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Umbrella Company Pension Schemes – What You Need to Know

Pension schemes help employees put money aside for retirement directly from their wage. The problem for self-employed professionals is that they need to manage this themselves,either by setting up a pension scheme or saving money from their income.

Fortunately,umbrella companies class contractors as employees,giving them all the benefits of employment. That includes a pension scheme,which now requires contribution from the umbrella company too. Let’s take a closer look at the statutory pension schemes available through umbrella companies.

Auto-enrolment pensions

In 2012,the UK Government decided that workers weren’t saving enough for their retirement. People were relying too much on the State Pension,which had not received adequate funding to match the continuing rise in life expectancy and an ageing population.

To combat this,they introduced automatic enrolment. The new system,rolled out from 2012 to 2018,requires employers to automatically enrol eligible employees onto a workplace pension scheme. Employers are also responsible for deducting contributions from their pre-tax income and making a minimum statutory contribution to the employee’s savings.

In October 2012,this minimum contribution was set to 1 percent for employees,which was matched by employers,rising in 2018:

• October 2012 to 5th April 2018: employers 1%,employees 1%
• 6th April 2018 to 5th April 2019: employers 2%,employees 3%
• 6th April 2019 onwards: employers 3%,employees 5%

However for anyone that doesn’t want to contribute to a pension once you’re enrolled you can still opt out.

Umbrella company pension scheme

Working through an umbrella company,contractors are classed as an employee. That means,yes,you are automatically enrolled onto the umbrella company’s pension scheme as long as you meet the following criteria:

• Your work is primarily UK-based
• You earn more than £10,000 per year
• You’re between 22 and the state pension age.

Until 5th April 2019,3% of your pre-tax salary will go directly into a pension fund,with the umbrella company contributing a further 2%. From 6th April 2019,5% of your pre-tax salary will go into the same pension fund,with your umbrella company contributing a further 3%.

The benefits of an umbrella company pension

Some contractors may worry that this will eat away at their wages. Don’t. Pension contributions are made before your wages are taxed. That means anything that goes from your wage into your pension fund is tax-free rather than being taxed at 20% or even 40%. So,instead of receiving 60% of your income,you receive 100% via a pension fund.

Let’s say you earn over £46,351 per year,which puts you in the higher rate band of income tax. Anything you earn beyond that £46,351 per year (roughly £3,863 per month) is taxed at a rate of 40%. You get just £60 for every £100 of income. Why not put the full £100 straight into the pension fund instead?

That’s why many people,especially those in the higher rate band of income tax,choose to put more than the minimum into their pension fund. And this is entirely possible. Contractors can contribute up to £40,000 to their pension scheme per year,comprising tax-free income and employer contributions. Currently,there is a lifetime allowance of £1,030,000 which can be contributed before incurring any tax.

Using your funds

With the increased earnings of contracting,it’s common for contractors to retire early. Alternatively,you might simply want to get some of the money out for a holiday,new car or home improvement. The good news is: you don’t have to wait until the state pension age to access the pension funds you’ve built up through your umbrella company pension.

Once you’re 55 or over,you can access up to 25% of your pension pot as a tax-free lump sum. Anything beyond the 25% will be taxed as an addition to the rest of your income that tax year – either 20% over £11,850,40% over £46,351 or £45% over £150,000,as things currently stand. That’s why most people choose to take their pension as regular income once they have retired,to minimise the amount of tax paid.

What about limited companies?

Contractors who operate as a limited company can still benefit from the tax relief of a pension scheme. However,as with most things relating to limited companies,this requires a lot more effort on their part. Firstly,they have to get the right balance between salary and dividend payments to increase the limit on their pension contributions.

Because employer contributions,such as pensions,count as a business expense,they are subject to tax relief. So,when you contribute to your pension scheme,as a director,the company could save money in corporation tax.

However,this has added complications because it needs to be fully compliant as an allowable expense. Any other employees,for example,should be given comparable packages to prove to HMRC that it is a genuine business expense.

On top of all that,using a limited company pension scheme means setting up and paying into the pension fund yourself. Along with all the other administrative work for limited company owners,it’s definitely worth seeking advice and assistant from a trusted accountant.

Get the right assistance

Whether you’re looking to compare umbrella companies or find the right accountant,you can make the right choice with -. Our online comparison tool lets you assess multiple companies in a matter of minutes. It couldn’t be easier to take the hassle out of contracting. Contact us today for more information.

