| Pages in topic: [1 2] > | Poll: Do you do your own accounting? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Do you do your own accounting?".
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| | | | Lieven Malaise
Belgium
Local time: 14:56
Member (2020)
French to Dutch
+ ...
I've had an accountant from the very beginning and I haven't regretted that decision once. In Belgium tax law is a labyrinth and not having to worry about it at all is very comfortable. I can recommend it to everybody.
| | | | Ana Vozone 
Local time: 13:56
Member (2010)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
| Samuel Murray
Netherlands
Local time: 14:56
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
When I first arrived in my current country, I got a tax company to submit my taxes. They screwed it up and I got audited by the tax authorities as a result. The auditor gave me some very good advice, and a friend of a friend who knows something about tax returns gave me some more tips.
Wait... "own accounting" or "own tax returns"? Do any freelance translators even outsource their accounting? Does "accounting" include invoicing?
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Samuel Murray
Netherlands
Local time: 14:56
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
Ana Vozone wrote:
I have an accountant...
But does your accountant actually DO your accounting, or does he simply check your accounting (or does he simply convert your accounting into a format that makes it easier to submit tax returns)?
| | | | Dan Lucas
United Kingdom
Local time: 13:56
Member (2014)
Japanese to English
| Would not make sense for me | Jan 12, 2023 |
I run my business as a limited company for various reasons. UK law requires such entities to file proper accounts, and there may be other matters to deal with such as VAT and payroll. I have found the UK to be quite business-friendly but I want everything to be done by the book and competently.
I use an accountant because to come close to her level of knowledge and ability I would have to spend many hours of self-study and even then I could not be certain that my decisions were corr... See more I run my business as a limited company for various reasons. UK law requires such entities to file proper accounts, and there may be other matters to deal with such as VAT and payroll. I have found the UK to be quite business-friendly but I want everything to be done by the book and competently.
I use an accountant because to come close to her level of knowledge and ability I would have to spend many hours of self-study and even then I could not be certain that my decisions were correct.
Conservatively, I would need to spend a dozen additional hours a year investigating such issues and implementing solutions to deal with them. The annual opportunity cost of those hours would be very similar to the cost of retaining an accountant, but I would find it far more stressful.
Of course, if you're not that busy, or if you have an interest in accounting, or if your accounting requirements are very straightforward, you may prefer to tackle it yourself.
Me, I see my accountant as a cost of the business, like my internet connection, and I have never regretted paying for her services.
Regards
Dan ▲ Collapse
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I have an accountant and he is worth every euro I pay him. A good accountant will help you save money in ways you couldn't imagine as he knows the labyrinthine system inside out.
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Fully agree with Dan on this. Sure, accountants make mistakes too, but they are much less likely to get our tax return spectacularly wrong than we are if we try to do it unsupported. I do my own invoices though, much as hate admin. I would like to outsource it, but I have not found a way of getting all this complex info about different clients and the idiosyncracies of their invoicing requirements out of my head and into a format that another person could follow. Not even my husband (who is my b... See more Fully agree with Dan on this. Sure, accountants make mistakes too, but they are much less likely to get our tax return spectacularly wrong than we are if we try to do it unsupported. I do my own invoices though, much as hate admin. I would like to outsource it, but I have not found a way of getting all this complex info about different clients and the idiosyncracies of their invoicing requirements out of my head and into a format that another person could follow. Not even my husband (who is my business partner)! We each do our own invoices and then submit everything to the accountant. ▲ Collapse
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neilmac
Spain
Local time: 14:56
Spanish to English
+ ...
I keep a note of all my invoices issued each year. As I'm living and working in Spain, I have a "gestor", who isn't actually an accountant per se (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gestor), and he fills out the required forms and submits my quarterly and annual tax returns for me. His partner in the "gestoría" is a lawyer, which is handy in case I ever need legal advice, which is a very rare occurrenc... See more I keep a note of all my invoices issued each year. As I'm living and working in Spain, I have a "gestor", who isn't actually an accountant per se (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gestor), and he fills out the required forms and submits my quarterly and annual tax returns for me. His partner in the "gestoría" is a lawyer, which is handy in case I ever need legal advice, which is a very rare occurrence.
When I'm talking to people unfamiliar with the Spanish setup, I just say "my accountant", because to all intents and purposes my gestor (often translated as "agent", which I think sounds too grand, as if I was some kind of celebrity) is performing the service that an accountant would in other places. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Lieven Malaise
Belgium
Local time: 14:56
Member (2020)
French to Dutch
+ ...
