Accounts services in Bracknell
MW Accounting Services, accountants in Bracknell, provides top quality accounts services to all small business types.
Our team of dedicated & dependable accountants are experts in a wide range of practice areas. Whether you are an individual or a corporation, we have the experience and results-driven mindset that you need on your side.
Accounts Services: Limited company & self-employed
Whether you are self-employed individuals or a private limited company, a profit & loss account will provide a clear picture of how profitable or loss-making your business is and hence your tax liability or loss carried forward. It will also let you know which expenses are unnecessarily high and need scrutiny or control. The balance sheet, however, shows the business assets, liabilities and equity at a particular date.
If you start your business as a private limited company, then annual or statutory accounts, which consist of a profit & loss account and Balance Sheet, are a legal requirement. You must both prepare and file your company accounts (by the deadline) annually to avoid paying penalties or your company being struck off.
Some businesses may choose to do the accounts themselves when starting a business, likely because they can save the accounting fees. But from our experience these accounts are not always so correct. This is maybe due to a lack of accounting knowledge, skills and experience. And after doing the accounts by themselves for 1 or 2 years, they finally seek help from accountants.
If the first year accounts are incorrect, the incorrect amounts in the accounts will be carried forward to the following years. This means the accounts do not show true and fair views of your business and cannot be relied upon. The longer the incorrect accounts are carried forward, the harder it is to correct them. And the fees for correcting these accounts may be higher than the fees you could save in the first place!
We have very solid experience in providing reliable accounts services to small and medium-sized businesses. And we can advise on other accounts-related issues such as allowable expenses, allowances and tax reliefs so we can help you reduce your tax bill legally. We will also provide advice on tax-efficient funds withdrawal from your business.
Self-employed individuals & partnerships
Unlike limited companies, Companies House does not require any sole traders or a business partnership (not a limited liability partnership) to prepare or file their business accounts. This is because there is no distinction between the sole trader and their business. In other words, the sole traders and their business, in legal terms, are treated as the same person and so the business owners are responsible for all the debts incurred in their business. This means their personal assets and finance are not safe and can be used to pay for the debts they owe their business creditors or any legal suits against their business if their business assets or funds are not enough to cover these.
This same rule also applies to a general partnership because a partnership business is not a separate legal person distinct from its partners. That means all the business partners are jointly and severally liable to their partnership debts. Thus both the sole trader and partners have unlimited liability for their sole trade business and partnership debts respectively.
Further, neither the self-employed individuals nor partnerships are required to attach any statutory accounts when they file their self assessment tax returns with HMRC. However, it will help the sole traders and partnerships when they do their tax returns if they have a profit & loss account prepared. It will make filling in the tax return much easier too.
Private limited company
A private limited company is a separate legal entity from its shareholders or members. This means a company itself can:
1. sue or be sued in its own name
2. buy, sell and own assets in its own name
3. owe or be owed debts
4. enter into contracts by which it is bound
5. be liable to pay tax separately from its shareholders
6. continue in existence as a separate entity despite changes in shareholders
Because a limited company is a separate legal entity, its shareholders, therefore, have limited liability in company debts and if a creditor takes legal action against the company, the shareholders’ personal assets and finance are safe from the legal suit.
In contrast to sole traders and general partnerships, a private limited company must prepare and file its annual accounts (called statutory accounts) to Companies House yearly and it can either be paper or online submission. If the accounts are not filed by the deadline, which is 9 months after the company year end, the company then will have to pay late filing penalties. The penalty depends on how long the accounts take to reach Companies House. The longer the accounts are filed after the deadline, the higher the penalty:
| Length of period taken | Penalty (£) |
| late filing <1 month | 150 |
| 1 month> late filing <3 months | 375 |
| 3 month> late filing <6 months | 750 |
| late filing > 6 months | 1,500 |
Furthermore, the company must attach the accounts with its corporation tax return when the return is filed to HMRC. A dormant company is still required to submit its annual accounts to Companies House too even if the company has no significant transactions in that year.
Need accounts services?
If you are looking for help with your accounts preparation, please contact us for our expertise and free initial advice.