Starting a business

[Rush]

Help please,
I need to set up a business importing goods from international sellers.
I have just bought £200 worth of goods from China but my contact wants to know my Identity number and Company Tax id ??

Do i have to register a company and what about tax and Vat ??

I want it to all be above board but also not to break the bank..

Is this place a good start to register a LTD company ??

http://www.company-wizard.co.uk/eiw/howdoesitwork.aspx

Any help really appreciated
Thanks Rush

ps the goods are electrical and computer related not anything dirty (lol)

My contact is in Shenzhun (China) +8 hrs GMT so cannot get in touch yet

 

[Abarbarian]

Best thing you can do is find a local small accountant and get advice of him/her . Could save you a lot of bother later on .
When I was in bussiness I had an accountant and we worked out a deal cost me £100 a year but he saved me more than that . Tried several accountants before I chose as their prices ranged from expensive to totally ridiculous .
Good luck with the venture .

 

[Becky]

I would second that - it is really useful to have professional advice on hand when you need it.

Regarding setting up a company - it is not necessary to be incorporated unless you really want to. You can trade as an individual (ie a sole trader) - in fact, this is how most people start out, and then incorporate their business if/when it is clear it is steady. As a sole trader you can still register for VAT, but again it is not necessary to do so.

If you do decide to incorporate your business (ie turn it into a company) you will need to file some forms at Companies House. I think it costs around £20.

Regarding the tax side of things, I would recommend looking at the HM Revenue & Customs website for general advice on personal tax, corporation tax (tax paid by companies) and VAT. You don't have to register for VAT unless you are making taxable supplies of over £61,000. VAT can be quite fiddly and tedious (the legislation is quite complicated and in terms of accounting it is quite admin intensive) so if you can get away with not registering then I would do that (unless you stand to make money by registering).

If you want to see the tax benefits of incorporating your business, I would look here for a rough guide. The rates changed at the last budget, meaning that it is not as tax efficient to incorporate a small business as it used to be. However, there are other advantages such as the company being a separate legal entity (useful if someone sues you!).

Hope this is useful!

Becky

 

[Rush]

Thanks folks.
When my contact asked for identity number and Company tax id i got worried...
The link i posted is a companies house ( and i have emailed the Taxman for advice) and i did look at the Vat side of things..was £58k ...and then the Tax side...

As i am starting out i thought i paid ..they delivered..

Thanks anyway ..terrific advice..need to add somemore to my A4 Hardback
Starting out in Business...

Forgot Bex is a financial whizz ..

so much to learn here ..see you all next christmas...

 

[floppybootstomp]

Good luck Rush.

I currently trade as a Sole Trader yet am VAT registered.

Although my turnover - in business standards - is small, as most of my customers are schools and colleges they insist the companies they deal with be VAT registered.

As Bex pointed out, it's not a legal obligation to have a company number to trade.

You will find, however, that quite a few people you deal with will ask for your company number.

 

[Abarbarian]

Get your self 52 large manila envelopes and put all one weeks stuff in an envelope recipits , invoices ,etc etc . Makes finding and final accounting so much easier .

 

[cirianz]

John is a sole trader & generally finds that has a lot more flexibility than being a Limited Liability Company which has some annoying little disadvantages which are not so obvious on a quick inspection, but being Ltd does have the major advantage in that, if you do go under (& this can depend not just on your skills, & the market, but also on the efficiency/reliability/solvency of your suppliers as well) they can only take what belongs to the business itself (hence the limited liability) So if you or a spouse own your own home or anything of value it might be worth giving the option a serious checking out. When your solvency is dependant on other people (as it very much is in a trading business) it is a very good idea to cover your posterior!
Unfortunately people will also often take your company more seriously if you have Ltd after your name.

And, what Abarbarian said about shopping around for a GOOD accountant is very important. In John's first year he went with a highly reccomended accountant in a big name firm. She recovered $500 in tax for him. Then charged him $450 for the privilege. The accountant he's had for the last two years operates out of a small office, does not charge by the minute if you talk to her on the phone. Is friendly & VERY efficient. Last year she recovered $1800 for him & billed him $130 (all in NZD sorry).
Random trivia. She has since become so popular that she is flooded & has had to bring her daughter into the business, expand her premises & now charges a higher hourly rate to her customers. except for those few customers (such as John) who signed up with & then stayed with her (& recommended her to everyone they know) back when she was an unknown little old lady setting up in a grotty little room out south Dunedin

In the meantime, goodluck, & don't forget, check out your accountancy entitlements. The book "what your accountant doesn't tell you" By Fiona Clayton-Law is easy reading & very enlightening. It may be based on NZ's tax system, but there is bound to be things that cross over, & if there is a similar UK version even better. Even Chris (John's accountant) has found things in there she didn't know, & there are many fiddly little expenses that you are entitled to that most accountants don't even bother with because of the paperwork (most nowadays will just run your figures through a comp program & don't even bother to do it by hand) but which can make a BIG difference to your return. As you saw in John's differing returns above. His income-outgoings were similar for both years. So, read up & shop around & as I said good Luck & have fun

 

[Rush]

OK, started with 2GB Elite Pro sd Cards, missing the Kingston brand label but ???
They arrived safe and i have tested each one...

What price do you think i should sell for , given all available internet options...

I dont want to rip people off if i sell on ebay through postage..but want to make a relative profit..

Any info on product or price would be appreciated..

My next delivery is 2GB Micro SD Cards and they are sold before they arrive ..if they ever do

So How much with next day delivery , tested working and from a reputable dealer like myself ?