The Legal Implications of Starting a UK Business

Are you looking to escape the hell that is the typical 9 to 5 work life in 2019? Then, you will likely be seriously considering starting your own business. In doing so, you will be taking charge of your own work potential and ensuring that your income is fully under your control. But, it’s not all sunshine and daisies. Owning your own company and working for yourself also comes with a number of pitfalls. Including those of a legal nature.

And, as such, it is vital that you consider the legal implications of starting your UK business before actually doing so. This can cover some of the following:

Inform HMRC 

The first and arguably the most important thing you need to do to protect yourself legally when starting a business concerns HMRC. The fact is that whether you have a business or not, by working for yourself you will become solely responsible for paying your taxes. Which means that you will need to register, file and manage all of this yourself.

Two options are before you; that of being a sole trader or a business. In both cases, you will have to register and pay your own taxes. But, having a business on top of this makes you responsible for all of the associated business taxes as well. So, remember it requires double the amount of work to do so. Which is why many business owners may employ accountants in order to sort through this for them and make the whole process that much easier.

Register the Business Name

Believe it or not, but you can’t simply call your business whatever you want and expect for that to be the end of it. In a competitive world, everything down to your business name can be a point of contention for your budding business. And for that reason, it is important that you follow everything down to the last letter when it comes to legally registering your business name.

Check Google or Companies House to see if the name you want is available. Once you’ve ascertained that it’s not, then you can register it with Companies House for £12. This also registers you for Corporation Tax, so it kills two birds with one stone! You can also have this done for you, by the like of commercial litigation solicitors.

Once you have a name registered, then you should look to get the domain name, branded items, etc. as then you know the name is set in stone. Don’t do this beforehand as the name may already be taken and you will need to change everything!

Insure Yourself 

Setting up a business isn’t the only legal implications your business needs to address. The fact is that once you start operating as a business, there may be times when you will need to protect yourself in other matters. For example, if someone were to sue you it almost goes without saying that you won’t have the funds to defend yourself off the cuff. In which case, you may need to rely on other sources.

And for this, you will need to ensure you have comprehensive business insurance in place. This can help cover you for accidents, potential legal action taken against you and the like. It is vital for the long-term success of any business.

Check Any Compliance Necessities

Finally, you will need to check if there are any further compliance necessities for your particular business niche. As, if this is the case, you will need to follow these alongside all of the other above legal requirements. You can check with corporate solicitors Manchester in order to ascertain what you need in order to be fully compliant.

On the whole, setting up your business and ensuring you are legally compliant whilst doing so doesn’t have to be difficult. Simply follow all of the guidelines set out before you and you should have a business in no time.