I've picked up some really useful information from this site and have now taken the plunge to make my first post!
I have 11 years experience of computerised accounts & payroll (using Quickbooks) but little experience of manual bookkeeping.I am currently studying for the ICB level 1 & then level II manual bookkeeping exam and intend to set up my own bookkeeping business from home.
However I have a couple of people who want me to set their accounts up on Quickbooks now.If I register with HMRC for MLR am I able to do that now even though I am a student member of ICB?
I look forward to becoming an active member of the forum
with your experience it sounds as though there's not going to be much problem getting to AICB (comp) which is the level that you can get a practicing certificate which covers you for MLR.
To set yourself up with HMRC would cost would be £120 to register your premises and a further £50 to register yourself.
Another consideration is the restrictions that are on you as a student. Students are not allowed to offer their services unless supervised until they reach AICB level.
I know that sounds unfair. I'm almost fully qualified ACCA and I'm only allowed to do books to trial balance whereas someone with no experience or qualification can set themselves up as an accountant!
Level I and computerised level II are done by corespondence. Get the ICB to send you the Level I exam now. It's not a difficult one and you will be able to reference your books whilst you complete it. As soon as that's passed get them to send you the Level II comp. They issue that every Friday. That exams in your area of expertise (computerised bookkeeping) so fingers crossed you'll sail through that one.
As soon as your done you can get your PII insurance and a practicing certificate then your ready for your clients without being hit with a whopping £170 to pay to HMRC.
Hope that this helps,
Shaun.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
Just so I'm clear, I can take level I Manual and level II computerised and get a practicing certificate without having to take level II Manual, but can go onto to take level II Manual afterwards?
I thought I read somewhere that if you were AICB comp you couldn't do manual accounts (which I wouldn't be able to anyway!!) & vice versa but if you've got a mixture of the 2 how does that work?
it's all changing this year at the ICB to sort out the anomalies but at the moment if you have AICB (comp) then you can get a practicing certificate which is all that you need to set up.
Get it quick though as it won't be long before you need to have passed both level II exams to get the practicing certificate.
Mostly I would advise people to get at least the manual level II (if not the level III) under their belts before setting up so that they know whats happening under the hood (so to speak) but you state that you're coming to this with 11 years experience so your more of an exception.
When your set up you can concentrate on the level II manual whilst bringing in some money from doing the quick-books stuff for your first clients.
Good luck with the business and the exams,
Shaun.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
I think it's fair to say even with many years experience - you don't know what you don't know so I'm really keen to get the right qualifications under my belt!
I'm partway through a distance learning course for level 1 manual and it's all beginning to make sense now.....
When I first started out (back in the dark ages) I always found it best to find an anchorage point that you can relate to.
In my case it was that the money you put in the bank goes on the left hand side of the T account.
From there you know that if it goes out of the bank it must appear on the right, so where it's going will be on the left.
The other way around, if it's going to the bank then it has to be on the right hand side of wherever it's coming from.
The above sounds basic I know but you'll be surprised how many times in your studies you look blankly at a question in an exam and wonder whether the answer should be on the left or the right.
Wishing you many happy balanced trial balances in your studies,
all the best,
Shaun.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
Ah thats where I've been going wrong - I need to learn my left from my right!!
Welcome Mattymoo to the forum and for taking the plunge on your first post. We're a nice bunch on here but sometimes you may just get 2 different answers to the same question.
I've always taught that you dr the account that receives (goods, services, cash, whatever) and cr the account that gives (goods, services cash, whatever). I think it's important that people understand the actual accounts because that then usually gets over the problem with the bank and confusion with the statement from the bank which I find many people have.
Don't care what anyone says, I like my nice simple way of remembering just one thing to make everything else fit in place... Been a long time admittedly since I had to remember it that way but it certainly worked back when I first started.
I had to remember my left from my right as started out left handed but got it beaten out of me by the penguins at primary school. "You write with the right" (normally followed by a whack with a ruler).
On the bank statement thing. From the banks perspective the statements correct as the customers money is a liability rather than an asset.
And adding to Phillips comment about two different answers, in many situations both answers are right!
To quote John Maynard King (actually, more precisely, to quote Sir David Tweedie quoting John Maynard King) "It is better to be roughly right than precisely wrong".
Have a good one and talk later,
Shaun.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
Did the owner of the dog get back to you again or is it all through the solicitors now? I'm assuming that there's no more business coming from that source now!
I'll keep my fingers crossed that the leg heals up soon.
Is this one going to be a busy weekend for you or have all of your clients been good little bee's this year?
Shaun.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
I must admit I do keep getting confused between my dr'sand my cr's but after doing 2 assignments today, I'm brain dead but it's sinking in and I'm also beginning to understand the logic behind Quickbooks which is going to help me no end.
Shaun - No not heard from clients but wouldn't have made me much more anyway, after the tuition they would have done things themselves so no real loss. Wound still "leaking" but getting better, now only go once a week to drs (oops that doctors not debits!!!!)
