When it comes to umbrella vs limited company, each option has its unique advantages and drawbacks that contractors should take into account when making their decision. To help, Umbrella Supermarket has put together this handy guide explaining the pros and cons of each option, to help every contractor make the right choice.
Umbrella vs Limited Company: Your Options Explained
Firstly, let’s look at what the two options look like.
One route contractors can take is to operate under an umbrella company.
Under the umbrella route, contractors are employed by an umbrella company who puts them on their payroll. The contractor sources and secures their own work, but is then paid a salary by the umbrella company who consequently deducts the tax and National Insurance owed by the contractor under the PAYE system.
As the contractor is employed by the umbrella company, they, in turn, receive the same statutory benefits enjoyed by all employees, including sick pay, holiday pay, a workplace pension and maternity or paternity leave.
In exchange for these services and range of benefits, the contractor pays the umbrella company a fee.
That’s what the umbrella route involves, so what does working under a limited company look like?
With the limited company route, a contractor sets up their own company and is therefore self-employed. In turn, they are responsible for securing their work and invoicing the client. They will be paid by the client directly, and therefore take on the responsibilities of running a business, inclusive of accounting, admin and paperwork. They will pay tax and National Insurance through self-assessment rather than PAYE.
Those are the two main options, but how can contractors choose the best route for them?
Next, we will look at both the pros and cons of each route to help you decide.
Umbrella Company: Pros
The pros of working under an umbrella company are many and varied. Some of the main pros of this option include:
- Umbrella Companies are typically considered the easiest and most hassle-free way of contracting. Being employed by the umbrella company means the contractor doesn’t need to worry about invoicing clients or chasing up payments. Instead, they can get on with the contract at hand and leave the rest to the umbrella company to sort out.
- Umbrella contractors do not need to worry about filing for self-assessment. Unlike limited company contractors, umbrella contractors pay tax via the PAYE system, arguably the easiest way of doing so. This means no tricky tax calculations required when filing for self-assessment.
- Umbrella contractors receive statutory benefits. Unlike limited company contractors, umbrella contractors receive holiday pay, sick pay, pension contributions and maternity or paternity leave meaning no unpaid leave.
- With this route, contractors do not need to worry about being caught out by IR35. As the contractor is employed by the umbrella company, they are automatically exempt from IR35.