Your accountant files what happened last year. Ask them what your VAT scheme should be this year.
Nasir Rasheed, Director
Contractor accountant in Milton Keynes: the filing done, and the VAT and dividend decisions made early
Contractor accountant in Milton Keynes for IT, engineering and procurement contractors running a limited company, who want the VAT scheme checked, the dividend position forecast, and a reply from the person doing the work.
Contractor books are usually simple: high invoice values, few transactions, very little input VAT. That is exactly why the money is won or lost in the decisions around them, and those decisions rarely get looked at twice. I check them when you join, then again before each year end.
Nexus Tax and Accounting Solutions is a Milton Keynes contractor accountant for established limited companies, run by Nasir Rasheed MAAT AATQB. One monthly fee covers accounts, corporation tax, VAT, bookkeeping, payroll and the director’s self assessment, with VAT scheme review, salary and dividend planning and a corporation tax forecast a month ahead included. Three new clients a month.
Accredited and certified
- Nasir Rasheed MAAT AATQB
- Established 2024
- Three new clients a month
- Milton Keynes · UK-wide remote
What you get with Nexus as your contractor accountant
Your corporation tax known a month before it lands
The bill and your dividend headroom are forecast before the year end, so the money is there and the decision is yours.
VAT charged on the scheme that suits your costs
Standard, flat rate or cash accounting is chosen against your actual purchases, then reviewed when your costs change.
An answer from Nasir, in the same week
You deal with the accountant who does the work, which is why Nexus takes three new clients a month.
Three decisions contractors make without advice, and what they cost
Each of these came up with a contractor who had an accountant already.
- VAT
“I have been on the standard scheme since the day I registered. I reclaim VAT on a laptop and a phone bill.”
Box 4 is nearly empty every quarter. Nobody had compared that position against the flat rate scheme.
- Dividends
“I take the same salary and dividend every month because that is how the accountant set it up when I incorporated.”
The split was right for the turnover four years ago. It has not been tested against this year’s profit.
- Switch
“I am on my fourth account manager in two years, and the last one did not know I was a contractor.”
Nothing was filed late, and nothing was ever advised either. Every year started from scratch.
- Day 90
What changes once the advice is in the room
You stop finding things out after they have happened. The VAT scheme, the salary and dividend split and the corporation tax number are decided before the quarter or the year end, not explained afterwards. You make hiring, pricing and pension decisions on figures you trust.
Quick check · no email
If your accountant cannot tell you whether your VAT scheme is right, what your tax bill will be before it lands, and reply to you this week, you have the wrong accountant
Answer these three about the accountant you have now.
Question 1 of 3
Could they tell you this week whether the flat rate scheme beats standard on your actual costs?
Could they tell you your corporation tax and dividend headroom before the year end, without you asking?
Could they reply themselves this week, instead of passing you to another account manager?
That is a real gap, and it is costing you money quietly rather than loudly. The set-up review is where it gets checked and written down.
Your position is reasonable, so this is about one area rather than a rebuild. The VAT scheme is usually the one worth testing first, as it was for the consultant below.
You are well served, and switching would gain you little. Read the flat rate guide and keep your accountant honest with it.
Where a filing-only accountant and a contractor accountant differ
A year-end accountant does real work, and for some contractors that is enough. Here is what each one covers.
The year-end accountant
Accounts and the CT600 filed on time, usually correctly.
VAT returns submitted on whichever scheme you registered on.
You hear from them after the year end, when the numbers are already history.
Advice exists, billed by the hour, if you know what to ask for.
Nexus
Accounts, corporation tax, VAT, bookkeeping, payroll and your self assessment in one monthly fee.
VAT scheme chosen on your real costs, then reviewed as those costs change.
Corporation tax and dividend headroom forecast a month before the bill.
Advice included on a fair-use basis, from Nasir, not a rotating account manager.
Eight things worth checking in your own set-up
Answer yes or no for your company as it stands today.
- 01
Has anyone compared flat rate against standard VAT on your actual costs?
If not, this is the first thing the set-up review looks at for contractors.
- 02
Do you know your corporation tax number before the year end?
Knowing it a month ahead means you can still act on it.
- 03
Has your salary and dividend split been reviewed since you incorporated?
Profit moves every year, so the split that suited year one rarely suits year four.
- 04
Do you know how much dividend headroom you have right now?
Taking more than the reserves allow creates a problem that surfaces at year end.
