued under a previous self employed status.

After Registering

Once the online registration application has been submitted Revenue and Customs will asses the information and make contact with the owner in the event that items require clarification or have been omitted.

They will then suggest payment methods for National Insurance Class 2 contributions. Their preferred means is quarterly using direct debit facilities.

It is also usual for guidance booklets to be issued on self assessment and important due dates, along with contact numbers where further assistance can be obtained when required.