You can prepare draft final accounts for a Limited company but you can't prepare a CT return. To be honest the "draft final accounts" confuses me a little because only the directors of a ltd co can sign the accounts, so I don't know if the ICB means "prepare the final accounts for the directors to sign but don't add an accountants report" or stop at the draft tb stage.
To be on the safe side (I hope). For a Ltd Co, i will:
1. prepare the accounts to trial balance 2. prepare the payroll including directors dividend certificates. 3. complete vat returns / cis returns etc where appropriate 4. prepare the directors SA return if straightforward
I leave the Accountant to.
1. Prepare the unsigned final accounts 2. Prepare the corp tax return 3. complete the annual return, and any company secretarial filing (i've no idea of the ICB's opnion on this) 4. Give tax advice to the client beyond calculating vat, paye and cis liabilities.
I hope that helps, but would also be interested in others opinions.
-- Edited by ADAS on Friday 20th of January 2012 03:12:26 PM
__________________
Tony
Responses are intended as outline only. Formal advice should be sort from your Institutes Technical Department or a suitably qualified Accountant.
Hi I am a bit confused as to the cross over from a bookkeeper to an accounant and how much a bookkeeper can actually do.
Once passing the relevant exams, getting MICB membership, practicing certificate and professional indemnity insurance what services does this actually allow me to offer?
Apart from sole traders and partnerships (I will also have the diploma in self-assessment qualification) which I can complete tax returns for what services will I be able to offer to other businesses? and at which point does the accountant take over?
I realise that limited companies need to have an accountant, so when I get business from a limited company and they ask me what I can do for them, what stage can I take their accounts to? and with businesses that are not a limited company do they need to have an accountant? or can I do there complete accounts for them?
I deal with many sole traders, and very few of them actually have an accountant. I tend to do their bookkeeping, final accounts and submit their tax return. If I deal with limited compnaies or the few sole traders who have accountants I tend to hand the work over at trial balance and let them earn their money from there.
Very brief, but I hope this answers at least some of your question.
I find a lot of the information coming from the ICB quite confusing when it comes to what you can and can't do. They were always very clear that we couldn't give tax advice, then the self assessment qualification appeared. Now, it seems, we cant give advice but can complete the return. As anyone who has completed a tax return will know, you can't really do it without giving opinions or advice. Do you charge vehicle expenses proportionally, or 40p per mile?
I think James has accepted the contradiction in "not giving tax advice". As you said Kris, it's impossible to calculate any tax liability without effectively giving advice.
__________________
Tony
Responses are intended as outline only. Formal advice should be sort from your Institutes Technical Department or a suitably qualified Accountant.
