Tag: accounting

Why we ask for your ID

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As part of our onboarding process we ask all of our clients for two pieces of ID. You might be wondering why we need this and what we do with it afterwards? We explain it all here.

Why we need your ID

As we are a regulated accountant, we are required by our regulatory body (AAT) to hold two pieces of identification for all clients for whom we act. This is so that we can complete anti money laundering checks on all of our clients and ensure that all of our clients are who they say they are.

What ID do we need

We need two pieces of ID from you:

  • Photo ID – such as driving licence or passport
  • Proof of Address – Such as bank statements, credit card bills, council tax bills, utility bills or driving licence.

All ID must be in date and display your current name.

Note – you can use your driving licence for either piece of ID, but not both. If you are giving us your driving licence please also submit an additional piece of ID so that we can still have two pieces of ID for you.

How do we use your ID

We request your ID using our Karbon client portal. This is the most secure way of getting your ID to us and is preferred to email which is not as safe.

Once in our possession, we upload it to our secure cloud storage system, Sharepoint. It is never saved onto individual computers.

We will use your ID to confirm your identity during our anti-money laundering checks. If we have not met you face to face we may arrange a zoom call with you to make sure you are the same person as in your ID.

All of our systems are GDPR compliant.

When we’ll need you to update your ID

If you have changed your name for any reason, we will need an updated copy of your photo ID and proof of address with your new name. If you haven’t arranged for updated ID yet we can accept your marriage certificate or deadpoll document until you can obtain your updated ID.

If you move address, we will need updated Proof of Address ID. We understand that these can take a while to come through but if you can get them to us as soon as you have something, in these cases often bills are the first thing to come through, then we can get started on updating our systems.

We will check your ID once a year when we update your anti-money laundering check. If we find your ID to be out of date we will simply request that you send us an updated copy as soon as possible.

Why we love Xero!

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It’s no secret that we love Xero! It is the accounting software that we recommend to absolutely all of our clients. This is because we truly believe that it offers better features and useability than its competitors. Here are just some of the reasons why we love Xero!

1) Easy to use

Xero has made its interface very user-friendly and we find it easy to use on our end as well. This also makes it easy for us to teach you how to use it, to make sure that you get the best out of it and make sure your data is always accurate and up to date! We offer Xero training sessions to all of our clients at the onboarding stage so we can make sure you start off with it well, especially if you have never used it before.  Multiple users can be added who can all access the software at the same time.  You can also have different access levels for different team members so individuals can access or be restricted from certain parts of the software as appropriate.

2) Up to date reports

Using Xero means you will be able to access up-to-date reports that make it easy to understand how your business is doing. These are also able to be tailored to your specific needs for your company.

3) Cloud accounting

As with the majority of the other products that we love, Xero is cloud based! This means there is no need to save your documents to your PC and your data is backed up automatically and securely so you will never lose it. This also means that it can be accessed anywhere at any time, either via the web browser or the app.

4) Automatically brings in bank feeds

Xero can be set up so that it automatically brings in bank feeds from your business bank accounts and credit cards so your transactions are automatically bought into the software daily.  This limits the need for manual entries and means your figures are up to date in real time. This makes it easy for our bookkeepers as well as we won’t have to ask you for statements!

For a list of available bank feeds please see here.

We can help you set up your bank feed if you need, please just get in touch.

5) Integrations with other software

Xero also has over 1000 different apps, add-ons and integrations with software such as Dext, GoCardless, Stripe, Vend, Square, PayPal and more. Many of these apps can be set up to automate time-consuming tasks to make your admin easier!

If you need any help with setting up apps and integrations with Xero please get in touch.

6) Ahead of the crowd

Xero is typically always one step ahead of its closest competitors.  This can be in terms of reporting or keeping up with change in statutory requirements and legislation such as Making Tax Digital, Domestic Reverse Charge and even the Covid Furlough Scheme. It is constantly evolving and adding new features, particularly based on customer feedback on what features users would like to see implemented or ways existing features can be improved.

