Aussies and Kiwis Contracting in London Affected
From April 2020, new IR35 tax rules will apply to contractors providing services to private-sector employers in the UK.
Contractors caught by upcoming changes to the Intermediaries Legislation (known as IR35) rules will pay significantly more tax and National Insurance (NIC).
This will impact most Aussies and Kiwis contracting in London.
IR35
IR35 was introduced in April 2000.
Its purpose was to combat the rapid growth in the number of professionals providing contract services to clients via their own limited companies to minimise their tax and NIC.
Under IR35, contractors working for a client in a similar way to that of an employee are treated as an employee rather than a “self-employed” contractor. As a result, contractors are liable to standard rates of employment tax and paying significantly more tax and NIC.
These IR35 rules proved hard to enforce due to the difficulty in determining if they applied on a case-by-case basis.
To address this problem, changes have been made to IR35. The onus has been shifted to the end-client to determine whether a contractor should be subject to standard rates of employment tax.
These rules were introduced to the public sector in April 2017, and are being rolled out in the private sector in April 2020.
Market Reaction
Faced with unknown potential tax liabilities for making incorrect employment status determinations, many public sector clients simply placed blanket bans on allowing contractors to provide contract services via their own limited company.
It was widely expected that private sector clients will react in the same way as the public sector and apply blanket bans. Judging by private sector reaction so far, this appears to be the most likely outcome.
- Barclays & GSK impose blanket off-payment ban, contractors claim
- RBS joins Lloyds & Barclays in only using PAYE Contractors
What Will Be The Impact?
How will changes impact the contract market? What are the options for contractors? What does this mean for Aussies and Kiwis contracting in London?
To find out more, join our webinar on 3 December 2019.
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