
Ask HN: Any suggestions for incorporating in the UK? - kandu
Could you recommend a service for company formation in the UK? Could you recommend a company offering a registered office service in the UK? Do you have any suggestions regarding hiring an accountant for a web application UK startup? The company will be incorporated in the UK, but I am not a UK resident and the development will also be done offshore.
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jdietrich
To be honest with you it's a doddle and you can't really go wrong. There's
only one relevant kind of company - a private limited company. Forming the
company takes about ten minutes and the formation should be confirmed by
Companies House within four hours.

You don't necessarily need an accountant. You can do all of your tax returns
online and you can use your annual CT600 tax return as your return for
Companies House. The annual return is just a few pages and can be completed by
anyone who can read the explanatory notes. Hiring staff is only marginally
more complex and HMRC provide a suite of software to help you manage payroll,
income tax and national insurance. The only real gotcha is remembering to
register for VAT if your sales within the EU exceed £73,000 in any 12-month
period - at that point you may wish to consult an accountant to get your VAT
accounting straight, as mistakes with VAT can get expensive quickly.

As a web app startup your tax affairs are likely to be as simple as they get
and I'd suggest contacting your local HMRC office for advice - I think you'll
be pleasantly surprised at how helpful they are and how straightforward tax is
for small companies. They run regular training days at local tax offices for
new companies and employers which are well worth attending even if you plan on
using an accountant.

~~~
ig1
Accountants do other things beyond filing paperwork for example they can tell
you from experience what HMRC allows to filed in terms of expenses, tax
optimizations such as using Flat Rate VAT, etc.

They can also provide references which can expedite things like opening bank
accounts or getting travel visas.

IMO Unless you really can't afford it, paying the £1000/year for an accountant
so you have one less set of things to worry about as a startup founder is
really worth it.

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x03
Since April 6th you've been able to incorporate directly online with Companies
House at:
[https://ewf.companieshouse.gov.uk/9e98c6d412c60b928876bc14d4...](https://ewf.companieshouse.gov.uk/9e98c6d412c60b928876bc14d4bbee2f/runpage?page=welcome)

~~~
samwillis
That link doesn't work, this the right right one:
[https://ewf.companieshouse.gov.uk/govlink?xgovk3w=bl1000&...](https://ewf.companieshouse.gov.uk/govlink?xgovk3w=bl1000&xgovf0p=|xgovs9k=coho|xgovr3h=winc|xgovc8h=1000|xgovk3w=bl1000|&xgovd2v=en&xgovj6d=452734a110d6d1a1d0893be4ee96cab3ffde1a4c)

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PawelDecowski
I've used <http://www.companyformations247.co.uk/> to open the company.

They offer cashback if you later open a business bank account with Barclays,
so the company formation is actually free (you can even get back ~£30 back on
top if you pick the cheapest formation plan).

As for accountants I've been using <http://www.crunch.co.uk/>

For £70 a month they give you:

* web-based accounting software

* dedicated account manager

* dedicated accountant

* sort out your taxes at end of tax year

* registered office service

* extras like help you with personal taxes for extra fee

Highly recommend both companies.

~~~
ig1
I've used Crunch before and while I'm happy with their service, they don't
have an api so you'll need to record sales manually. Depending on the nature
and pricing of your webapp this might not be do-able.

~~~
PawelDecowski
They recently added a bank reconciliation feature. You can upload a CSV
statement from your bank which, sort of, automates it (still needs some manual
input).

Unfortunately CSV statements from my bank (Barclays) aren't compatible with
their importer. Hopefully they'll add support for more statement formats.

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jwh
Why spend money when you don't have to? Go direct to the relevant UK authority
at <http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk/>, read the guidance notes carefully and
incorporate away. Pay special attention to your articles of association as
they're akin to a constitution for your business. Also, you'll need a
registered office in the UK that documents can be delivered to.

Experience: UK resident who set his own Limited company up

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cynusx
I use companiesmadesimple.com They handle registered office service as well.
I'm in a similar situation (just incorporated). The next step should be to
open a bank account or make it dormant. I haven't figured out this step
though, mind to keep in touch?

~~~
kandu
companiesmadesimple.com was one of the options I was looking into. Let's keep
in touch.

~~~
cynusx
I don't have your email address :) (mine is in my profile) I've figured out
that you can get a bank account as non-resident as long as you have a credit
card/bank statement and a valid ID. You still need to go to the UK though.

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jcr
If you intend to seek investment (seed, angel, vc, ...), either through Y
Combinator or otherwise, you should read the following:

<http://ycombinator.com/atyc.html>

Getting your incorporation wrong can be a deal killer.

~~~
ig1
The UK doesn't have a huge mess of incorporation law like the US. For pretty
much any startup the correct company type is a limited company.

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kandu
Thank you very much for the answers.