If you would like to find out more about Xero, transfer over from your existing software or try a free trial or demo please contact us so we can discuss!

How to use Karbon’s Client Portal

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Welcome to the 1 Accounts client portal! This portal is an online management system that allows you to easily and safely send, receive and store all of your accounting and tax information online.

What does this mean for you?

The client portal allows you to review and approve your accounting and tax information with the click of a button. It also allows you to view open and closed requests and any current requests we’ve sent to you.

Why are we doing this?

It’s a safer and more efficient way to handle your accounting and tax. It simplifies the process for you and allows us to serve your individual needs better. It also provides you with more flexibility, you can comment and ask questions directly in the portal. Your accountant is immediately notified and can take action. This eliminates the need for email and keeps it all together in one place, so you can review it at any time.

Review Tasks

You will receive an email with your tasks. Click on ‘manage checklist’ to access the tasks you need to complete.

You will automatically see all the tasks assigned to you for completion.

Please note: if you open this link on one device, and you’d like to access it on a different device, click the link again and it will ask you to “Send Access Link”. This will send another link to the originally sent email that will allow you to access it from the computer.

Comment, ask questions and upload files

You’ll be able to comment, ask questions and upload files on each of the tasks, which your accountant is immediately notified of and can take action.

Click Comment to comment or ask questions on a task or click upload files to attach files to a task. To add files to a comment click on the paperclip icon on a comment while composing.

Log in

By logging in, you’ll have access to all your open and closed requests, including current client requests that haven’t been completed. You’ll also have copies of documents you have uploaded, so you can keep track and easily find what’s been sent.

  • If you have a login, follow the instructions and log in (example A)
  • If you don’t have a login click the ‘create account’ button and it will ask you to create an account (example B).
  • If you forgot your password, click the forgot password link and follow the instructions (example C)
Example A
Example B
Example C

Once you have created an account, you can access the client portal at any time. Once you are signed in, you will be taken directly to the client portal which looks like this.

Magic Link

The main way you will access the client portal

Spend money to make money

While you can save a couple of hundred pounds doing your own books, you won’t save as much with an accountant and you could actually end up losing a lot more. With an accountant on your team, you can save both time and money while having the reassurance and peace of mind that you’re making sound business decisions for your future.

If you would like to learn more click here to get in touch.

Or feel free to use our chat box —>

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Marriage Allowance

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As we are in the middle of wedding season, it’s worth reminding everyone about marriage allowance. This extra bit of tax relief could be especially helpful to people now during the cost of living crisis.

What is marriage allowance?

Marriage allowance lets you transfer 10% of your unused personal tax allowance to your husband, wife, or civil partner. This will then reduce their tax bill by that amount. It could be worth up to £252 a year!

Am I eligible?

To be eligible to marriage allowance you need to be;

  • Married or in a civil partnership
  • one partner earning below the personal tax threshold of £12,570 per year
  • The other partner earning below the higher rate tax threshold of £50,000 per year

Unfortunately you can’t claim marriage allowance if you are only co-habiting and not married or in a civil partnership.

How do I claim marriage allowance?

If you are a client of ours, mention that you would like to apply for marriage allowance when we complete your tax return. We can then help you sort this out.

You can also apply yourself by phoning the income tax helpline on 0300 200 3300 or by applying online. You will need your partner’s national insurance number for the claim.

There are some online firms that will charge you a commission for claiming through them, our advice is to stay away from these and to either claim yourself by contacting HMRC or through your accountant. We do not charge our clients extra for this. This will ensure you get 100% of what you are owed!

Can I backdate my claim?

When applying for marriage allowance you can backdate your claim to 5th April 2018! So if you have been eligible for marriage allowance since then, these tax years will be included in your claim and you could receive more money back.

