Accountants
What They Can Help You WithAccountants provide a range of services that can assist you both before and after you have taken on your pub. These are some of the areas that they can help you with:
- raising finance;
- preparing profit and cash-flow forecasts;
- advising you on taxation issues;
- advising you on different business structures;
- setting up your business;
- registering you for VAT and tax;
- VAT and tax returns;
- setting up your payroll system;
- providing monthly management accounts;
- preparing your year-end accounts.
Choosing An Accountant
You need to be aware that anyone can call himself or herself an accountant. They may have no formal training or be regulated by a governing body. Professional accountants, on the other hand, are required to sit exams and prove their abilities over several years before qualifying. These are normally ‘chartered’ or ‘certified’ accountants and should be your choice when you want a professional adviser backed by a regulatory body.
Chartered Accountants
In the England and Wales, chartered accountants qualify by passing exams that are set by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW). Chartered accountants can be identified by the letters ACA or FCA after their names. There are similar prerequisites in Scotland
and Ireland where the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS) and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (ICAI) are the respective regulatory bodies.
You can find chartered accountants via the following websites:
Certified Accountants
Certified accountants cover all types of financial work for a variety of organisations. They are identified by the letters ACCA or FCCA after their names. Qualifications are obtained by passing examinations set by the Association of Certified Accountants (ACCA). Though they can qualify without sitting a tax exam paper, many are also qualified as tax advisers. You can find details of certified accountants by visiting the association’s website:
Other Accountancy Qualifications
Management accountants are usually employed by larger organisations and provide managers with information relating to the performance of the business and help with business planning, strategy and budgetary control. They qualify by passing examinations set by their regulatory body, the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA). More information can be found on their website:
www.cimaglobal.comAccounting technicians are not qualified accountants, but are required to pass examinations to be awarded the AAT qualification. They mainly work
in supporting roles and have their own professional body the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT). You can find more details at:
www.aat.co.uk
Taxation Qualifications
A chartered tax adviser (CTA) is a specialist in tax who has passed the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) qualification. Members use the letters CTA, FTII and ATII after their names. They provide specialist advice on taxation. For full details of their services and a members’ directory visit their website:
www.tax.org.uk
Other Factors To Consider When Choosing An Accountant
As in the case of solicitors, it is sensible to choose an accountant who is located conveniently and also has experience in dealing with the licensed trade. Cost will be another aspect to consider and it is worth obtaining quotes from several accountants before finally choosing to appoint one. Your accountant’s bill will be determined by how much work they do for you. If you do most of the day-to-day bookwork and maintain organised records, this will reduce your accountant’s bill.
Monthly Profitability
Many people make the mistake of engaging their accountant only to prepare their VAT returns and handle their year-end accounts and taxation. In this situation, your monthly profitability is not assessed and it can be over 12 months before you know whether you have made a profit or not, by which time it is too late to do anything about it!
A better solution is to ask your accountant to prepare monthly ‘management’ accounts that show your financial position and enable you to make adjustments on an ongoing basis. Though there will be extra costs for this additional service, it is particularly important for new licensees who are finding their feet. The frequency of these reports may be reduced to a
quarterly basis, after the first six months of trading. Alternatively you can prepare these reports yourself if you have the necessary skills. Either way, it is essential to always be up to date with how your business is performing.