I am applying for a permanent residency certificate. I was self employed (director of my limited company) for the last 5 years, and I would really appreciate a few clarifications regarding sufficient evidence of self employment. Any help will be greatly appreciated
Tax and national insurance documents
(a) Income tax documents
I am planning to send tax calculations and self assessment returns. I have tax calculations for all years except one, when I forgot to print it. This is > 4 years ago and HMRC online only allows you to print them for up to 4 years. For this year, the self assessment should cover me, except I do not have formal proof it’s been received by HMRC (which is required). Would providing bank statements (where the tax payment will show) be enough?
(b) National insurance documents
I do not have any of the documents required in the guidance notes; I believe any national insurance is being paid through self assessment although I haven’t been required to pay it every year. Is providing only my SA returns enough? Will this be a problem?
(c) Proof of VAT registration (if applicable):
My company has been voluntarily registered for flat rate VAT. Do i need to provide documents for this section?
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Proof of earnings from self-employment
I am planning to send copies of invoices and statutory accounts together with a letter from my accountant confirming gross/net profit.
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Evidence that business is actively trading
I am planning to send copies of invoices & bank statements. Is this enough? Can you simply print your bank statements using online banking or do you need to provide original bank statements?
I do not have contracts with my customers; I do not buy equipment regularly (have purchased a computer) and I do not pay for advertising. I also don’t want to provide testimonials from my customers unless absolutely necessary.
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In summary, I will send for each year:
- SA returns
- Tax calculations
- Business Bank Statements
- Invoices
- Business statutory accountant
- Letter from accountant
Does this constitute sufficient evidence of self employment?
Many thanks for your help!