Accountants for Joiners, Builders and Construction Subcontractors

The money side of a construction business

Building work is paid in stages, sometimes with a retention held back for months, and is often subject to CIS deductions on the way in and CIS obligations on the way out if you pay subcontractors. Materials are a large part of every job, suppliers want paying before customers do, and a single late payment can put a small firm under pressure. Good records turn that from a monthly worry into something you can see coming.

Hislop Business Solutions is run by Michelle Hislop, an AAT licensed accountant with more than 15 years in accountancy and over 8 years of hands-on payroll experience. You deal with Michelle directly, and you should never feel like you are bothering her with a question.

What we take care of

• CIS: registration, verifying every subcontractor before you pay them, deductions, monthly returns and the statements you must give them.
• Bookkeeping and software with job costing, stage invoicing and retentions tracked to the day they fall due.
• VAT returns and reverse charge invoicing between VAT-registered construction businesses.
• Self Assessment for sole traders, or company accounts and Corporation Tax.
• Payroll, pensions and holiday pay for employed tradespeople and office staff.
• Year-end work in progress and materials on site valued properly, so the accounts are right.

Points that matter in construction

CIS in both directions

As a subcontractor you have tax deducted at 20% (30% if unregistered) from the labour part of what you are paid, and reclaim or offset it later. The moment you pay another business for construction work, you are also a contractor: you must verify them with HMRC, deduct the right amount, file a monthly CIS return and give each subcontractor a statement. Penalties for late returns add up quickly, so we run the whole cycle for you.

The VAT domestic reverse charge

Since March 2021, most VAT-registered construction services supplied to another VAT-registered business that is reporting under CIS are invoiced without VAT, with the customer accounting for it instead. Work for end users such as householders is charged normally. Each invoice needs the right treatment and wording, and your VAT return changes shape, which is why we set it up in your software rather than leaving it to memory.

Stage payments, retentions and work in progress

Invoicing in stages helps cash flow only if the invoices go out on time and the retentions are chased when they are due. At the year end, materials on site and work done but not yet invoiced have to be valued so that profit lands in the right year. We keep those figures as part of the monthly bookkeeping, not as a year-end guess.

Employees, subcontractors and status

Whether the people on your sites are employees or genuine subcontractors matters for tax, CIS and employment rights, and HMRC looks at the reality rather than the label. If you employ people, payroll and pension auto-enrolment follow, and a training levy may apply depending on the size of your wage bill. We will tell you where you stand before it becomes a problem.

Getting started

The first step is a free, no-obligation conversation about your business. We will suggest the right mix of support and a clear monthly price, and if you decide to go ahead we take care of the handover from your previous accountant or your spreadsheets. Book your free consultation or call 07510 914616.