How an accountant will benefit your business

February 11, 2022

Unsure about whether your business is ready to hire an accountant? Read on to understand the benefits of hiring a professional when it comes to your business filings.

Accountancy fees are an allowable expense

This means your business can claim the cost of the fees as an expense and offset the amount of corporation tax you pay. All accounting expenses relating to the company will be classed as allowable expenses. When it comes to submitting your annual accounts, these expenses are deducted from your profits. The corporation tax is based on the company’s profits, so your tax bill will be reduced.

More time to focus on growing your business

Tasks like bookkeeping are time-consuming and repetitive. An accountant can look after this mundane job and allow you to spend your valuable time working on the business.

Compiling filings for HMRC takes a lot of work. From evaluating different expenses to processing depreciation, there’s lots of complex calculations involved that can leave business owners scratching their heads. An accountant speaks the same language as HMRC, so will ensure filings are completed accurately and thoroughly.

Look at the amount of time you’re currently spending on keeping your accounts and think, ‘can I afford not to get an accountant?’

Staying compliant with HMRC

A compliance-based accountant will ensure you are sticking to the complex rules set out by HMRC.

These rules and laws are stringent and HMRC takes a very dim view of anyone not sticking to them. If your company is investigated and errors are found, the business could be liable to pay penalties and in the worst cases, struck off. You can avoid this stress by getting a professional to complete the filings with you. You’ll always receive a draft copy before anything is submitted to HMRC, so you can check over the details and make sure you’re satisfied before the documents get filed.

Software training and support

With Making Tax Digital now compulsory for VAT and further tax digitisation coming in the future, you’ll benefit from an accountant who is knowledgeable with compatible software and how to use it.

Cloud accounting software is a brilliant tool to understand the health of your business. Live bank feeds, invoice creation and many reporting options, allow you to keep your finger on the pulse of the business. This will enable you to understand whether you can afford that new member of staff or need to cut back on expenses.

Advise on expenses

It can be hard to navigate the various and varied rules of allowable business expenses. This means you could be missing out on genuine allowable expense which reduce your corporation tax bill. A good accountant will ensure your expenses are allocated correctly and allow you to confidently invest where needed. You can reach out to your accountant before splurging on a company car, to fully understand the tax implications and make an informed decision how the expense will affect your business.

Keeping you up to date

Reading up on new HMRC legislation is not many people’s idea of fun. However, it’s your accountants’ job to stay up to date with new rules, changes and budget releases. The relevant knowledge will get shared with you and you’ll be able to stay compliant with HMRC and potentially take advantage of Government support, schemes and incentives.

When it comes to your HMRC submissions, your accountant will be responsible for reaching out to you when a filing is imminent. You don’t even need to bother adding these dates to your calendar!

The above is a short example of how an accountant can add value to your business.

If you’re considering hiring an accountant, it probably means you should already have one!

If you would like to learn more about what we offer or have any questions, please reach out to the CloudAccountant.co.uk team today here or call: 0808 281 0303.