Self-Assessment Tax Return Outsourcing Support For Business Accountants
Make your busy tax season “our” busy tax season. We process thousands of tax returns for our clients annually using a range of software and our up-to-date knowledge of tax legislation. Give our service a try today!
Diminish the pressure of January and furnish your clients with consistent support
Tax season! Every accountant dreads it. It’s that time of the year when most accountants are on their toes, burning the midnight oil to create and file tax returns for their clients. Although an annual task, Self-Assessment tax return preparation is time-consuming and labour-intensive. That’s why tax return outsourcing makes sense. Our tax team, for instance, can help with all aspects of your clients’ tax returns, including handling multiple streams of income and business expenses, managing assets, highlighting missing information and filing and submitting your tax return. It’s always better to plan for Self-Assessment to avoid hefty late penalties. Outsourcing allows you to always be a step ahead.
Scope of our Self-Assessment tax return outsourcing service
- Property schedules
- Calculation of payment on account
- Completion of supplementary pages
- Review and filing online with HMRC
- Forecast of individual and partnership tax
- Self Assessment for individuals and partnerships
Contact us to find out how we help UK accountants with AP/AR.
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Client stories
Using Affinity Outsourcing has changed both my business and my lifestyle. I have an amazing work life balance and knowing that I have a back up plan if there is a reason why I can’t work has helped me enormously. The added value is that I have managed to increase my GRF and therefore the capital value of the business for my retirement without any stress. I cannot recommend this way of working highly enough.
Artisan Accountants
The contrast with the previous outsourcing company could not have been clearer. Affinity provided us with a dedicated team in the UK and a team leader in India. We have an established system which allows us to prioritise our jobs making sure client satisfaction remains high. We like the ability to switch our usage on and off according to our work volumes and our capacity. Using Affinity Outsourcing has given us a significant competitive advantage and we continue to exploit this and increase our client numbers without compromising service levels.
Kevin Alderton & Team
As a general practitioner for over 30 years I have experienced all the highs and lows of staff shortages, poor quality working papers, missed deadlines and the day-to-day pressure of work. Since being with Affinity I have not missed a single deadline, I have found the quality of their work to be excellent, and l can relax more, safe in the knowledge that they are there for me, taking care of both my clients and my Practice. I cannot recommend Affinity highly enough.
McKenzie Philips Tax Accountants
Software capabilities
We are different from ordinary outsourced accounting firms. We know our job well.
Pay As You Go!
Opt for a free trial
We see outsourcing as a solution for business growth and that helps accountancy practices achieve their potential. That’s why we offer to run a free trial job, so you can see how much your practice can benefit from outsourcing. Once you are confident, we work with you to create a bespoke package to suit the needs of your business. How simple is that, right?
Get transparent, simple pricing
We don’t charge by the hour, nor would you have to pay a monthly fee when no work is available. Either all the work we produce for you is completed for a guaranteed fixed fee. This is calculated as a set % of the fee you charge your client, which means you always know how much profit you’ll make on the job! Or if you have sufficient work, we provide a full time employee.
Add value to your practice
Outsourcing equals value addition, and we want all accountancy practices – small, medium, and large – to tap into their full potential without hassle. That’s why our team of certified and experienced accountants ensure that their work is top quality and delivers 100% client satisfaction. That’s a guarantee from our team!
Outsource your work in a structured way
Affinity Outsourcing is owned and managed by qualified UK accountants in practice. All your work is managed by an appointed client manager and team in India. Our advanced systems enable you to track the progress of every job and someone is always available during UK hours. Of course, the UK team is available if you have any doubts.
Use the latest accounting technologies
In this day and age, it always helps to be a tech-savvy accountancy practice. If you don’t have that competitive edge yet, fret not. Let us share our knowledge and expertise of the latest accounting software, such as Xero, QuickBooks, and Dext, and empower your accountancy practice to deliver competent services to your clients.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
No, it isn't. But managing high volumes of self-assessments can get overwhelming for anyone! Plus, no accountant wants to spend the last and first months of the year chasing clients for paperwork, sorting out tax returns, and filing them when they can better utilise the time to grow their practice or even take a break! If your practice staff is struggling with the Self-Assessment workload, take our help!
Tax savings can only be achieved through healthy and timely tax planning - well done in advance. With Self-Assessment tax return outsourcing, you can leverage experience and expertise, minimise your clients' tax liability, and file their returns on time. You can count on Affinity Outsourcing - for all tax season requirements!
Is your accountancy practice ready to outsource?
