FAQs

About Accounting| Tech Scale, Protected Margin.

Workforce
Hiring

Zero entity liability.
Full IR35 insulation.
Guaranteed IP ownership.
Compliant local terminations.
Automated tax compliance.

R&D
Tax Relief

HMRC penalty protection.
Commercial risk proof.
Overseas compliance.
Mandatory AIF adherence.
PAYE cap optimization.

Have questions? We are here.

FAQs

An EoR acts as the legal employer for your UK workers, handling local payroll, HMRC tax withholdings, and employment law compliance while you manage their daily output.

Yes. An EoR hires individuals as full-time PAYE employees. This completely bypasses self-employed contractor status, eliminating UK off-payroll working (IR35) misclassification exposure.

You do. The EoR contract includes immediate IP assignment clauses, ensuring all software code, inventions, and work products transfer legally to your business.

No. You can onboard, pay, and manage UK staff legally without establishing a UK subsidiary or registering a local branch office.

The EoR automatically enrols eligible UK workers into a compliant pension scheme (e.g., NEST) and remits statutory employer contributions (min. 3%) directly.

UK employees are legally entitled to 28 days paid annual leave (including public holidays), maternity/paternity leave, statutory sick pay (SSP), and workplace pension auto-enrolment.

Most UK EoRs charge a fixed monthly fee per employee (typically £200–£500/month), plus the employee’s gross salary and required UK employer taxes (Employer NICs).

The EoR executes terminations in strict compliance with UK labor laws, managing required notice periods, statutory redundancy pay, and proper dismissal procedures to avoid unfair dismissal claims.

Only if the EoR holds a valid UK Home Office Sponsor Licence. Most standard EoRs only hire workers who already possess legal Right to Work status in the UK.

A PEO requires you to have a registered UK legal entity to share employment liabilities, whereas an EoR becomes the sole legal employer so you can operate without a local entity.

A CoR framework manages the commercial, contractual, and payment pipeline for your independent freelancers, insulating your business from classification liabilities while keeping workers self-employed.

The About Accounting CoR framework evaluates working practices, generates mandatory Status Determination Statements (SDS), and uses compliant contracts to ensure true “outside IR35” engagements, shifting tax penalty risks away from your firm.

Nope. Unlike an Employer of Record (EoR), a CoR maintains a B2B commercial relationship. The freelancer remains an independent contractor, not an employee.

Your company does. CoR master service agreements contain strict, immediate IP assignment clauses that automatically transfer all code, trade secrets, and deliverables directly to you.

The CoR performs digital identity checks and visa verifications prior to onboarding to ensure every contractor legally operates within the UK.

Yes. CoR platforms handle multi-currency cross-border payments and invoicing, allowing UK firms to engage global contractors without managing complex foreign exchange or international wire fees.

Recruitment agencies source talent for a placement fee. A CoR acts strictly as a compliance and payroll layer for freelancers you have already sourced yourself.

The CoR handles VAT processing by issuing compliant self-billed invoices and managing tax withholdings or reporting based on the contractor’s legal entity and location.

CoR agreements follow standard B2B commercial terms, enabling you to end project engagements immediately or with agreed notice periods without legal claims like unfair dismissal.

The CoR provides audit-ready documentation—including signed SDS forms, contract records, and evidence of working practices—to defend the classification and absorb qualifying liabilities.

This is the single tax credit scheme (replacing the old SME and RDEC schemes for accounting periods starting on or after 1 April 2024) offering tech companies a 20% taxable credit on qualifying R&D spend

As the 20% credit is taxable, the actual net benefit is 15% for companies paying the 25% main Corporation Tax rate.

If you are qualifying R&D spend makes up 30% or more of your total operational costs, you qualify for ERIS (Enhanced R&D Intensive Support), yielding a higher cash benefit of up to 27%.

In general, no. Under merged scheme rules, subcontracted R&D and externally provided worker (EPW) costs must be UK-based, unless strict regulatory or geographical impossibilities prevent UK execution.

Negative. The scheme awards the claim to the party that intended or commissioned the R&D-usually the client (SaaS firm). Software agencies can only claim if the client did not contemplate R&D or cannot legally claim UK tax relief.

Absolutely. Costs spent on cloud infrastructure (AWS, Azure, GCP), data licences, and specialized software used directly in technical problem-solving qualify for relief.

