Going to work in Dublin as a freelancer. Help?

saramena

Hi everyone,

first of all i apologize if I'm repeting a previous thread, I checked but couldn't find a situation as mine.

I'm from Portugal but I want to move to Dublin, and I was accepted in a videogame british company located in Ireland and they're offering me a contract for freelance/contract work for 3 months.

I want to accept this, but I don't know how Ireland taxes apply with freelancers. Am I considered self-employed and therefore I'll be in Self Assessment system? If so what kind of taxes do I have to pay, I mean, how much percentage should I take off from my monthly fee? Do I need to pay
Employer's PAYE/PRSI, and VAT?

Also I'm going to start working this month, do I still have to pay something at 31st OCtober?

This is getting big, sorry about that and thank you for all the help

srsly78

www.revenue.ie

Use an umbrella company if you just want someone else to deal with your finances - this is expensive tho.

Or run your own operation (whether as a company or as a sole trader) with the help of an accountant. Don't pay more than e1000/year, shop around. Depending on how you structure your enterprise you may or may not have to pay employers prsi, accountant will explain.

It's only worth setting up a company if you actually plan to do lots of trading through it (3 months is not a lot). If you are just experimenting with self-employment then use an umbrella company.

saramena

Thank you for replying and for the link. It does hep a lot.

I have a question though, i don't intend to set up a company, I'm just an independent single person providing a service for a company. How does Ireland deals with those situations? Is that what it is called sole trader?

srsly78

Yes. An accountant will advise you of the differences of sole trader vs company. Company is a lot more hassle that's for sure...

saramena

Ah awesome srsly78, thanks. Good to know I don't have to set up a company :P


Any acountants here that can provide some information while I don't get one?

srsly78

Why didn't you make a portugese company and invoice through that? You can work in Ireland as an employee of your own Portugese company. Probably would work out a lot better for expenses too, but I only know about Irish tax law. This is the kind of tip that it's worth paying for.

saramena

Because I don't have any interest right now to want to make a company either in Portugal or Ireland.

srsly78

You would have lots of interest if you knew the benefits. It might be possible for your company to rent you an apartment for example. Can you see how this would affect your tax situation?

For a Portugese company, this would depend on the Portugese rules about sending workers abroad.

saramena

That is very interesting, thanks. But i'm not looking for that right now.