If you are married and not already taking advantage of the marriage allowance then what are you waiting for! Make sure you apply to receive your tax refund.

Hiring an accountant could save your business!

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A lot of new businesses fail. A lot of old businesses fail. A lot of previously successful businesses fail. Why? Usually, it comes down to issues around finances.

If you’re starting a new business, or if you’ve been in business for years and are trying to grow your team and scale your company, hiring an accountant can help. Here’s how.

1) They help you become more tax-efficient

Tax isn’t easy. Legislation changes all the time and any delays or mistakes could be costly. With an accountant filing your taxes for you, you can have the peace of mind that it is all being done correctly and on time. Not only that, but it saves you a lot of time and resources AND it saves you money. Accountants can reduce your tax burden by identifying opportunities for deductions, and they can help you avoid any government fines.

2) They mitigate the risk of financial mistakes

Accountants know how to identify financial risks and avoid them before they become major problems. What this means for you is that you’ll never spend money you don’t have, you will save money in all the areas you can, and you’ll be more aware and better equipped to stick to a proper budget. Fewer to no financial mistakes means minimal losses and more profit!

3) They actively help you to grow your business

If you get an accountant on board in the early stages of your business, they will help you to develop a plan for growing your business in the right way. Not only that, but they will also ensure that your finances are handled correctly from the beginning so that it doesn’t take over everything else in the future. As your business grows, they will start to provide advice in other areas such as budgeting and financing; payroll and recruitment, cashflow forecasting and investments, and business strategy. They will work with you to ensure you have the financial capabilities and processes needed to work towards your business goals.

Survive and thrive!

Most new businesses fail because of financial issues, so don’t make the same mistake. Hire an accountant as early as possible and get the guidance and expertise needed to take your business to the next level. They will not only help you save money, but they can help you make money as your business grows too.

Payments on account

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If you complete a tax return you may have to pay your tax twice a year. This sounds like it should be bad, but it can be a helpful way of spreading your payments throughout the year.

What are payments on account?

Payments on account are made twice a year and are payments that you make towards your next tax bill. It is a way of bringing the tax collection closer in line with those who pay their tax monthly through PAYE.

Who has to pay?

If the tax liability on your last submitted tax return was over £1000 then you will automatically be set up for payments on account.

When do I have to pay?

You pay twice a year with payment deadlines on January 31st and July 31st however you can pay before these deadlines.

How is it calculated?

HMRC will use your previous tax bill to estimate how much tax it thinks you will be paying next year. It will then half this amount and charge you this in January and July, so in the following January you only have to pay what is left over, if any, and potentially the next payment on account. If you have overpaid, you will receive a refund, or if completing your tax return close to the deadline it will be deducted from the next payment on account.

Can you reduce how much you pay?

If you think your taxable income will reduce for the following year you are able to apply to reduce your payments on account.  They can be reduced through your tax return or via an HMRC online account by either your agent or yourself.  Payments on account cannot be reduced by too much as if your tax liability is higher than the reduced amounts when your actual tax return for the year is complete HMRC will charge interest for the underpayments and potentially penalties.

If you have collated your information for the year prior to the July second payment on account deadline the filing of the actual tax return can replace the estimated tax due if the tax liability for the year is lower than the prior year.

New to self assessment? – watch out

If you are new to self assessment or have never paid payments on account before it’s worth putting money aside throughout the year so that you don’t get caught out.  This is because the first time you become part of the payment on account regime you could have to pay 150% of the tax liability in January.  This would be 100% of the tax from the prior tax return and 50% again for the following tax return. This first experience can feel like a shock, but it will make the next payment in the following January easier.  This is because you would have already paid 100% of the prior year’s tax to deduct from the total.

How to pay

Simply log in to your government gateway and follow the instructions. Alternatively you can pay by phone, bank transfer or a number of other different way. The details of this will be on the letter you receive from HMRC, or on the HMRC payment guidance online.

