Sole trading - I'm lost

LegacyUser

I don't know if this is really the right place but I want to be anonymous.

Basically I've been made redundant.
I was a Web Developer for a company.
They still have some clients and are willing to pay me on a freelance basis as are a few other companies I've done interviews with.
I've been trying to get a new job since November and basically this is what it's come to so I have to become a sole trader to make any living it at all and I'm lost.
I don't have the money to seek professional advice and no one seems to get what I'm asking.

One friend says he just files his own tax returns through the revenue website and that works out for him.
Other people have told me I need to "register" as a sole trader and others have told me I "might" need to register for VAT.
I don't understand any of that.
What is the treshold for VAT i.e: how much do I have to make before I charge that, how will I know?

I'd really appreciate some advice because I'm lost and I really don't know where to look.
I don't want to do this at all I just want a job but I've no choice now.

John_Mc

Have you rang the Revenue helpline? They will tell you the answers to all of these questions, and will be a lot more accurate and reliable than what you'll be told on a message board.

Eoin

Lots of info in the Entrepreneurial & Business Management forum about this sort of stuff.

John Mason

okay, i am hurting my brain trying to remember everything i knew about this for my exams last year :rolleyes:

you have to fill in a tr1 form (you get this on the revenue site)

if are offering a service you are not legally obliged to register for vat until you earn over 37,500e

if you are offering goods for sale, you are not legally obliged to register for vat until earn over 75,000e

EDIT everything you need is on the revenue site

this is the link for self assessment

http://www.revenue.ie/en/business/self-assessment.html

this is the link for registering as a sole trader with the relavent forms

http://www.revenue.ie/en/business/running/registering-tax.html

this link for vat

http://www.revenue.ie/en/tax/vat/full-intro.html

bascially everything you need is on this site.

also i am pretty sure that there is a government agency that helps people set up new business etc. may be try FAS

Webmonkey

irishbird wrote: »

if are offering a service you are not legally obliged to register for vat until you earn over 37,500e

Really? - That' would be great. I'm also like the OP - only I can get jobs but I'm sick of working for people. I've a lot of contract work lined up. So I can actually earn 37,500 euro without declaring any tax?

John Mason

its enterprise ireland

here you go

http://www.enterprise-ireland.com/StartBusiness/

Webmonkey

Thanks very much

John Mason

Webmonkey wrote: »

Really? - That' would be great. I'm also like the OP - only I can get jobs but I'm sick of working for people. I've a lot of contract work lined up. So I can actually earn 37,500 euro without declaring any tax?

NO, NO, NO

you dont have to register for VAT until you earn over 37,500e if you offer a service but you cant charge VAT or claim VAT back.

you still have to pay your taxes - depending on your service you may have to pay up to 35% tax

VAT and CORPORATION TAX are two very different things

this is the link as to how companies are taxed

http://www.revenue.ie/en/business/running/how-is-company-taxed.html

Webmonkey

Thanks, miss read things

Mrs OBumble

irishbird wrote: »

its enterprise ireland

here you go

http://www.enterprise-ireland.com/StartBusiness/

EI are only really interested in business ideas that will grow to a certain size. Designing websites probably isn't going to do that.

Try your County Enterprise Board.