What this tool is for

This checker gives you a quick read on whether a contract you are working under, or thinking about taking, is likely to sit inside or outside IR35. You answer a few questions about how the work is done in practice, and the tool weighs up the same sorts of factors HMRC looks at when deciding if someone is genuinely in business on their own account or really working as an employee in all but name.

It is meant as a starting point to help you understand where you stand, not a formal determination or a replacement for professional advice on a specific contract.

Who it is for

It is aimed at UK contractors and freelancers who work through a limited company or personal service company, particularly those taking on engagements with medium or large clients in the private sector, or any client in the public sector, where IR35 rules apply. It is also useful if you are a sole trader weighing up going limited, or a small business owner who wants a sense check before signing a new agreement.

If you are on PAYE as a normal employee, or you run a business with multiple unrelated clients and no single engagement that looks employment-like, IR35 probably is not something you need to worry about, and this tool will not tell you much new.

How it works

You work through a short set of questions covering the main tests: control over how, when and where you work, your right to send a substitute, mutuality of obligation, financial risk, equipment, and how integrated you are into the client's business. At the end you get a plain English summary of which way your arrangement leans, the reasoning behind it, and a note on what that means for how you should be paying tax, including the difference between deemed employment income and normal dividends from your own company. Your answers are not stored or linked to you, so you can run through different scenarios or contracts as many times as you need.