booner started this topic @ 17:27 on 24/10/2004
I work 39 hour week and i am very interested in starting up my own little buisness buying and selling electronic toy/games. I plan to sell these on Ebay / Market Stalls /Car Boots Ect what i am thinking is buying from wholesalers selling for profit that is my plan!. What i really need to know is the legal stuff :-
1.Do i need to be VAT registerd i wont be making much to start.
2. Who do i need to see about setting up for tax.
3. Is there a buisness starter pack to make all this easy?
Please Help a newbie out !!
RE: Help with a buisness setup please!
Anglo-Sino | 24/10/2004 09:08 PM
May be worth reading some of the info on the site and I am sure most will agree Business Link is worth visiting. James Smith who regularly responds on this forum does consultancy for startups and would also be worth contacting contact@uktaxshop.co.uk
In short you do not have to be VAT registered. Speak to the Inland Revenue about tax implications they are very approachable and will be happy to arrange one to one meetings.
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Your Gateway to Asia - Global procurement services.
www.anglosino.co.uk
RE: RE: Help with a buisness setup please!
James Smith | 25/10/2004 09:16 AM
Thanks Paul for the recommendation.
As above a good read through this site in particular the "dealing with tax" section will cover most of your enquires here. Also try the business link website.
In this instance of being an ebay trader with a full time employment i would suggest starting as a sole trader would be appropriate. This is the simplest form of being in businesses.
All you have to do is ring the Inland Revenue on 08459 15 45 15 and they will go over the registration with you on the 'phone.
They will actually send you out a pack about starting a new businesses, although I think it is mainly used as a doorstop rather than being of much practical use!
It would also be helpful (but not essential) to open a business bank account to keep all your transactions separate. The Abbey does a “free banking forever” account which is great for micro businesses as there are no fees beyond the standard 18 month free period for limited numbers of transactions.
Regards,
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James Smith
Chartered Accountant
www.jamesesmith.co.uk
01235 536 773
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Your indispensable guide to Small Business Bookkeeping, Self-Assessment & VAT
RE: Help with a buisness setup please!
Mattd | 25/10/2004 04:25 PM
Another resource you could use is your local enterprise centre or council, I found them very helpful for a few free courses about book keeping and business plans. (We get alot of european funding in my neck of the woods.)
Good Luck
MattD
RE: Help with a buisness setup please!
Richy | 01/11/2004 11:29 AM
I am in the same situation.
I phoned up the Inland Revenue and they registered me as Self Employed (in addition to being PAYE for my day job). I will then need to just do a self assesment to work out what tax i need to pay in April.
If you don't register within a 3 months of setting up then they can fine you £100, although they took the date that I started actually getting paid as my start date 
You will also have to make NI contributions. This will be either about £2 a week or 8% of your second salary, depending on how much you earn from it.
The Inland Revenue were pretty helpful actually. There is a new Self Employment helpline to use. They also said they will send me information on free courses that will help me with completing Self Assesment.
RE: Help with a buisness setup please!
Sweet Baby | 01/11/2004 11:43 PM
Hi Booner,
If you are under the threshold you don't have to register for VAT. I think its about £52,000 p/a. I'm sure someone will correct me. You can wait until you are near that limit until you register. There are situations where it might be to your advantage to register anyway. Again someone who knows more will advise you better.
As self employed/ soletrader you have to pay Class2 NI contributions its about £8.20 a month and you can set up a direct debit.
You may have to take public liability insurance, for some markets its a requirement. If you join the Market Traders Association they include cover in the membership, plus it might help you to look more professional. (They have a website sorry don't have it to hand). The membership is cheaper than insurance alone.
It might also help to make friends with the Trading Standards Agency who will keep you right on everything from how to display prices to safety requirements. Lots of leaflets available.
I did a free training course at the Business Gateway (different name in Scotland) which covered all sorts e.g. insurance, marketing, grants, tax, business bank accounts, profit/ loss and most important business plans.
Thats when I discovered how much I had to charge and after investigating my local Sunday market I found three traders selling for half as much as I would have to charge. I had to find other outlets, but thats another story.
Good luck and think laterally if you come up against a brick wall.
Sweet Baby.