You must have submit a digital Additional Information Form (AIF) prior to filing your CT600. For first-time claimants (or those who haven’t claimed in 3 years) must also submit an Advance Claim Notification within 6 months of their period end.

Cash payout is capped at £20,000 plus 300% of your company’s total PAYE/NIC liabilities, unless your team directly manages and creates proprietary IP internally

Routine app or web builds using off-the-shelf frameworks, standard API integrations, UI/UX graphic design, and basic database administration are strictly excluded by HMRC.

Up to 2 years from the end of the relevant accounting period to submit or amend your R&D claim with HMRC.

It must solve a non-trivial technical uncertainty to achieve an overall advance in computer science—such as engineering custom load-balancing algorithms or complex data pipelines.

Cloud infrastructure, server compute, and data licences directly used for R&D testing, staging, and algorithmic execution qualify for relief, but production hosting for live app users is excluded.

Absolutely. You can claim the exact percentage of gross salary, employer NICs, and pension contributions corresponding to the time directors directly spend solving technical R&D challenges.

Yes. You can claim. HMRC rewards technical problem-solving attempts regardless of commercial success, provided the project sought to overcome a technological uncertainty.

Making payments to UK-based individual subcontractors or agency workers qualify (typically at 65% of the invoice value), provided the contractor operates within the UK.

Answer is yes, but strict. Overseas spend only qualifies if carrying out the R&D in the UK was legally, geographically, or environmentally impossible (e.g., testing local hardware/telecom setups on-site). Lower overseas labor costs do not qualify.

Unlike the previous SME scheme-which penalized grant-funded projects-the merged scheme allows scaleups to claim R&D tax credits on grant-funded development at the standard 20% credit rate.

Absolutely, but you must defend it. If HMRC opens an inquiry, you must supply detailed technical narratives, commit logs, time-apportionment schedules, and contract terms to prove eligibility.

No. Routine bug fixes, minor code refactoring, system maintenance, and updating software libraries to newer versions do not qualify as technical advances.

Under the UK merged scheme, the 20% credit is recognized “above-the-line” as taxable operating income in your P&L, directly boosting EBITDA before tax adjustments.

Compliant Global Hiring Meets Maximum UK Tax Efficiency.

Scale your developer workforce risk-free with Employer of Record (EoR) and Contractor of Record (CoR) solutions-and secure up to 20% back on software innovation through UK Merged R&D Tax Relief.

Check Eligibility

FAQs

About Accounting| Tech Scale, Protected Margin.

WorkforceHiring

R&DTax Relief

Have questions? We are here.

FAQs

An EoR acts as the legal employer for your UK workers, handling local payroll, HMRC tax withholdings, and employment law compliance while you manage their daily output.

Yes. An EoR hires individuals as full-time PAYE employees. This completely bypasses self-employed contractor status, eliminating UK off-payroll working (IR35) misclassification exposure.

You do. The EoR contract includes immediate IP assignment clauses, ensuring all software code, inventions, and work products transfer legally to your business.

No. You can onboard, pay, and manage UK staff legally without establishing a UK subsidiary or registering a local branch office.

The EoR automatically enrols eligible UK workers into a compliant pension scheme (e.g., NEST) and remits statutory employer contributions (min. 3%) directly.

UK employees are legally entitled to 28 days paid annual leave (including public holidays), maternity/paternity leave, statutory sick pay (SSP), and workplace pension auto-enrolment.

Most UK EoRs charge a fixed monthly fee per employee (typically £200–£500/month), plus the employee’s gross salary and required UK employer taxes (Employer NICs).

The EoR executes terminations in strict compliance with UK labor laws, managing required notice periods, statutory redundancy pay, and proper dismissal procedures to avoid unfair dismissal claims.

Only if the EoR holds a valid UK Home Office Sponsor Licence. Most standard EoRs only hire workers who already possess legal Right to Work status in the UK.

A PEO requires you to have a registered UK legal entity to share employment liabilities, whereas an EoR becomes the sole legal employer so you can operate without a local entity.

A CoR framework manages the commercial, contractual, and payment pipeline for your independent freelancers, insulating your business from classification liabilities while keeping workers self-employed.

The About Accounting CoR framework evaluates working practices, generates mandatory Status Determination Statements (SDS), and uses compliant contracts to ensure true “outside IR35” engagements, shifting tax penalty risks away from your firm.