We hope this helps clear up some of the questions regarding payments on account. Your government gateway account will always show your upcoming payments so we really do recommend setting one up. If you have any other questions regarding payments on account just give us a call and we will be happy to help.

Is your small business struggling to make a decent profit? Here are six little known profit holes.

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With the economy as unpredictable as it has been lately it is essential for small business owners to take a good look at your overheads and cost of sales. Add into the mix the rising cost of labour, materials and shipping, and this exercise to examine your cost base may be the difference between your business having a good year next year or going under. This article will look at the 6 most common profit holes that many small businesses may have.

1) Pricing: Has it kept up with your costs?

It’s been a difficult few years and you may be thinking that your customers and clients can’t swallow an increase. Well, think again – If Starbucks and Costa Coffee can afford to still charge eye-watering amounts for a slice of cake and a coffee throughout the pandemic, then you can look at your pricing.
Often, the biggest profit hole we see with our clients is around a poor pricing strategy. Such as:

  • Are your sales team discounting too much in order to make the sale? Particularly for wholesale or bulk orders?
  • Have you kept your prices static whilst your costs have increased?
  • Are your prices in line with your cost base now, rather than when you were a much smaller business? For example, if your prices have not changed since you ran your business from the kitchen table, then it’s time to relook at your pricing.

2) Do you have a revolving door of employees?

Hiring new staff members is expensive; recruitment agency costs, training costs and senior management time spent hiring and training. Losing good employees is even more expensive – both in terms of opportunity cost and also the hit on morale when a good person leaves. If you do have an employee turnover problem, it’s time to take a good look at how to increase the levels of employee engagement in your business. Being very blunt here, you may look into the mirror to see if you personally may be part of the problem.

3) Software costs: Have you had a good look to see what you’re really using?

Those £15 a month per user type subscriptions really do add up over time. How many user licences are you still paying for but don’t actually need? How many of those pieces of software that you decided to try out are you actually using? If you used all the features of your core software, how many other licences or subscriptions could you ditch? You may find that a good look at your software stack could yield a large amount of ‘money down the back of the sofa’ each month.

4) Suppliers: Are they taking the proverbial?

This often happens when we’ve worked with a supplier for years and both you and they have got comfortable and complacency sets in. This cosiness could be hiding the fact that you might not be getting the service you require. Even worse, the prices you are paying might now out of step with the marketplace. Don’t let inertia and a desire to avoid conflict stop you from having a ‘state of the nation type’ conversation with the supplier.
In our experience, the first place to look at is your spending with marketing suppliers. Then your telephone and internet suppliers. Ask yourself; What are they really delivering? Do they need a shakeup? Our advice to you is if this resonates with you, have that conversation!

5) Not using automation – particularly in your financial processes

The cloud revolution which we keep harping on about has been a game-changer for not just accountants. The digital tools out there will help your business cut out so much physical paperwork and manual entry. For example, if you are a small cafe or pub you can now get great phone apps that will allow customers to place their orders from the table. Thus, improving the efficiency of your operation and waiting staff.
Using bank rules, email rules and other types of automation in conjunction with software such as Dext can reduce the time it takes to do your books or manage staff expenses. Why not have a chat with us to see where using apps and cloud-based software can take the grind out of your financial processes and systems?

6) Doing it yourself

How long does it take you to do stuff which should be outsourced or done by others in your business? This ‘doing it yourself’, particularly when it comes to things like bookkeeping or VAT returns, is often a false economy. Your time is much more valuable delighting customers and clients and running your business than puzzling over whether you can or can not claim VAT on your company car expenditure or that coffee with a client.
Using the right people and suppliers to free you up to do what you’re best at is often a great way to generate more profit. It goes without saying that we are always happy to talk about whether we are a good home for your bookkeeping and other financial processes.
If you address these 6 points in your business then you will be in a much better position to face whatever happens next with the economy.