Samuel Murray wrote:
Does "accounting" include invoicing?
Accounting is bookkeeping, it is what happens after you have invoiced.
| | | | Lieven Malaise
Belgium
Local time: 14:56
Member (2020)
French to Dutch
+ ...
Samuel Murray wrote:
But does your accountant actually DO your accounting, or does he simply check your accounting (or does he simply convert your accounting into a format that makes it easier to submit tax returns)?
You do the invoicing and then you send all your invoices (including purchase invoices) to your accountant who takes care of all the rest there is to do for tax purposes.
[Edited at 2023-01-12 09:44 GMT]
| | | | | No, learned the hard way | Jan 12, 2023 |
At the beginning I did it all myself, then things got so complicated I made some mistakes and the tax authorities were NOT pleased....
My husband's accounts were in a similar state.
Since then we have an accountant who keeps us out of trouble, it's worth the expense.
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A freelance translator's accounts will never be complex enough to justify a bookkeeper.
Money in. Money out. Simples.
Tax returns can be another story, of course.
I ran my business as a limited company for 27 years and had to have an accountant sign off the company accounts by law. He also did payroll and filed tax returns. But I always did the lion's share of the work myself, and he never saved more tax than I paid him in fees. Maybe because I refused to g... See more A freelance translator's accounts will never be complex enough to justify a bookkeeper.
Money in. Money out. Simples.
Tax returns can be another story, of course.
I ran my business as a limited company for 27 years and had to have an accountant sign off the company accounts by law. He also did payroll and filed tax returns. But I always did the lion's share of the work myself, and he never saved more tax than I paid him in fees. Maybe because I refused to go along with some of his more creative ideas, like paying me only dividends or paying my wife for work she didn't do.
I have no problem paying my fair share of tax. I hate it when people try to avoid tax.
Now I no longer have any employees I have gone self-employed and plan to do everything myself. Yes, there is a theoretical opportunity cost, but never in 30 years have I not had any gaps between translation jobs. I also enjoy working with numbers.
I have never had the happy-go-lucky (amateurish?) mentality of people who just put all the bills in an envelope and send it off to an accountant at the end of the year. I like to have a clear record of what my little business is doing. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Anne Maclennan
Local time: 14:56
Member (2010)
German to English
+ ...
| Graduated system | Jan 12, 2023 |
Here there is a system for people starting out in any kind of business. They are known as autoentrepreneurs and have a very simplified tax regime. They remain autoentrepreneur until they earn enough to be liable to charge VAT for their services.
As an autoentrepreneur I did all my own accounting, including submitting tax returns. Your earnings were submitted every three months, which helped to simplify the calculation. The one disadvantage was that as an autoentrepreneur you could ... See more Here there is a system for people starting out in any kind of business. They are known as autoentrepreneurs and have a very simplified tax regime. They remain autoentrepreneur until they earn enough to be liable to charge VAT for their services.
As an autoentrepreneur I did all my own accounting, including submitting tax returns. Your earnings were submitted every three months, which helped to simplify the calculation. The one disadvantage was that as an autoentrepreneur you could not claim expenses.
As soon as I became liable for VAT I found an accountant and I’m glad I did so – it takes a weight off my shoulders. He knows his way around the tax system and when and how to communicate with the tax authorities. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Anne Maclennan
Local time: 14:56
Member (2010)
German to English
+ ...
| Graduated system | Jan 12, 2023 |
Here there is a system for people starting out in any kind of business. They are known as autoentrepreneurs and have a very simplified tax regime. They remain autoentrepreneur until they earn enough to be liable to charge VAT for their services.
As an autoentrepreneur I did all my own accounting, including submitting tax returns. Your earnings were submitted every three months, which helped to simplify the calculation. The one disadvantage was that as an autoentrepreneur you could not cla... See more Here there is a system for people starting out in any kind of business. They are known as autoentrepreneurs and have a very simplified tax regime. They remain autoentrepreneur until they earn enough to be liable to charge VAT for their services.
As an autoentrepreneur I did all my own accounting, including submitting tax returns. Your earnings were submitted every three months, which helped to simplify the calculation. The one disadvantage was that as an autoentrepreneur you could not claim expenses.
As soon as I became liable for VAT I found an accountant and I’m glad I did so – it takes a weight off my shoulders. He knows his way around the tax system and when and how to communicate with the tax authorities. ▲ Collapse
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