Explore how Affinity Outsourcing can help you by requesting a call back from our team.
Explore how Affinity Outsourcing can help you by requesting a call back from our team.
The Affinity Outsourcing Blog
Understanding the difference between Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivables Accounts payable (AP) represents the amount that a company owes to its creditors and suppliers (also referred to as a current liability account). Accounts receivable (AR) is the balance of money due to a firm for goods or services delivered or used but not yet paid for by customers What are accounts payable? Accounts payable (AP) represents the amount that a company owes to its creditors and suppliers. Accounts payable is recorded on the balance sheet under current liabilities. When a company receives goods or services but does not immediately pay for them, it creates an accounts payable liability. This liability represents a short-term obligation that needs to be settled within an agreed-upon period, often defined by payment terms negotiated with suppliers. Key Points of Accounts Payable: Liability Nature: Accounts payable are recorded as current liabilities on the balance sheet, reflecting the company’s obligations to pay its creditors. Credit Transactions: Accounts payable arises from credit purchases made from suppliers, where payment is deferred to a later date based on agreed-upon terms (e.g., net 30 days). Management Importance: Effective management of accounts payable is crucial for optimizing cash flow, maintaining supplier relationships, and ensuring timely payments to avoid penalties or strained partnerships. Benefits of Outsourcing Accounts Payable Services: Cost Savings: Outsourcing accounts payable services can lead to cost savings through reduced overhead costs, staffing expenses, and technology investments required for in-house processing. Expertise and Efficiency: Outsourcing firms specialize in accounts payable processes, leveraging expertise, best practices, and advanced technologies to streamline operations and improve efficiency. Focus on Core Competencies: By outsourcing accounts payable functions, businesses can redirect internal resources and focus on core competencies, such as product development, sales, and customer service. Scalability and Flexibility: Outsourcing providers offer scalability to handle fluctuating transaction volumes and flexibility to adapt to evolving business needs without additional investments in infrastructure or staffing. Compliance and Risk Management: Outsourcing firms ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and implement robust risk management practices, reducing errors, fraud risks, and late payment penalties. Enhanced Reporting and Analytics: Outsourcing accounts payable services often include advanced reporting capabilities and analytics, providing businesses with valuable insights into spending patterns, vendor performance and cash flow forecasting. What Are Accounts Receivable? Accounts receivable (AR) is the balance of money due to a firm for goods or services delivered or used but not yet paid for by customers. Accounts receivable is listed on the balance sheet as a current asset. When a company makes a sale but does not immediately receive payment, it creates an accounts receivable asset. This asset reflects the amount of money the company expects to receive from its customers within a specified timeframe. Key Points of Accounts Payable: Asset Classification: Accounts receivable are recorded as current assets on the balance sheet, representing the cash that the company expects to collect from customers. Credit Sales: Accounts receivable arises from credit sales made to customers, where goods or services are delivered upfront, and payment is expected within an agreed-upon period (e.g., net 60 days). Importance for Cash Flow: Managing accounts receivable effectively is essential for maintaining cash flow, reducing bad debts, and improving overall liquidity. Benefits of Outsourcing Accounts Receivable Services: Improved Cash Flow: Outsourcing accounts receivable services accelerates the collections process, reducing outstanding balances and improving cash flow management. Expertise in Collections: Outsourcing firms specialize in collections management, employing effective strategies and technologies to reduce days sales outstanding and minimize bad debts. Customer Relationship Management: Outsourcing accounts receivable allows businesses to maintain positive customer relationships by implementing consistent and professional collections practices. Focus on Strategic Initiatives: By outsourcing accounts receivable functions, businesses can focus on strategic initiatives, such as sales growth, marketing campaigns, and new product development. Cost Efficiency: Outsourcing accounts receivable services can lower operational costs associated with collections efforts, staffing, training, and technology investments required for in-house management. Compliance and Risk Mitigation: Outsourcing providers ensure compliance with collection laws and regulations, reducing legal risks and protecting the business from non-compliance penalties. Differences Between Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable: 1. Nature and Classification: Accounts Payable: Represents money owed by the company to suppliers and is classified as a liability. Accounts Receivable: Represents money owed to the company by customers and is classified as an asset. 2. Financial Impact: Accounts Payable: Increases when a company purchases goods or services on credit, impacting expenses or inventory accounts. Accounts Receivable: Increases when a company makes credit sales, impacting revenue and accounts receivable balances. 