When/how to register as a business?

[Crazymummyto4]

I'm trying to start up a small business and have had a few sales but haven't made very much profit yet. At what stage would you suggest I would need to look i to registering as a small business, and what is the best way to go about it?

www.gov.uk/set-up-sole-trader

You must register with HMRC once your turnover exceeds £1,000. Good luck with your new venture!

@Ajl46

You must register with HMRC once your turnover exceeds £1,000. Good luck with your new venture!

That's what I read, I'm nowhere near that yet so I'm assuming I don't need to do anything yet then but just wanted to check!

Depends on whether you want or need to pay voluntary National Insurance Contributions to ensure access to benefits and state pension?

If you're making losses on such a low turnover, you may be best to register sooner than you need to, in order to claim loss relief against any other income, which may trigger a tax refund. Remember that you can claim legitimate expenses against your income to create a loss, i.e. use of home, mileage, a proportion of dual private/business expenses such as computer equipment and mobile phone, etc.

@Badbadbunny

If you're making losses on such a low turnover, you may be best to register sooner than you need to, in order to claim loss relief against any other income, which may trigger a tax refund. Remember that you can claim legitimate expenses against your income to create a loss, i.e. use of home, mileage, a proportion of dual private/business expenses such as computer equipment and mobile phone, etc.

Do you know how I would go about such claims? And is it best to register as a sole trader at a cost of £200 or ltd company at £12? There is so much to learn!!

If you register as a Ltd company then the returns and doing the paperwork can be considerably more complex than just being self-employed and filing your own self-assessment tax return.

Keep it simple. There is plenty of help about doing self-employed accounts on the HMRC website.

@bamboocat

If you register as a Ltd company then the returns and doing the paperwork can be considerably more complex than just being self-employed and filing your own self-assessment tax return.

Keep it simple. There is plenty of help about doing self-employed accounts on the HMRC website.

Thankyou, I'll read around registering as a sole trader. Am I correct in thinking it costs around £200 to do so?

I registered about 15 years ago and don't remember paying anything.

Where have you found the figure of £200 from?

@bamboocat

I registered about 15 years ago and don't remember paying anything.

Where have you found the figure of £200 from?

I've just reread it and I think it would only be if I wanted to register my name as a trade mark.

There is no cost to registering with HMRC as a sole trader. You certainly don't need to get a trademark on your business name unless you foresee it becoming a global phenomenon.
Taylor's florists of Northampton probably wouldn't worry about Taylor's florists of Inverness, IYSWIM.

@CovidPassQuestion

There is no cost to registering with HMRC as a sole trader. You certainly don't need to get a trademark on your business name unless you foresee it becoming a global phenomenon. Taylor's florists of Northampton probably wouldn't worry about Taylor's florists of Inverness, IYSWIM.

Thankyou, I don't think I quite expect it to be that successful ha ha!

If you pay £12 to register as a limited company, you still don't get the protection of a trade mark. Someone could still use the identical business name (without the limited). So if you registered Fred's Flowers Limited, there's nothing to stop anyone else trading as "Fred's Flowers" and nothing to stop someone forming a limited company called Fred's Flowers (Online) Limited. It only gives protection against someone else forming the exact same named limited company. If you're bothered about protecting your trade name, you'd still need to pay to have the limited company named trade marked.

Thankyou for the advice everyone, you've all been very helpful 😊 I've purchased a domain name and will register as a sole trader.

You don't need to be a Ltd company till you're earning something like 40k and it makes sense to move to corporation tax model. Good luck with your business, what is it?

@doadeer

You don't need to be a Ltd company till you're earning something like 40k and it makes sense to move to corporation tax model. Good luck with your business, what is it?

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I know nothing about that! But sounds great 🙏