- 05
Are your books current, rather than boxed up for January?
Current books are what make a pricing or hiring decision possible in the moment.
- 06
Is payroll running on schedule with the pension side handled?
Director payroll is small work that costs real money when it drifts.
- 07
Do you speak to the same person every time you call?
Repeating your business history to a new account manager is time you are paying for.
- 08
Is advice part of your fee, or billed when you ask?
If asking a question costs you money, you will stop asking questions.
What Nexus runs for a contractor limited company
One monthly fee, with the planning included rather than sold separately.
Accounts, corporation tax and VAT
Year-end accounts, the CT600, confirmation statement and VAT returns, prepared from books that reconcile.
Payroll, pensions and your self assessment
Director payroll run on schedule, with the salary and dividend plan behind it and your personal return handled as part of the routine.
VAT scheme review and tax forecasting
The scheme decision, the dividend position and a corporation tax forecast a month before the bill, included on a fair-use basis.
Entry 01
What one scheme change did for a procurement consultant
One contractor, one review, one change, and the VAT bill fell every quarter after it.
Clients described by type. Names withheld.
What clients say
How a contractor company moves across to Nexus
Four stages, and you chase nobody.
Your old accountant is dealt with for you
Professional clearance and records collection are handled by Nasir, not by you.
You know what to change and why
Structure, VAT scheme, salary and dividends and software are reviewed and written up, even where nothing needs changing.
Your numbers are current when a decision comes up
Bookkeeping and payroll run to a routine, so the figures are ready before you need them.
Your tax position is forecast, not announced
Corporation tax and dividend headroom are projected ahead of the year end, with a check-in every few months after that.
Who Nexus is not the right accountant for
Contractors in their first year or two of trading, still finding their level.
Sole traders under £150,000 turnover, where incorporation is not yet the obvious move.
Property-only landlords and cash businesses.
Owners buying on price alone, who want filing and no conversation.
If you are an established contractor company, the set-up review will tell you plainly whether there is anything to fix.
Questions contractors ask before they move
What does a contractor accountant in Milton Keynes include in the monthly fee?
One monthly fee covers year-end accounts, the corporation tax return, the confirmation statement, VAT returns, bookkeeping, payroll and pensions, and the director’s self assessment. Proactive planning is included on a fair-use basis: VAT scheme selection, salary and dividend planning, and a corporation tax forecast a month before the bill lands. The fee is scoped after Nasir has reviewed your set-up.
We already have an accountant. Is it worth switching?
Only if something is missing. If your current accountant can confirm your VAT scheme is right, give you the tax number before the year end, and reply to you within the week, stay where you are. If none of that happens, the set-up review will show you what it is costing before you commit to anything.
Do we have to move accounting software to join Nexus?
Usually no. Software is one of the four things reviewed when you join, alongside structure, VAT scheme and pay, and Nasir will tell you if what you use is fine. A change is only suggested when the current set-up is creating work or leaving the numbers out of date.
What happens with our current accountant when we move?
Nasir handles the handover. Professional clearance is requested, your records are collected, and you are not left chasing your old firm for files. From there you get the set-up review and a timetable for the first year, so you know what is due and when it will be dealt with.
Do I need a contractor accountant in Milton Keynes if I work on client sites elsewhere?
No. Nexus is based in Milton Keynes and works with contractor companies across the UK remotely, so meetings in person are rarely needed. Local clients come from Milton Keynes, Bletchley, Newport Pagnell, Stony Stratford, Bedford, Northampton and Leighton Buzzard, but the service is the same wherever your contracts happen to be.
Is the flat rate VAT scheme better for a contractor?
It depends entirely on what you spend. Contractors with low input VAT, such as consultants whose costs are overseas software and reverse-charge services, often reclaim very little on the standard scheme. The limited cost trader rules can remove the benefit, so the comparison has to be run on your own figures before anything changes.
Three ways to take the next step
Take the two-minute quiz
It tells you whether Nexus is the right fit, and if it is, the set-up review is where your structure, VAT scheme and pay get checked.
See if Nexus fits your company 02 · A question firstWant to ask something first?
Send the question to Nasir and you get the answer from him, not a callback from a sales team.
Ask Nasir a question 03 · Still decidingStill deciding
The flat rate guide shows how the scheme comparison works, so you can test your own position before you speak to anyone.
Read the flat rate guide →