Accountants are a valuable asset to have in a business. As a matter of fact, they handle all of the vital paperwork involving the numbers; they compute all of your taxes, they monitor all of your profits and losses, and they would immediately let you know if things aren’t adding up. Undoubtedly, they are one of the main reasons why a business would prosper in the long run!
However, skilled and trustworthy business accountants are hard to come by. On the one hand, you have those who are skilled in their craft yet are plagued with dishonesty and incompetency. On the other hand, you have those who are honest in their work yet are only mere beginners or fresh out of their graduation! In such a case, you may need to consider a couple of things before even deciding to hire a contractor accountant.
While these factors may not always be applicable for all your potential accounting candidates, they would at least give you an idea of the vital things to look out for. Keep reading to find out more about them.
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The Qualifications That They Have
An accountant should have all of the needed qualifications when it comes to handling financial administration and bookkeeping, among other things. There are certain indicators to look out for, but the simplest ones to check would be their business card! If it isn’t indicated on their card, you may take a look at their website and their promotional ads instead.
From the get-go, they should be able to present their AAT Foundation certificate, their ATT, ACCA, or CIMA. They should also be affiliated with any professional body related to accounting, such as the ICAEW and the ACCA.
Their Usual Fee
Some contractor accountants would ask you for £25 a month while others would go for £100 a month. It would all depend on their skill level and years of experience! The more skill and experience that they have, the higher the price would be. Either way, you are paying for peace of mind since a more experienced accountant would make little to no mistakes at all when it comes to the computations, giving you accurate numbers every time.
Take note that their asking price would not include the tax amount, so you may have to add 20% on top of that. You should also ask about the inclusions when it comes to their asking price. Usually, the service package would include the preparation of your annual company accounts, the computation of tax returns and VAT filings, the handling of correspondence from HMRC, and some beyond hours phone call, just in case you have further inquiries about the computations of the day.
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The Things That Are Not Included in Their Service Charge
Aside from the services that are included in their asking price, there are also some things that aren’t a part of the overall package. These may include your personal tax calculation, your company’s payroll, your references, and your company’s house filings, among others.
Now, if you’re still unsure about what’s included in the service package and what’s not, it would not hurt to ask since they should be accommodating when it comes to the details. It would be much better to clarify everything so that both parties would not encounter any misunderstanding along the way!
Conclusion
Choosing and hiring a good contractor accountant may require a bit of thinking and consideration, especially if you wish to save a lot of money while acquiring trustworthy accounting personnel. Take your time to sort out your options, analyse all of their qualifications, and discuss the inclusion of their fees. At the end of the day, it is all about hiring the right accountant that would give you the right numbers any time of the day.
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