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Contractor Expenses Explained When you are working as a contractor,there are certain expenses you’ll incur,for example travel,gear or even entertaining customers. Unlike working for an employer,you won’t need someone there to cover the invoice for you,which means you are going to have to deal with two choices as to the way to treat those expenses moving forward. As a contractor you can eitheroffset a few of the expenses from your tax invoice,or recover the costs from your end customer. But beware,the two choices aren’t always possible. {Read on as - explains the Intricacies of contractor expenditures.|} By definition,business expenses are prices which you have incurred purely for business purposes. While a few are more prevalent,like travel costs,others are more specific and can easily be missed. When considering how to care for your expenses,it is important to comprehend the gap between claimable and offsettable business expenditures. Claimable expenses are prices you can get back from the customer. On the other hand,offsettable expenses can be offset against tax. While you used to be in a position to do both through an umbrella company,after a set of clamp downs,many contractors are at present unable to cancel any expenses while working through an umbrella. If you have a great deal of offsettable expenses,then it is well worth considering working through your own Limited Company. If your expenses will be low or could be claimed back from your end customers,then an umbrella company is a good option to pick. How can IR35 influence expenses? An important thing to note is that you can not offset expenses through eithera limited company or an umbrella in case you are operating inside IR35 (most public sector workers). Limited companies operating outside IR35 can still benefit from offsetting expenses,while contractors inside IR35 can only claim administration expenditures,some work-related subscriptions and their pension contributions. This means that for those caught by IR35,the hassle of administering a limited company for little taxable advantage is too great,with the majority opting to use a umbrella instead. If you are simply claiming back a cost from your customer then you will be reimbursed in fullfor your cost and will incur no tax upon the payment. However,offsetting expenses from tax is not quite as straightforward. In essence,your expenses are deducted from your earnings,to find your true income degree. Consequently,in the event that you earned £5,000 per month on your contract and spent a total of £1,000 on business expenditures,you would pay tax upon the £4,000 actual income you earned with £1,000 tax-free. {Having this amount of your earnings without tax essentially repays you for the money you spent on the expenses in the first place.|} This is only a general example,but and does not take into consideration the intricacies of PAYE taxation or dividend payments. It is always best to seek expert help from an accountant if you are dealing with taxation and expenses. With that in mind,this rest of this post will concentrate on offsettable expenses. Here are the various things you can maintain for as a offsettable business investment… Throughout a contract awayfrom their regular workplace,contractors can claim for travel costs. They do so at a speed of 45p per mile up to 10,000 miles in a fiscal year. {That’s the tax year,which runs from 6th April to 5th April the following year. |} After you have travelled 10,000 miles, you can only maintain 25p per mile. The mileage allowance covers fuel and vehicle running costs. However, you could also claim for parking costs and any congestion charges or toll roads. Contractors can also claim tax back 5p per mile if they are a passenger in a vehicle. However,it is important to be aware that you can not claim for parking or speeding fines. Other transportation If you are traveling by motorcycle,you can claim back tax at a speed of 24p per mile. {Travelling by bike,on the other hand,can be claimed for in a rate of 20p per mile. |} {Contractors can claim back the tax for the cost of the journey on public transport too. |} To accomplish this,you’ll need to keep your receipts or tickets with prices on. You can maintain for any mode of transportation,while it’s bus,train or airplane,but it needs to be the most appropriate,cost-effective mode of transportation for your trip. For trains and airplanes especially,tickets should be market class and reserved in advance in the best speed,where possible. Accommodation In the event you have to keep overnight for a couple of nights to operate on a contract,you can claim back the cost of the hotel as a cost. Again,this should be reserved in advance to get the best speed,where potential. {While there is no set limit,any accommodation costs claimed as a cost must be considered’reasonable’. |} So,spending tens of thousands of pounds each night when cheaper alternatives are available a similar distance awayfrom your place of work could be reversed to be an unreasonable expense. Meals It might surprise you to know that meals could be claimed as expenditures. When you are working out in a remote site or remaining overnight for function,you can claim back the cost of breakfast oran evening meal in which it is’reasonable’. Be sure that you keep any receipts,as you will have to claim meal prices separately. You can not claim backthe cost of food for the whole day. Reasonable meal prices can also be claimed back when entertainingclients. Therefore,you can return the VAT if you choose potential customers for lunch. Clothing Should you wear your normal clothes to operate,you can not maintain anything back as a cost. This includes matters like suits,which you might not consider’normal garments’ since you do not wear them in your home. The differentiation comes with clothing that are essential to the job you are carrying out. Including branded pajamas with a company logo on or protective garments like hard hats or high visibility items. Office prices Leasing and running a workplace is just one of the largest expenses for some contractors. Luckily,your lease,business rates,energy bills and insurance can be claimed as expenses. Other office equipment could be claimed too,so long as it is something which is going to be used for less than two years. Therefore,while permanent furniture or computers Can’t Be claimed,you can claim expenses to the following: Telephone bills Internet invoices Postage costs Stationery and printer ink Software used for over two years or software that is renewed regularly over periods shorter than two years Training In some cases,you might want to complete training to improve the caliber of work on a particular contract. To maintain this back as a cost,it must be relevant to this contract you are working on. { Quick and easy umbrella comparison |} Together with -,you can compare umbrella firms with no hassle at all. Just create an account and you’ll have the ability to weigh upthe very best umbrella provider for you and get the amount of service you deserve. Contact now to find out more.