 

Signing a proposal with Ignition

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So you want to sign up to working with us and have had a successful meeting! Or maybe you’re already a customer of ours who wants to change or add to your existing service? Unfortunately we need more than a verbal agreement in today’s world so we will send you a proposal to sign so that we can complete the work as agreed.

At 1 Accounts we like to be as paperless as possible so we make use of a software called Ignition which allows us to create and send your proposal to you via email, and allows you to sign it digitally getting rid of the need to print out long contracts and wait for them to be delivered by post. This way you can sign up to our services while enjoying your beach holiday at the same time!

What is a proposal

When we agree to complete a service for you, whether you are signing up with us for the first time, or changing your existing services, we will send you a proposal for you to sign in order for us to complete the work.

Your proposal will contain the agreed services, our terms and conditions, and the agreed fee. It’s basically our contract and invoice for the services we have agreed to complete for you, and we need it to be signed and returned to us before we are able to start the work for you.

When we send proposals

 As we said above, we will send you a proposal after we make an agreement with you to complete some work. This could be when you sign up with us for the first time, if you want to add something to your existing service such as bookkeeping, or if you want us to change your address with HMRC & Companies House. Any service that you ask us to do, even one-off jobs, will require a signed proposal even when we are not charging you to complete the work.

How to sign with Ignition

When we send a proposal we use an online software called Ignition. This functions similarly to DocuSign in that it will send your proposal to you via email and makes use of digital signatures, so you are able to sign your proposal wherever you are in the world.

The email will come from a 1 Accounts email address and will contain a link to your proposal. When you click the link, you will see a message from us. On the next page will be a breakdown of the services we agreed with you. Please double check that you are happy with everything that is included before you sign as we can easily make an adjustment and re-send it to you. The following page is a schedule of your payments which breaks down how much you are going to pay us and when. Again, make sure you check this carefully and when you are happy proceed to the signing page.

At the top of the signing page is a link to our terms and conditions that you are agreeing to by signing the proposal. Once again, please read these to make sure you are happy with what you are agreeing to. Once you are happy, please tick the box that says “I accept the above terms” then type your name in the box. This acts as your digital signature. The last thing to do is to click the button in the bottom left corner that says “accept”!

What happens after you sign your proposal

After you sign your proposal, we will receive an email to say you have signed it and we can begin working with you. You will also receive a confirmation email with a link to download your engagement letter for your records.

If this is the first time you have signed a proposal with us, you will receive another email from GoCardless to set up your direct debit. Please fill this out so that we can receive payment from you. If you have completed this step before then the software will trigger the money to be taken according to the schedule agreed upon in the proposal.


We love using Ignition to complete this as we believe it makes the process very straightforward for both us and our clients. Please watch the below video for a walkthrough of the signing process.

How to increase your business capacity without breaking the bank!

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Winning new clients should be an exciting part of growing a business. And yet, due to the current climate, this rising demand is often met with limited resources and labour shortages.

Throughout this article, we’ll explore how outsourcing and offshoring can help you increase your capacity without breaking the bank!

What is the difference between Outsourcing and Offshoring?

Outsourcing is when a business hires a third party to perform tasks in order to improve efficiency and cut back on costs. Think of this as hiring freelancers.

Offshoring, however, is when a business bases some of its in-house operations overseas. By moving entire processes overseas (i.e. manufacturing or customer services), they’re able to source cheaper labour and gain access to a much larger talent pool.

Both options serve as a cost-effective solution to labour shortages and fulfilling increasing demands.

4 ways outsourcing can increase your capacity

Now that we understand what outsourcing and offshoring are, let’s explore how they can help your business increase capacity:

1. Expanding your skillset

We all understand the importance of identifying and remedying gaps in our workforce. However, hiring and training specialist staff comes at a cost. So, what’s the solution?

By outsourcing global talent, you’re able to employ highly skilled professionals for just a fraction of the cost. In turn, you can address any gaps in your workforce and leverage their talents to expand your services and attract new clientele.