Nope. Unlike an Employer of Record (EoR), a CoR maintains a B2B commercial relationship. The freelancer remains an independent contractor, not an employee.

Your company does. CoR master service agreements contain strict, immediate IP assignment clauses that automatically transfer all code, trade secrets, and deliverables directly to you.

The CoR performs digital identity checks and visa verifications prior to onboarding to ensure every contractor legally operates within the UK.

Yes. CoR platforms handle multi-currency cross-border payments and invoicing, allowing UK firms to engage global contractors without managing complex foreign exchange or international wire fees.

Recruitment agencies source talent for a placement fee. A CoR acts strictly as a compliance and payroll layer for freelancers you have already sourced yourself.

The CoR handles VAT processing by issuing compliant self-billed invoices and managing tax withholdings or reporting based on the contractor’s legal entity and location.

CoR agreements follow standard B2B commercial terms, enabling you to end project engagements immediately or with agreed notice periods without legal claims like unfair dismissal.

The CoR provides audit-ready documentation—including signed SDS forms, contract records, and evidence of working practices—to defend the classification and absorb qualifying liabilities.

This is the single tax credit scheme (replacing the old SME and RDEC schemes for accounting periods starting on or after 1 April 2024) offering tech companies a 20% taxable credit on qualifying R&D spend

As the 20% credit is taxable, the actual net benefit is 15% for companies paying the 25% main Corporation Tax rate.

If you are qualifying R&D spend makes up 30% or more of your total operational costs, you qualify for ERIS (Enhanced R&D Intensive Support), yielding a higher cash benefit of up to 27%.

In general, no. Under merged scheme rules, subcontracted R&D and externally provided worker (EPW) costs must be UK-based, unless strict regulatory or geographical impossibilities prevent UK execution.

Negative. The scheme awards the claim to the party that intended or commissioned the R&D-usually the client (SaaS firm). Software agencies can only claim if the client did not contemplate R&D or cannot legally claim UK tax relief.

Absolutely. Costs spent on cloud infrastructure (AWS, Azure, GCP), data licences, and specialized software used directly in technical problem-solving qualify for relief.

You must have submit a digital Additional Information Form (AIF) prior to filing your CT600. For first-time claimants (or those who haven’t claimed in 3 years) must also submit an Advance Claim Notification within 6 months of their period end.

Cash payout is capped at £20,000 plus 300% of your company’s total PAYE/NIC liabilities, unless your team directly manages and creates proprietary IP internally

Routine app or web builds using off-the-shelf frameworks, standard API integrations, UI/UX graphic design, and basic database administration are strictly excluded by HMRC.

Up to 2 years from the end of the relevant accounting period to submit or amend your R&D claim with HMRC.

It must solve a non-trivial technical uncertainty to achieve an overall advance in computer science—such as engineering custom load-balancing algorithms or complex data pipelines.

Cloud infrastructure, server compute, and data licences directly used for R&D testing, staging, and algorithmic execution qualify for relief, but production hosting for live app users is excluded.

Absolutely. You can claim the exact percentage of gross salary, employer NICs, and pension contributions corresponding to the time directors directly spend solving technical R&D challenges.

Yes. You can claim. HMRC rewards technical problem-solving attempts regardless of commercial success, provided the project sought to overcome a technological uncertainty.

Making payments to UK-based individual subcontractors or agency workers qualify (typically at 65% of the invoice value), provided the contractor operates within the UK.

Answer is yes, but strict. Overseas spend only qualifies if carrying out the R&D in the UK was legally, geographically, or environmentally impossible (e.g., testing local hardware/telecom setups on-site). Lower overseas labor costs do not qualify.

Unlike the previous SME scheme-which penalized grant-funded projects-the merged scheme allows scaleups to claim R&D tax credits on grant-funded development at the standard 20% credit rate.

Absolutely, but you must defend it. If HMRC opens an inquiry, you must supply detailed technical narratives, commit logs, time-apportionment schedules, and contract terms to prove eligibility.

No. Routine bug fixes, minor code refactoring, system maintenance, and updating software libraries to newer versions do not qualify as technical advances.

Under the UK merged scheme, the 20% credit is recognized “above-the-line” as taxable operating income in your P&L, directly boosting EBITDA before tax adjustments.

Compliant Global Hiring Meets Maximum UK Tax Efficiency.

Workforce
Hiring

R&D
Tax Relief