Creator tax
Earning from content? When UK creators need to register as self-employed
Check the £1,000 gross trading income test, combine creator and freelance earnings, and find the right Self Assessment registration deadline.
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Guides, tools and downloads for your business.
Guides
Bookkeeping
Ecommerce bookkeeping: how to reconcile sales, fees and payouts
Reconcile ecommerce sales with refunds, fees and bank payouts. A practical records checklist and worked example for UK online businesses.
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Bookkeeping
Café and restaurant bookkeeping: reconciling daily sales and payouts
Match café and restaurant takings to cash, card and delivery payouts, with a worked example and practical records checks for UK businesses.
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Company records
Company year-end records: what to prepare for your accountant
Prepare your limited company’s year-end records for an accountant, including reconciliations, sales, VAT, payroll, assets, stock and director balances.
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Bookkeeping
Bank feeds and bank reconciliation: why the balance still needs checking
Learn how a bank feed, bank statement and bookkeeping ledger differ. Follow a simple reconciliation example and check for missing or duplicate lines and internal transfers.
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Bookkeeping
Missing purchase invoices: what to do before your bookkeeping review
Recover missing purchase invoices, avoid recording costs twice and prepare unresolved items for review, with separate checks for VAT evidence.
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Accounting software
Desktop accounting software for UK small businesses: six options compared
Compare six desktop accounting options for UK small businesses, including platforms, licence approaches and VAT filing points to check.
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Payroll & PAYE
Employment Allowance: check whether your business can save on employer NI
See how Employment Allowance can reduce eligible employer National Insurance, who can claim and how to apply through payroll.
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Pensions
Pension salary sacrifice: the same pension, less taken from your pocket?
Compare the take-home cost of the same pension contribution under net pay and salary sacrifice, and check the practical conditions.
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Payroll & PAYE
Paying maternity pay? How small employers recover it and cover the cash gap
Understand how employers recover Statutory Maternity Pay through payroll, when Small Employers’ Relief may apply and how advance funding works.
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Self Assessment
Self Assessment records checklist for sole traders
Gather and reconcile the records that support a sole trader’s 2025–26 Self Assessment return before the filing deadlines.
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Company directors
Your first months after forming a limited company
A practical checklist for directors of UK private companies: organise the company’s records, check its tax position and keep the first filing dates in view.
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Company directors
Software for filing your own limited-company accounts and Corporation Tax return
Compare ten software options for preparing and filing a limited company’s annual accounts and Corporation Tax return. The options differ in price, bookkeeping features, accounts formats and how much of each filing they submit.
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Company directors
How to register a UK limited company yourself
Registering a company online costs £100 at Companies House. For a straightforward business with individual owners and ordinary shares, you can prepare the details and submit the application yourself.
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Company directors
How to register a UK limited company as a non-UK resident
You can be a director of a UK company while living overseas. You will need a suitable UK registered office, verified identities and a way to receive official correspondence reliably. Companies House confirms that directors do not have to live in the UK.
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VAT
How to register for VAT: a step-by-step guide
VAT registration starts with checking your turnover and choosing the correct registration date. After applying, you also need to set up online access, update your invoices and connect your accounting software to HMRC.
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Company directors
How to file your confirmation statement yourself
A confirmation statement tells Companies House that the information it holds about your company is correct. You must file one at least once a year, even if nothing has changed or your company is dormant. Your annual accounts and Company Tax Return are separate filings.
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Company directors
How to file dormant company accounts yourself, and deal with Corporation Tax
If you have a limited company that is not being used, you still need to keep its filings up to date. This guide takes you through checking whether it is dormant, filing its accounts at Companies House, and dealing with HMRC.
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VAT
VAT schemes for small businesses
The Flat Rate, Cash Accounting and Annual Accounting schemes use different VAT calculations and payment schedules. Compare the effect on your records and cash flow before switching.
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Annual accounts
Micro-entity or small company accounts: which regime applies?
The thresholds for micro-entity and small-company accounts depend on when the accounting period begins. Compare the period’s figures against all three limits; turnover alone does not decide the regime.
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Business tax
Capital allowances: AIA, full expensing and first-year allowances
Use this guide to compare the main allowances for business equipment. Eligibility depends on the asset, who buys it, how it is used and when the expenditure is incurred.
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Business tax
R&D tax relief after the 2024 reforms
This guide covers which R&D scheme may apply, how HMRC defines qualifying work and the project and cost records to gather before a claim.
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Employment
Company cars: salary, VAT, capital allowances and benefit-in-kind tax
A company car can affect the employee’s tax, company tax, VAT recovery and payroll reporting. Check each area before arranging a purchase or lease.
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VAT
VAT penalties: how the points system works
This guide explains the separate VAT penalties for late returns and late payments, including how submission points build up and when a £200 penalty applies.
