In the current, very fluid situation we thought it would be useful to summarise what help may exist for contractors and contracting companies during the current Covid-19 crisis.
Help available to Contractor Companies
There is a three month postponement of VAT payments, between 20th March and 30th June 2020. This is automatic, ie it doesn’t have to be claimed for, but it is our understanding that Vat returns...
Blog
As most contractors will now be aware, smaller companies (as defined by the Companies Acts) will not have the responsibility of determining the IR35 status of contractors they hire after the April 2020 reforms to IR35. This means that contractors engaged with small companies will continue to be responsible for determining their own IR35 status as now, so Contract Spy believes that finding contracts with these companies will be more highly...
We are thrilled to announce that Contract Spy has been selected as one of the Finalists in the Contracting Awards 2019 in the Best Contractor Innovation Category. The awards, which will be decided in November 2019, will be judged by a panel of industry experts which includes Julia Kermode, the Chief Executive of the Freelancer and Contractor Services Association.
Contract Spy provides an innovative service that enables its members to...
Whilst most contractors would probably like to work direct for their clients rather than through an agency, the fact remains that even in spite of Contract Spy’s success in giving contractors another viable option, most of you reading will still be contracting via an agency.
So is it ever possible to negotiate out of an agency contract, leaving you free to contract direct with the client? Contract Spy believes this is possible, as...
Twenty or so years ago, finding a contract was a much more predictable affair. You would likely have found your next contract via an ad on Jobserve, placed by a large recruitment agency, for an end client who would typically be a large company in financial services, or maybe a large energy or oil company or public body.
Fast forward to 2019 and the picture is a much more mixed one. Analysis of all 3420 directly advertised...
At Contract Spy we have been aware for some time that many direct contractors and happy to sign up to whatever contract their direct client puts in front of them, however this could be a big mistake and have significant repercussions on your status under IR35. Signing up with your client is your big chance to demonstrate, both to HMRC and to your client, that you are “in business on your own account” a strong pointer away from...
Back in the day, the task of finding an IT Contract was a fairly simple one: register with Jobserve, set up a job alert, and wait for the contracts to start rolling in and the phone to ring. For many contractors this approach hasn’t changed in years, but it’s likely to be less effective than it once was, so let’s examine why that might be.
Whilst it is certainly true that Jobserve still has a leading role in...
One astonishing number hidden in the depths of the industry reporting from APSCo in January was the staggering 33% reduction in IT contractors out on contract in November 2018 (as compared with the corresponding month one year earlier). Yes you read it right, and no, it’s not a mis-print – there was a reduction of nearly one-third in the number of IT contractors engaged through APSCo members in November compared to the year...
Your IR35 status will be determined by the client from April 2020 (medium and large companies), rather than by yourself.
Your relationship with the client will therefore assume even more importance than it does currently.
Contractors who go direct and who do not have an agency intermediary in the discussions with the client, may have an advantage in being able to shape the client’s decision...
LinkedIn has certainly captured the imagination of companies who want to advertise their vacancies direct, and has captured a significant part of the directly advertised vacancy market. Its not hard to see why this should be the case, with companies able to host free pages showcasing their products and services, as well as recruitment videos and other info, in the effort to attract both active and passive candidates to their roles.
But...
This article originally published on Contractor Weekly http://www.contractorweekly.com/recruitment-news/how-contractors-can-build-a-direct-client-portfolio/
Building a direct client portfolio is the key challenge for any contractor who wants to contract direct and create a sustainable contracting lifestyle independent of agencies and intermediaries. Creating a portfolio of clients who use your services, and who come...
The general consensus among contractors is that Direct Contract opportunities are few and far between, but with Contract Spy recently announcing that it had found and distributed details of its 10,000 th direct IT Contract via its portal, perhaps the time is right to question the perceived wisdom. So let’s take a brief look at the factors in play, that may make it appear that there are only limited direct contracts available in the...