2) Boosting Productivity

By assigning repetitive tasks to your external team members, you can save a lot of time otherwise wasted on labour-intensive, lower-value tasks. As a result, you’re able to boost your existing teams’ efficiency and engagement, scale your overall output and ultimately increase your capacity.

3) Facilitating 24hr operations

Many people are hesitant to outsource global talent because of the time difference. What they don’t realise is that this can actually work in their favour!

By outsourcing a global team, you’re able to extend your working hours and potentially operate 24-hours a day. In turn, you have the opportunity to accept a lot more work and expand your client basis. After all, you’ve practically doubled the number of hours in your working day!

4) Offering fast and flexible labour solutions

Labour shortages are placing a real strain on businesses at the minute. Thankfully, outsourcing provides a fast and flexible solution to this problem!

By hiring freelancers, you’re able to continue growing your business, fulfilling demand and satisfying customers. What’s more, these flexible contracts come with no strings attached, giving you the freedom to adjust your external team to match your capacity and workload.

Expand your team to increase capacity

Instead of surrendering to your current circumstances, try expanding your horizons by outsourcing global talent.

Outsourcing allows you to scale your business, increase your clientele and reach your highest potential – all for a fraction of the price of hiring internally.

So what are you waiting for? Offshoring could be the beginning of your global enterprise!

Why sole traders need a separate bank account

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If you are just about to become a sole trader, or have been one for a while, you might be wondering whether it is worth getting a separate bank account for your business. There is no legal requirement for sole traders to have a separate bank account for their business unlike Limited Companies which are required to do so. This is because HMRC views Limited Companies and the Directors as separate legal entities, whereas sole traders and their businesses are viewed as the same. Therefore a Limited Company is required to keep its bank accounts separate from the personal accounts of the directors. For more information about the differences between these two business structures read our blog.

We usually recommend that all of our sole trader clients get a separate bank account for their business. Here are some of our reasons:

1) It makes your accounts more accurate

Having a separate bank account for your business income and expenses has the obvious advantage of being able to keep any other income and private expenses separate. This will stop any chance that they could become mixed up or confused which will in turn ensure that your bookkeeping and accounts are accurate.

2) It stops you missing anything

Similarly, if all of your business expenses are in one account then you know you will not miss anything. It can be very time consuming to go through your personal account and pick out the transactions that relate to your business, so with a separate account you (or your bookkeeper) will not have to do this!

3) It helps to keep your numbers up to date

If you have your accounts separate and your bookkeeping up to date then you will have a better overview of how your business is performing.

With a personal account, you may not be able to get as clear a view of what your numbers are which could lead to making incorrect business decisions.

4) It makes HMRC inspections easier

In the event that you get an inspection from HMRC, the first thing they will look at is your business account. This means that you won’t have to hand over your personal bank statements to them in the first instance. This process is likely to be a lot more straightforward if HMRC only have one bank account to look through.

5) It makes bookkeeping in Xero easier

We can set your Xero up so that it has a bank feed running to your sole trade bank account. This will mean that we won’t see your personal transactions or need you to send in bank statements for any other account. This could also save you money as our bookkeeping service includes up to 50 transactions per month. Using a personal account is likely to put you over this!

We recommend…

Some banks may charge a monthly fee for a business bank account. You don’t necessarily need to have a specific business bank account set up, however some banks do specifiy in their terms and conditions that you cannot use a personal account for “business use”.

Some banks however do specific bank accounts for sole traders, and don’t charge a monthly fee! We particularly like this one from Starling Bank https://www.starlingbank.com/sole-trader-bank-account/

(We are not affiliated with Starling Bank)

As you can see, it makes so much sense to keep a separate bank account for your sole trade business. It will save you & your bookkeeper time and hassle and make sure that you don’t include or miss anything important from your accounts.