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Payroll & PAYE
Payroll year end: the checks employers should make
Use this checklist to reconcile payroll, make final submissions, issue employee documents and update your software for the new tax year. The exact tasks depend on your payroll and benefits process.
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Bookkeeping
What to prepare before handing over your bookkeeping
Records and access your accountant needs before taking over.
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Payroll & PAYE
PAYE and payroll for employers
PAYE calculations, employer duties, registration and reporting.
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Personal Tax
Income Tax for individuals
Taxable income, allowances, PAYE and Self Assessment.
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Payroll & PAYE
National Insurance explained
National Insurance for employees, employers and the self-employed.
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Corporation Tax
Corporation Tax for companies
Taxable profits, registration, returns and payment dates.
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Stamp Duty
Stamp Duty Land Tax basics
SDLT on property transactions, returns and payment dates.
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Company directors
Dividend allowance and dividend paperwork
How dividends are authorised, recorded and reported.
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Company directors
Salary versus dividends
The key tax, payroll and company law points for director pay.
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Company directors
Director’s loan accounts: borrowing, lending and tax
A step-by-step guide to company loans, repayments, section 455, benefits and write-offs.
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Capital Gains Tax
Capital Gains Tax on shares
How gains on shares are identified, calculated and reported.
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Property tax
Capital Gains Tax on property
The main steps when a property disposal may create a taxable gain.
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Capital Gains Tax
Business Asset Disposal Relief
The conditions and records to review before claiming the relief.
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Personal Tax
Inheritance Tax basics
How estates, gifts and reliefs fit into the Inheritance Tax process.
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Business tax
Annual Investment Allowance
Records and expenditure categories to check before you claim.
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Business tax
Allowable business expenses
How to separate business costs from private and disallowable costs.
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Property tax
Rental income and property expenses
How landlords organise rental income, expenses and tax records.
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Employment
Construction Industry Scheme registration
When contractors and subcontractors may need to register for CIS.
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Employment
Construction Industry Scheme deductions
How CIS deductions, statements and records fit together.
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Employment
IR35 and off-payroll working
The responsibilities to review when a worker operates through an intermediary.
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Employment
P11D benefits and expenses
How employers report taxable benefits and expenses.
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Payroll & PAYE
Statutory Sick Pay through payroll
The key records and payroll steps for Statutory Sick Pay.
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Payroll & PAYE
Statutory Maternity Pay through payroll
The key records and payroll steps for Statutory Maternity Pay.
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Pensions
Auto-enrolment pension duties
What employers need to assess, communicate and record.
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Accounting software
Top 10 accounting software for small businesses
UK bookkeeping software compared across VAT, MTD, integrations and year-end filing.
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Accounting software
Top 5 free accounting software options
Free plans and free software compared with their practical limits.
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Payroll & PAYE
Top 5 payroll software for small businesses
UK payroll tools compared for RTI, pensions, statutory payments and accounting links.
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Corporation Tax
Practical ways to reduce a company’s Corporation Tax bill
A records-first guide to allowable costs, home-working expenses, capital allowances, losses and other reliefs for UK limited companies.
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Personal Tax
Tax planning for salaried individuals
A practical guide to pensions, Gift Aid, work expenses, allowances and the records that help employees check their Income Tax position.
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Employment
National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage: rates and pay checks
Understand which UK minimum wage rate applies, what full-time minimum pay looks like and how paid holiday fits into a payroll check.
Read the guideCalculators & tools
Invoicing
Free invoice generator
Create an invoice with optional VAT and download a PDF. No account needed.
Create an invoice
Pensions
Workplace pension contribution calculator
Estimate monthly pension contributions.
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Payroll & PAYE
National Minimum Wage calculator
Check a pay period against the worker’s age-based minimum rate.
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Payroll & PAYE
PAYE and National Insurance calculator
Estimate employee PAYE and National Insurance for a pay period.
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Deadlines
Deadline planner
Your company and Self Assessment deadlines as a PDF, Excel file or calendar.
Plan your deadlines
Changing accountants
Changing accountants checklist
Questions to discuss before changing accountants, covering scope, records, fees and responsibility.
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Our services
Swift service overview
A one-page overview of our services and how to get started.
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Business expenses
Mileage claim form
Record business journeys, mileage and claim amounts. Excel calculates each claim and the totals.
How to use the mileage form
Record each journey’s date, start and end points, business purpose and miles. Check journey eligibility and the applicable rate before claiming. Enter the agreed rate in pounds per mile: 0.40 means 40p.
For example, 8.5 miles × £0.40 gives £3.40. This shows the arithmetic only; use the rate for your circumstances.
Excel calculates each claim and the totals; keep those formulas in place. On the PDF, calculate the amounts yourself. Complete the claimant and approval fields under your business’s process and keep supporting records.