3. Management Focus: Accounts Payable: Focuses on managing payment terms, optimizing cash flow, and maintaining positive supplier relationships. Accounts Receivable: Focuses on credit policies, timely invoicing, collections management, and reducing bad debts. Conclusion: Outsourcing Accounts Payable and Receivable are integral components of financial management that require careful attention to optimize cash flow, manage working capital, and maintain positive relationships with suppliers and customers. Outsourcing accounts payable services and Outsourcing accounts receivable services to specialized providers offers strategic advantages, including cost savings, efficiency gains, scalability, and enhanced compliance. By leveraging outsourcing, businesses can streamline operations, focus on core competencies, and achieve sustainable growth in today’s competitive business environment. Recent Posts Understanding the difference between Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivables July 2, 2024 What are Management Accounts? April 24, 2024 The Essential Checklist: What to Consider Before Partnering with an Accounting Outsourcing Firm November 11, 2023 Archives Categories
What are Management Accounts? While management accounts may seem like a familiar concept, their true understanding might not be as widespread as assumed. Let’s delve into clarification. Management accounts refer to financial reports crafted specifically for business owners and managers, typically generated on a monthly or quarterly basis. These reports commonly consist of a Profit & Loss statement and a Balance Sheet. Although they bear similarities to Year End accounts, management accounts are characterized by their informality and customization to suit the user’s needs. For an example of Affinity Outsourcing’s management accounts, please refer to the following link: https://affinityoutsourcing.net/services/management-account-outsourcing/ Who Produces Management Accounts? In the UK, there are a total of 5.7 million businesses. It may come as a surprise that 98% of these businesses employ 20 staff members or fewer, while 96% have 10 employees or fewer. Even more striking is the fact that 75% of these businesses consist of only one person. Despite this large percentage, only a small fraction of these businesses within the 98% category actually utilizes management accounts Why Do a Significant Number of Businesses Lack Management Accounts? There are various factors contributing to this: Lack of interest Oversight or never being properly considered Size deemed too small Incorrectly perceived as too small (when they’re not) Simply not initiated Absence of a formal accounting system Assumption of insufficient or inadequate in-house expertise Concerns about complexity Viewed as unnecessary Believed to be unaffordable Overwhelmed with other responsibilities, feeling too busy While it’s true that some businesses may genuinely be too small or straightforward to necessitate detailed management accounts, they can still benefit from at least a basic quarterly summary and comparison with previous periods. In subjective terms, a turnover of £100,000 may not be considered too small to derive value from some level of detail. One prospective client, upon reviewing a sample of our management accounts, remarked, “I would give the world for that information.” Explore our service offerings here.” What Do Most Businesses Do and The Result? It’s quite common for businesses to overlook the production of management accounts altogether. Many operate without a clear understanding of their financial performance, relying instead on assumptions that often prove inaccurate. For instance, consider an Estate Agent with branches in three towns; when asked about the profitability ranking among their offices, the owners had no concrete data and resorted to estimation. Subsequently, when proper management accounts were implemented, they discovered their assumptions were far from accurate. Typically, businesses track their sales, monitor their order book, and may have a vague understanding of their bank balance. However, beyond these basic metrics, they lack insight into their profitability, the relative performance of different business segments, overhead costs, and fail to compare performance over time. This lack of basic financial information leaves them vulnerable to underperformance or being blindsided by unforeseen challenges, such as cash flow shortages. Moreover, the absence of proper financial information increases the risk of overtrading, where businesses expand sales too rapidly, depleting cash reserves or working capital. This scenario often catches business owners off guard, leading to financial distress. Timely and accurate financial information would highlight such issues, enabling corrective action before it’s too late. Even when management accounts are produced, they may fail to provide essential insights. For example, a consultancy firm with multiple projects totalling £4 million in revenue lacked individual project profitability data, hampering their financial control and decision-making. In our 15 years of experience, we frequently encounter clients facing challenges related to their management accounts, ranging from delays in reporting to inadequate quality. If you’re committed to enhancing profitability, it’s crucial to receive timely, relevant information tailored to your business’s specific needs, determined by you and your team. It’s essential to take ownership of this process to extract the maximum benefit from the information available. Addressing issues surrounding management accounts may seem daunting, but in our experience, they are often straightforward to resolve and immensely valuable. It’s imperative not to adhere blindly to inherited reporting formats without evaluating their suitability. Circumstances change over time, necessitating adjustments to reporting practices to align with evolving business needs. This principle applies equally to charities, where having accurate financial information is paramount, given the personal liability of