Hello all,
I am taking my final ACCA exams in June and will hopefully be qualified in August when the results are released. Since I started my accounting career I have constantly been considering starting my own practice providing Tax and PAYE services to sole traders and small companies, the issue being, I have no experience in this field. My roles to date have been in the corporate/private sector.
My brother who acts as a sole trader has asked if I am able to help him out with his PAYE/tax returns as his accountant is unreliable and he feels he is paying too much. I would love to be able to help him out and also learn how to perform, what I think are basic submissions?, to close friends and family who have been approaching me constantly over the past 3 years to help them out.
I would like to know what information I would need from a client and how I go about submitting these types of forms. Do I need to have a company set-up? Do I have to wait until I am qualified? is it bad practice to perform these tasks for friends and relatives?
I have approached a few local accountants to work around my current role (Saturday's & evenings) ex-gratia to 'learn the ropes' and have also looked online but there is no definitive guide that I can see.
Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
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Replies (3)
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Firstly check with the ACCA
Even though you will be qualified on paper you cannot do anything without a practising certificate, other than I believe, basic bookkeeping
Sorry but
if you have to ask questions such as these then afraid you are not ready to go into practice yourself. There is only one way to learn the things you ask and that is through experience and what may now appear "simple" to you is likely through the lack of that vital commodity. The type of clients you refer would want a one stop shop advising all aspects of tax and accountancy services and you would find it very dificult to sustain a business without this holistic competance. Best advice would be to go and work for an accountancy practice until you feel you know enough to go it alone.
Sorry, but Pembo is right.
Exams are only part of what you need to know.
Get experience then apply for a practising certificate.
There is a reason why these are not given to the newly qualified.