Whether you’re a freelancer or a contractor, whether you travel or work from home, whether you turn over 10k a year or 100,000k a year; you will benefit from the guidance of an accountant.

I am a self employed web developer and look after my own books, however when it comes to tax return time I have a word with my accountant because I know how much he can save me in tax. Recently I saved £1700 in tax just by adding on expenses I didn’t know I could.

There are various benefits to outsourcing accountancy – it saves a lot of headaches and frees up time, so you can work spend that time working and not worrying about invoices and such like.

Expanding on this, there is such a thing as an umbrella company that essentially looks after self employed people as employees. This is beneficial for people in my position because I don’t have to worry about chasing my clients for invoices, and working as a freelancer through recruitment agencies often require the umbrella of a limited company.

Another obvious benefit is that accountancy is done for you with a minimal percentage being taken per job completed. This means you take home a decent amount and don’t have to worry too much about dealing direct with the client in regards to payment matters.

There are various contractor accountants out there, spend a little time looking around for the one that suits you.