What is an Umbrella Solution?
An umbrella company engages employees by way of a contract of employment. This is an overarching contract of employment which provides continuous employment to an employee, whether they are working on an assignment or not. Dependant on the length and value of your assignment, operating through an umbrella company is the hassle-free way of working. An Umbrella solution is the preferred option if you are starting out as a contractor, or simply looking to provide your services over a short-term period. Legislation and expectations are continually evolving for contractors.
At ICS Accounting, we are one step ahead and adopt a proactive approach to our umbrella solution, ensuring that you are always receiving the best possible care and control of your money.
ICS Accounting is fully compliant with Agency Worker Regulations (AWR), which ensures that the temporary umbrella employee is given the same rights as a permanent employee after 12 weeks on assignment. Furthermore, IR35 is a crucial piece of legislation for all practices here at ICS Accounting. As part of the Umbrella company will mean that if your assignment is ‘inside IR35’, your earnings are considered the same as those under full-time employment.
This results in the same deductions of tax and NI and means that an umbrella company would likely be the best solution for your work. We recommend getting in touch with a member of our New Business Team who can advise on the most beneficial solution for you. The ICS Accounting Umbrella solution aim is to remove the burden of administration by providing useful services at every stage of your life as an employee. We offer comprehensive Professional Indemnity, Public and Employers Liability Insurance for complete peace of mind. We will also provide financial advice and references for mortgages if required.
How do Umbrella solutions operate?
As a contractor, you are likely to be a professional that provides their work and skills to other companies for an agreed wage. However, you are not an employee of that wider firm of business. You will instead be an employee of ICS Accounting Umbrella company. Our umbrella company becomes the employer to workers, where the principle function is to provide payment for the worker whilst dealing with tax and national insurance as a standard employer would.
Often, this type of work will be secured through a client approaching a recruitment agency, who will then recruit a worker to complete an assignment. In this instance, there is the agency, a client, and you as a contractor who requires the help of an umbrella company for employment.
The umbrella company will sign a contract with the agency, and you too will sign a contract with the umbrella company. It is imperative that timesheets are completed so that exact hours and pay can be correctly calculated, that will then be required to submit to the umbrella company. The umbrella company will then work on your behalf by raising an invoice to the agency for your working time, as well as any expenses that the client has agreed to reimburse.
The agency will then invoice the client based on your time spent on the job etc. and the client will then pay the agency who will, in turn, pay the umbrella company. The date of payment is determined by the agency’s pay schedule, which will then be paid to you via PAYE by the umbrella company after this has been processed, deducting necessary tax and NI contributions. Your payslip will detail your received income, minus the tax, NI contributions and umbrella margins.
How can you benefit from an Umbrella Solution?
Contracting via an umbrella solution is generally, but not exclusively relevant to assignments that are shorter than six months and earn less than £15 per hour. It is also often applicable to first-time contractors and those unsure as to whether they will contract in the longer-term. This type of employment may be more suited to your personal circumstances and preferred by you, but it may also be more applicable to the sector in which you work.
If you are looking to contract for the long-term, you may want to explore our limited company accountancy service. Dependant on your daily rate/assignment length, a limited company could be the most cost-effective method of operating. For more on our limited company accountancy service check out our comprehensive ‘Guide To Limited Companies’ to learn more about what a Limited Company entails.
The Benefits
The ICS Accounting Umbrella solution provides workers with all the benefits of being an employee by employing them whilst working on various assignments. You may continue to use the ICS Accounting Umbrella when you change assignments or restart after a break from working, simply keep us up to date with your circumstances. Our market-leading solution enables you to supply your services to the agency/client without the need to run your own company. ICS Accounting Umbrella is fully compliant with all government regulations and legislation.
ICS Accounting Umbrella includes a huge range of benefits including a dedicated Account Manager, full employment rights, Comprehensive Professional Indemnity, Public and Employers Liability Insurance, Daily payroll and invoicing runs, Same day faster payments with SMS alerts, Full IR35, MSC and AWR compliance Management of expenses, References provided for mortgages, tenancy agreements and other requirements and Workplace pension and holiday pay 24:7 access to an online portal with employee benefits including shopping discounts, online GP, free legal advice and discounted gym membership.
Require More Information?
If you have any questions or would like to get started with your ICS Accounting Umbrella Solution contact us today on 0800 195 3750 or email info@icsuk.com today.
