Freelancing?

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what are peoples experiences of freelancing in ICT?

h

 

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Im not sure what you mean by ICT but I use to Freelance IT work and I hated every stinking minute of it. Working in a corporate environment is so much better in my opinion. You have more control over things. When you do work for peoples personal computers (assuming thats what your speaking of) you are not in control of anything and people are very particular. And if something breaks guess who's fault it is? And if they dont quite like your work often times you dont get paid.

 

I assume by freelance you mean IT Contracting?

I've contracted for years and it certainly does have it's benefits
The financial side of contracting can be a big incentive but people shouldn't just rush into it without doing their home work.

You'll need a good interview technique, great communication skills, and a feel for financial managment.

Plan for your tax liability, a realistic period of downtime each year for when you're out of work, and learn how to network [marketing not cisco].

On the downside you'll spend a lot of time interviewing, you'll likely spend a fair amount of time away from home, and you'll have times when you're out of work for a significant amount of time.

I'm in a period of downtime now [three months and counting], so be sure you can make your money last.

 

The positives are more money (up front pay & possibility to write more off) and the opportunity to change projects often. In one contract you might be re-designing a corporate network; in the next it might be implementing an IPT system; and the next could be designing a data center. So this is a good option if you like change often.

Negatives:
- Contractors are usually let go before the regular staff – less legality in getting rid of a contractor
- No benefits (that’s why the pay is padded)
- No guaranteed longevity (some would say regular staff don’t have a guarantee either)
- Possible long periods of unemployment (between contracts)
- Education is the sole responsibility of the contractor

 

The self-employment penalty is my biggest complaint. I like to call it the "you're not a good commie" tax.

 

Tell me about it.

• 22% income tax
• 12.8% employers national insurance
• 11% employees national insurance

I believe in paying taxes to improve the standard of living for everyone but it feels like I'm being bled dry sometimes.

 

May be your accountant should claim more expenses and keep you on a lower director salary in your company ? However that's bad for credits, motrgages etc ... shoild probably find the optimum

Considering some offshore services might also be in help ...

 

I gave up my Ltd Company because it wasn't worth the hassle. Had I been outside of IR35 then it would have been worth it but sadly I wasn't.

I did claim for reasonable expenses but even so what I was paying in taxes was more than a pound of flesh. The tax man always wins ....