Small Business Accounting
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Retail Stock and Cash Flow: How Much Money Is Sitting on Your Shelves?
A shop can look well stocked while cash is tight. Every product bought but not yet sold represents money that cannot be used for rent, wages or the next supplier bill. Stock decisions therefore deserve the same…
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How to Price a Job Properly: Labour, Materials, Overheads and Profit
A full diary does not guarantee that every job is worthwhile. For tradespeople and service businesses, the price must cover the direct cost of doing the work, a fair share of running costs and a return for the risk and…
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Sole Trader or Limited Company? Questions to Ask as Your Business Grows
Choosing a business structure affects more than the tax return you file. It changes how you take money from the business, the records you keep and the responsibilities you accept. There is no single turnover figure at…
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What to Do If You Cannot Pay Your Tax Bill on Time
A tax bill you cannot pay in full is stressful, but avoiding it can make the position harder to manage. The first useful step is to establish exactly what is due, when it is due and what you can realistically pay. That…
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Dormant Companies: What Must You Still File?
A company that has stopped trading does not simply disappear from the Companies House register. It may be dormant, but some duties continue. The word “dormant” also has different meanings for Companies House and HMRC,…
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Director’s Loan Accounts: What Company Owners Need to Record
When a director pays a company bill personally or takes company money for a personal cost, the transaction needs a clear record. It does not automatically become salary, a dividend or a business expense. A director’s…
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Working From Home: Which Business Costs Can You Claim?
If you run a business from home, part of your household spending may relate to work. The question is how to identify that business element and support the claim. The answer differs for a sole trader and a director of a…
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CIS for Contractors and Subcontractors: A Practical Guide for Tradespeople
A construction business can be a contractor, a subcontractor or both. That distinction matters under the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS), which sets rules for paying subcontractors and recording deductions. If you…
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Small Business Bookkeeping: Take Back Your Evenings
Small business bookkeeping can soon take over your evenings. After a full day serving customers, you still have receipts to sort, invoices to check and payments to record. You promise yourself you’ll catch up at the weekend. However, another busy week often brings another pile of paperwork. If that sounds familiar, it may be time…
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Accounts for Growing Businesses: Is Yours Keeping Up?
Accounts for growing businesses need to keep pace with change. More customers bring more invoices, while new staff, suppliers and equipment add costs. At first, your existing system may cope. However, the spreadsheet that worked when you started can become harder to maintain as activity increases. If you’re busier but less certain about your figures,…