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Join the thousands of contractors who’ve had contracts reviewed from an IR35 status perspective by our expert team over the past decade
The importance of having your contracts reviewed, despite legislation changes, from an IR35 perspective cannot be underestimated. When HMRC decide to open an enquiry in to the IR35 status of a contractor, the engagement(s) in question will be requested and reviewed, along with liaising with the end client(s) to ensure that the working practices mirror the written contractual terms.
It is therefore imperative that all contractors are proactive and show that they have taken reasonable steps to understand IR35 and ascertain their status accordingly, even if it has been assessed by a different party in the supply chain. By undergoing a full IR35 contract review this demonstrates to HMRC exactly that, and is a key indicator towards proving your IR35 status.
By using the vastly experienced in-house expertise of Roots Contractor Insurance you can ensure you put yourself in the best position to avoid being caught on the wrong side of IR35. We’ve personally reviewed thousands of contracts and IR35 statuses from an IR35 perspective, and have been working in and around IR35 since the mid 2000’s at some of the biggest names in market, so you know you are in safe hands.
Being able to evidence your IR35 status and provide this to HMRC with the necessary documentation, evidencing that you have taken proactive action to ensure you are outside of IR35 will greatly aid the defence of the case, which itself can a very stressful time.
Once the contract has been reviewed an opinion is provided as to if it is a pass or fail, as well as comprehensive feedback on all IR35 clauses within the contract and if they are positive, negative or neutral in relation to aiding your outside IR35 status. If the review provides a fail opinion, we will liaise with you to advise on the recommended amendments and additions to clauses within the contract and then re-asses it once implemented.
Our website is based on the latest technology, combined with insurer flexibility. This allows you to get a firm quote in under a minute, and be able to progress and buy and receive your policy documents in just a couple of minutes more, all available on 24/7/365 self-service basis.
We’ve been involved in IR35 since the mid 2000’s at some of the markets biggest companies – personally handling hundreds of IR35 enquiries and reviewing thousands of contracts from and IR35 perspective. So when it comes to IR35, you know you are in safe hands with Roots.
We know that sometimes you need to get things turned around quicker than you’d originally thought. Thats why we offer a range of turnaround times, including next day and same day (for an additional fee) allowing you to get your review exactly when you need it.
In a nutshell we let you know our opinion on your contract and if it falls inside or outside of IR35 having considered the key status tests, providing you with a comprehensive overview of how and why we’ve come to our decision.
Comprehensive feedback on every IR35 related clause, informing you if it is positive, negative or neutral in terms of helping your IR35 status. We also provide a complete list of recommended changes in relation to all failing clauses.
We will help you remain contractually compliant, by providing you with a clean and complete list of the contractor insurances your business is required to have in place prior to and during the engagement with the end client.
The main difference is the depth the review of the contract goes into. Rather than commenting on just the main IR35 status test related clauses, the review comments on every single IR35 related clause, and informs you if each has a positive/neutral/negative impact on your status. This gives you a complete understanding on how each clause impacts your IR35 status i.e. what we recommend is changed to improve your IR35 status, and what is presently helping your IR35 status.
During an IR35 status enquiry, HMRC will check to ensure that you are in business on your own account and that you are not a disguised employee. They will review your engagements, the associated contracts and liaise with the end clients to ensure that the working practices mirrored what actually takes place and what would be allowed to take place, as well as requesting sight of various other pieces of supporting information. Once this has been provided, HMRC will review it all and form an opinion as to if you are deemed to be a disguised employee or not i.e. inside or outside of IR35.
There are times when the agency or end client is being difficult to get hold of and/or deal with. Our team of experts have the experience to negotiate on your behalf to ensure that your contract has the required new clauses added, or existing clauses amended so that your position and IR35 status strengthened. It is common for issues to arise around making changes to a contract and there being a reluctance for the agency or end client to agree to them, especially with the larger organisations who often have to go through a legal team to get the changes reviewed and agreed. We are used to dealing with this and use our vast knowledge and expertise to ensure it gets done as quickly and as hassle free as possible.
Copies of your contract and any other supporting documentation should be emailed to us at [email protected]
Contractors that think that by not having a written contract in place means they are exempt from being caught inside IR35 then they need to think again. HMRC can, and will likely conclude a ‘hypothetical contract’ based on the working arrangements they deem are in place between the contractor and the end client, which will likely be found to be inside of IR35.
All you need to do is register with The Contractor Compliance Portal, which like Roots Contractor is part of the Vestura Group, and complete a Contractor Assessment. It’s completely free at all times and registering can be done by clicking here.