Financial Services

Planning your personal finances as a contractor

Freelancing is great and can bring you more flexibility and a higher income than permanent employment. But don’t forget that you won’t automatically get the financial benefits that you might otherwise have got, like a pension, health insurance or life insurance. It can also be a bit more complicated to plan your savings and investments and to get a good mortgage deal.

Worry not though – all of this is fixable. As a Taxevo client, you get financial advice free as part of the service. We help you to find the right partners to build a financial buffer around yourself and your business so you can maximise your earning potential AND protect yourself from whatever happens.

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Free specialist advice for Taxevo clients

To help support our clients, we work closely with a number trusted Financial Advisers who specialise in helping contractors, and who have sourced and created great packages of cover and advice specifically for contractors and freelancers. We can put you in touch to discuss how to replicate the benefits you had as an employee, to discuss a specific need, or for a free financial health-check to ensure that you’re making the most of your Limited Company and the investment opportunities that it can bring.

Financial services for contractors

The types of financial advice and services that tend to be most important to contractors fall into 3 main categories:

Protection

As a self-employed freelancer, you don’t get the luxury of sick pay, notice periods or redundancy pay. It’s natural to be worried about financial security should you become ill or out of work, so it’s worth thinking about insurance cover for your own peace of mind:

Critical illness cover

If you get a serious illness, a critical illness policy will pay out a tax-free, one-off payment that you can use to support yourself and your family whilst you’re unable to work.

Life insurance

If you were to be in a critical accident or become ill and die, your loved ones or chosen beneficiaries would receive a pay-out. If you work through a Limited Company, this cover can be provided tax efficiently through your business, with Relevant Life Insurance.

“Save 37% by insuring through your Limited Company!”*

Pay a £30 premium personally and it will actually cost you £39.75 as it’s paid post-tax. Make a payment to a relevant life insurance policy from your company, and the actual cost of your £30 premium would only be £24.30, saving you over £15 a month!

Income protection insurance

This pays out if you’re unable to work because of injury or illness, usually until retirement, death or your return to work.

Wealth Management

If you earn money outside of conventional payroll, wealth management can be a more complicated but potentially more tax efficient task. As a freelancer you may also need more flexibility in your investment options, so you can access savings during quiet work periods. You could discuss the following options as part of your long term plan:

Pensions

As a freelancer, there are great tax-saving opportunities if you save for your retirement using a pension, particularly if you do so through your limited company. You may want to consider making lump sum contributions or need help in transferring or switching pensions.

“Save 54% with a self-employed pension!”*

Say your company earns £100. You’ll pay 19% corporation tax. Take the remaining £81 out of the company as a dividend and you pay an additional 32.5% dividend tax, leaving just £54 of your original £100 to invest in a pension.

ISAs

Individual Savings Accounts come in a number of forms and can be a tax efficient long term part of a wealth management plan.

Investments

Depending on your personal circumstances, goals and attitude to risk, there are a number of investment options available, from cost-effective saving schemes to advanced wealth strategies. Good advice can help you make the best plan for your future.

Mortgages

For some freelancers, mortgages can pose a difficulty as some lenders ask for proof of income that’s hard to provide if you’re taking a low salary and topping up with dividends (which is often the most tax efficient way of paying yourself). A financial adviser who gets how contractors operate will be able to source the right mortgage for you with a provider who understands your unique circumstances.

Already a Taxevo client? Let your client director know that you would like to talk to our financial adviser and we’ll put you in touch.

Not a client yet? What are you waiting for? Check out our packages – they all include free financial advice.