In our experience, the early stages of growth in a business are often the busiest, leaving little management time to focus on the accounting and tax angles of areas such as raising new finance and attracting new staff.

We can take care of the accounting and tax issues during this period by providing advice in relation to:

• Ensuring you fulfil all of your ongoing compliance obligations such as the preparation of statutory accounts, company secretarial work and filing tax returns – personal, partnership and corporate – with HM Revenue & Customs;
• Providing guidance on VAT, the rules regarding registration and the ongoing preparation of VAT returns;
• Assisting with bookkeeping and cash flow preparations;
• Helping you understand how drawings, business expenses paid personally and business use of private assets impact on the accounts and tax position of the business.
• Extracting profits from the business. Typical methods include salary, dividend, or pension contribution, and we can provide a clear analysis of the most tax efficient way of extracting profits tailored to your own unique circumstances;
• Incentive packages for key management and employees. Whether you want key personnel to participate in the longer term growth of the business by way of share options or grants, or you are putting together more basic remuneration packages, we can advise on the tax implications both for the employees and the business;
• Expansion into new premises. We can guide you on the tax differences between renting and buying, and we have particular expertise in ensuring you obtain maximum tax relief by way of capital allowances if you buy or build a new property;
• Expanding internationally. We can advise on the accounting issues relating to UK businesses trading overseas and the UK tax and VAT issues of cross border services and transactions;
• Restructuring your business, including areas such as share buy-backs, and the resultant tax and accounting implications;
• Reviewing potential investments. We are often asked by clients with existing businesses to assist them in valuing and carrying out due diligence on third party businesses that they are considering acquiring. We also advise on the tax, VAT, group accounting and audit implications of acquiring a new business;
• Attending business board meetings to assist the management and provide input specifically from an accounting, taxation or audit perspective.

Our client base includes both UK and international entrepreneurs, and we have specific expertise helping non-UK domiciled individuals set up and run their businesses in the UK.

We have a solid grounding in accounting, audit and all areas of UK taxation, and these give us an excellent perspective to help you with your business.

A business may have gone from strength to strength and a client may be on the verge of selling out and seeking to maximise returns, or the business may have struggled and the client is looking to minimise their losses.

In any scenario you need to be aware of the tax implications to ensure that you protect both you and your business. We have significant experience in providing advice in relation to:

• Minimising capital gains tax exposure on the disposal of your business. We can provide clear advice on the availability of Business Asset Disposal Relief (formerly Entrepreneurs’ Relief), the conditions that need to be met by the business and the individual, and what additional steps you may be able to take to qualify. There are also a range of deferrals that may be available to hold over any gain until a later date;
• The inheritance tax treatment of your business, should you die or gift the business, including the availability of Business Property Relief and methods of potentially sheltering any inheritance tax liability, including the use of trusts; Claiming maximum tax loss relief, both for the business and for you personally in respect of your investment, on losses incurred as a result of the business failing;
• Advising on the records which need to be kept.

Whatever stage your business is at, we have the expertise to help you. We can provide you with constructive and proactive advice that will enable you to spend more time focusing on the business itself.