Accountants for Builders in Colchester

CIS refunds, Self Assessment and construction VAT handled properly, so you can keep the job moving. No jargon, no surprises, no inflated fees

Built for the building trade

Tax sorted for, Colchester builders without the jargon

Very few builders run one type of job. One month it is an extension or a full refurb billed direct to a homeowner, the next it is subcontract work for a main contractor on a larger site. Those two income streams are taxed differently. Site work for a contractor almost always sits inside the Construction Industry Scheme, with 20 percent taken off your labour before the money reaches you. Work billed direct to a homeowner does not. Mix the two up in your records and you either overpay HMRC or file a return that comes back to bite you.

Colchester is a genuinely mixed construction market. It became a city in 2022, it has a large stock of period and Victorian property inside several conservation areas, and it sits on the A12 between Ipswich and Chelmsford, which puts a lot of subcontract work within an easy drive. Plenty of Colchester builders run a job in the CO postcodes one week and a site over the Suffolk border the next, which means CIS statements from several different contractors, VAT that behaves differently depending on who is being invoiced, and a set of books that gets untidy quickly.

Hammer & Ledger Tax works only with tradespeople and construction businesses. Our office is at 50 Princes Street in Ipswich, roughly eighteen miles up the A12, and we look after builders right across Colchester and north Essex. Almost everything is handled by phone, email and WhatsApp, so taking us on does not cost you a day on site.

WHAT WE HANDLE

Accounting services for builders

Everything a self employed builder or small building company in Colchester needs, under one roof.

CIS Refunds

If contractors deduct 20 percent from your labour under the Construction Industry Scheme, there is a strong chance HMRC owes you money once your expenses and personal allowance are counted. We cross check every CIS statement against what was actually withheld, chase the contractors who never send one, and follow your refund through to your bank account.

CIS refund service

Self Assessment

Your return prepared, checked with you in plain English and filed well before the 31 January deadline, with every allowable cost claimed correctly. We flag any payment on account in advance so nothing lands as a surprise in July.

Tax return service

Bookkeeping

Snap your receipts, we do the rest. Cloud bookkeeping that keeps materials invoices, plant hire, subcontractor payments and CIS statements matched and filed as you go, rather than reconstructed in January.

Bookkeeping service

VAT on construction work.

The domestic reverse charge, zero rating on qualifying new build residential work, and the reduced rate that can apply to certain conversions and to homes that have stood empty for a long period. Getting this wrong is expensive in both directions, so we set your invoicing up correctly from the start.

VAT support

Sole Trader to Ltd

Once profits build, a limited company can save tax, and main contractors often prefer dealing with one. We run your actual figures both ways, show you the difference in pounds, and handle formation and registration if it stacks up.

Ltd company service

Payroll

PAYE and pension auto enrolment for employees, plus subcontractor verification, monthly CIS returns to HMRC and the payment and deduction statements your subbies need from you.

Payroll support

HOW IT WORKS

From glovebox paperwork to filed and refunded

Book a free review

A quick call about your work, your income and what you have been claiming so far. No obligation, no sales pitch.

Send us your records

CIS statements, invoices, receipts, mileage. Photos from your phone are fine. We will tell you exactly what we need.

We prepare and file

Your return prepared by an ACMA qualified accountant, checked with you in plain English, then filed with HMRC.

Refund and support

Any CIS refund chased through to your bank account, and year round support whenever a tax question comes up.

WHY HAMMER & LEDGER TAX

Qualified, authorised and on your side

ACMA Qualified

HMRC Authorised Agent

CIMA Member

Sage Partner

SERVING COLCHESTER

Ipswich office, Essex wide service

Address

50 Princes St, Ipswich, IP1 1RJ

Phone

01473 351038

contact@hammerledger.co.uk

Builders ask us these a lot

How do CIS refunds work for builders?

When you subcontract to a main contractor, they deduct 20 percent from the labour element of your invoices under the Construction Industry Scheme and pay it to HMRC on your behalf. That deduction is a flat figure that ignores your van, tools, plant hire, materials and personal allowance entirely, so by the end of the tax year most subcontractors have paid more than they owe. Your Self Assessment return reconciles the position and the overpayment comes back as a refund.

Does the reverse charge apply to my invoices?

The domestic reverse charge for building and construction services came in during March 2021. Broadly, where a VAT registered business supplies most construction services to another VAT registered business that will supply them on, the supplier does not charge VAT and the customer accounts for it instead. It does not apply where your customer is an end user, such as a homeowner having work done on their own property. We check each of your customers and set your invoice templates up accordingly.

Can new build work be zero rated for VAT?

Qualifying new build residential construction can be zero rated, and certain conversions and renovations of long term empty homes can qualify for a reduced rate. The conditions are specific and the evidence needs to be kept properly, so it is worth checking before you price the job rather than after you have invoiced it.

Should I switch from sole trader to a limited company?

It depends mainly on your profit level, how you take money out of the business and what your contractors expect to see. A limited company can save tax at higher profits but adds filing, cost and stricter rules on drawings. We run your actual numbers rather than working from a rule of thumb.

Do I need to be in Colchester to work with you?

No. Our office is in Ipswich, about eighteen miles away, and most clients never visit. Records come in by phone photo, email or WhatsApp and we handle the rest remotely. We work with builders across Colchester and north Essex, and you are welcome at the office if you would rather sit down with someone.

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