Why IR35 is important to agencies

Although contractors are ultimately responsible for ensuring their employment status, with the increased activity within HMRC regarding the legislation, agencies are now being required to consider IR35 as well.

Ultimately, having compliant contractors creates a happy working environment all round with less worries and stress to the contractor, which ultimately will help them work more efficiently for the end client.

Showing your own duty of care to your contractors by offering them advice and guidance and to show your understanding of their needs for IR35 compliancy, will also attract a higher calibre of contractors and in turn, clients.

Here are some helpful pointers of what you can do as an agency;

• Offer IR35 compliant contracts

• Having an IR35 compliant contract with the ‘Qdos IR35 Compliance Badge’ will reduce waiting time for contractors to have their contract reviewed by specialists or requesting changes

• Ensure both contractors and clients have the relevant information available

• Offering both contractors and clients some basic guidance will create a mutual understanding and the Qdos dedicated team are always at hand to help

• Ensure there are no discrepancies between the PSC contract and the client contract

• Although generally the contractor will never see the client contract, HMRC can now request this, so it is important to ensure the contracts mirror each other

Qdos are always at hand to help with any IR35 queries, and offer IR35 insurance for those contractors who wish to have total peace of mind.

As an agency, you have two sides of the coin to look after, the PSC and the client. A lot of contractors will turn to their agency for advice, particularly if they are just starting out. Having Qdos on board will alleviate this responsibility from you to give you more time to do what you do best.