trustees. A significant improvement in reporting systems involves segmenting the Profit & Loss report according to different business segments, as exemplified by Affinity Outsourcing’s separate reporting for Bookkeeping with Management Accounts and Payroll. This approach allows for a clearer understanding of each business’s performance and profitability. One of the most challenging hurdles to overcome is acknowledging a lack of understanding. Service providers can assist in this process, but ultimately, it’s up to individuals to confront this reality and seek assistance where necessary. Who Uses Management Accounts? owners/managers investors banks/lenders factoring/invoice discounting accountants tax planners Why Produce Them? Operating a business without management accounts is akin to navigating a vehicle in the dark. You might gauge your speed by the wind noise and vibrations (representing sales), but without visibility, you’re unaware of your direction (profitability) and impending obstacles (cash shortages and liquidity issues). Many businesses lack insight into their profitability, margins, and trends. However, it’s crucial to consider why these matters. The fundamental principle is that what can be measured can be improved. Therefore, if increasing net profit is a goal, the importance of management accounts becomes clear. Financial reporting serves several key objectives: Assessing past performance to inform improvement strategies. Preventing cash flow challenges and managing liquidity effectively. Providing insight into future prospects. Identifying areas of focus to enhance profitability. Management accounts furnish the necessary information to evaluate the performance of each aspect of the business, enabling informed decision-making to drive future success. Some Specific Reasons for Producing Management Accounts Assess the gross margin percentage, calculated by dividing the gross profit (sales minus direct costs) by the sales value, excluding VAT. This metric allows for benchmarking against peers in the industry, tracking performance over time, and taking proactive steps to enhance profitability. Implementing
What to Consider Before Partnering with an Accounting Outsourcing Firm In the current financial climate, UK accounting and bookkeeping firms face a myriad of challenges, from navigating complex tax laws to managing an increasingly global clientele. Outsourcing accounting tasks can be an attractive solution, offering both flexibility and access to a pool of skilled professionals. However, not all outsourcing partnerships are created equal. Before taking the plunge, it’s critical to vet potential outsourcing firms thoroughly. Here’s an essential checklist to guide you through the process. 1. Accreditation and Compliance Knowledge Ensure that the outsourcing firm has the necessary accreditations and a deep understanding of UK accounting and tax regulations. They should be proficient in HMRC practices, GAAP, and other relevant frameworks to maintain compliance and uphold standards. 2. Expertise and Specializations Assess the range of services offered. Does the firm have expertise in your specific areas of need, such as VAT, corporation tax, or payroll services? Their specialists should align with your firm’s and your clients’ needs. 3. Technology and Software Proficiency The right partner should utilize the latest accounting software and be adaptable to the technologies you employ. This synergy in technology will ensure seamless integration of workflows and data security. 4. Communication and Collaboration Effective communication is the linchpin of any successful partnership. The outsourcing firm should demonstrate clear, responsive communication channels and a willingness to collaborate closely with your team. 5. Scalability and Flexibility Your outsourcing partner should be able to scale services up or down in response to your business cycles. This flexibility allows you to manage client demands without incurring unnecessary costs during quieter periods. 6. Reputation and Track Record Research the firm’s reputation within the industry. Testimonials, case studies, and reviews from other UK firms can provide insight into their track record and reliability. 7. Data Security and Confidentiality With cyber threats on the rise, ensure that the outsourcing firm has robust security protocols in place to protect sensitive client data. Inquire about their data security certifications and confidentiality policies. 8. Cost Structure and Transparency Analyze the cost structure of the outsourcing firm. Are the pricing models transparent and predictable? Understand how their billing works—whether it’s a flat-fee, per-hour, or a variable cost model. 9. Cultural Fit and Values The firm’s corporate culture should complement your own. A partner with similar values and work ethic can foster a smoother, more efficient working relationship. 10. Strategic Support and Advisory Services Beyond day-to-day accounting, the right accounting outsourcing service partner should be able to provide strategic advice to help you navigate business decisions and support your growth ambitions. Summary Selecting the right outsourcing firm is a critical decision that can have far-reaching implications for your practice’s efficiency, growth, and client satisfaction. By carefully considering each item on this checklist, you can embark on a partnership that not only meets but exceeds your expectations. Affinity Outsourcing stands ready to be evaluated against these criteria, confident in its ability to meet the high standards required by UK accounting and bookkeeping firms. Recent Posts What are Management Accounts? April 24, 2024 The Essential Checklist: What to Consider Before Partnering with an Accounting Outsourcing Firm November 11, 2023 Unlocking Financial Efficiency: How UK Accounting Firms Can Thrive with Outsourced Services November 11, 2023 Archives Categories