Your local growth hub, or its equivalent in Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales, can also point you to regional grants.
Where to get help, and what it should cost you.
Most early-stage business support in the UK is free and publicly funded. This page lists who runs it, what it costs and the paid help worth buying early.
Most early-stage business support in the UK is free: growth hubs in England, Invest NI, Business Gateway in Scotland and Business Wales; free mentoring with a Start Up Loan; ACAS for employment questions; the Pensions Regulator for auto-enrolment. The paid help worth buying early is an accountant, a solicitor and insurance.
Free business support in each UK nation
| Where you are | Who to go to | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| England | Growth Hub Finder | A local network of free advisers, workshops and help finding grants. Quality varies by area. |
| Northern Ireland | Invest NI | Advice, programmes and funding. Several UK-wide tax schemes treat Northern Ireland companies differently. |
| Scotland | Business Gateway | Free local advisers, workshops and start-up guidance. Scottish Enterprise supports companies once they are scaling. |
| Wales | Business Wales | Free advice, business planning tools and information on funding. |
Who to ask about registering and filing
| Obligation | Who | What you need to know |
|---|---|---|
| Register a company | Companies House | £100 online, usually registered within 24 hours. By post it costs £124 and takes 8 to 10 days. |
| Verify your identity | Companies House | Every director and every person with significant control (PSC). Companies House will not accept your confirmation statement until every director has verified their identity. |
| Corporation tax | HMRC | Register within 3 months of starting to trade. The tax is due 9 months and 1 day after your year end, 3 months before the return. |
| VAT | HMRC | Registration is compulsory once taxable turnover passes £90,000 in any rolling 12 months, or is expected to pass it in the next 30 days alone. |
| Employing someone | HMRC | Register for PAYE before the first payday, and no more than two months before it. |
| Workplace pension | The Pensions Regulator | Your duties start on your first employee's first day. Send the Pensions Regulator a declaration of compliance within five months. |
| Data protection fee | ICO | Most businesses that handle personal data must pay it. The fee depends on the size of the business and is lower by direct debit. |
| Employment law | ACAS | Free, impartial advice on hiring and employment. Ask before you act, because employment mistakes are expensive and hard to reverse. |
| Trade marks | IPO | £205 online for one class of goods or services, and £60 for each extra class. Apply before you print anything with the name on it. |
Loans, grants and funding support
- Start Up Loans — personal loans of £500 to £25,000 at a fixed 7.5% a year over 1 to 5 years, with no application or early repayment fee, free help writing a business plan and up to 12 months of free mentoring. Our Start Up Loans page explains how they work.
- Business finance support finder — the government’s list of finance and support schemes, which you can filter by region and business stage.
- UKRI funding finder — open funding from UK Research and Innovation, including Innovate UK competitions. Innovate UK’s open Smart Grants are closed to new applications. The competitions open now are for particular sectors or programmes, or run as Investor Partnerships.
- Swoop — a funding platform where you can compare business loans, grants and other finance. Swoop Finance Limited is a credit broker authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 936513). We may receive a referral fee from Swoop if a facility completes. Our funding page explains how we help you prepare to apply.
Free reading and learning
- Business Stuff — a UK business magazine with news as it happens, practical how-to articles and free calculators, published by Buzz Accounting Ltd.
- Business Nous — a free library of business models and theories, book summaries and profiles of business leaders.
Paid help and what it costs
Three things are worth paying for early. Most other paid help can wait.
An accountant, for anything with a filing deadline or a tax consequence, and for decisions that are expensive to unwind, such as share structure and how you pay yourself. Our monthly fee comes from the instant quote, and our fixed prices for specialist work are published on each service page.
A solicitor, for your shareholders’ agreement, the documents for a funding round and any contract that carries real risk. Template documents are fine for routine contracts.
Insurance, including employers’ liability insurance, which the law requires from your first employee.
Business plan writing services, most grant-finding subscriptions and advisers who charge a percentage of a tax relief are usually not worth paying for at the start.
Common questions
Is any of this free?
Most of it is. Start Up Loans mentoring, the growth hubs in England, Invest NI, Business Gateway in Scotland and Business Wales are publicly funded and free to use. So is advice from ACAS on employment questions and from the Pensions Regulator on auto-enrolment duties. The costs covered on this page are the fees for registering a company and a trade mark, the data protection fee, and the paid help worth buying early.
What is a growth hub?
A growth hub is a local business support service. England has a network of them, funded through government and local partners, offering free advice, local networks, one-to-one time with an adviser and help finding grants. Quality varies by area. Find yours through the Growth Hub Finder linked above. In Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales the equivalents are Invest NI, Business Gateway and Business Wales.
Who do I ask about employment law?
Ask ACAS, the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service, before you act. Its advice is free and impartial, and covers contracts, the written statement of employment particulars due on or before an employee's first day, redundancy, disciplinary processes and disputes. Read its guidance before your first hire, because employment mistakes are expensive and hard to reverse.
Do I need to register with the ICO?
Most businesses that handle personal data must pay the data protection fee to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO). It is a legal requirement, and the fee is tiered by the size of the business. If you hold customer records, run a mailing list or process staff data, assume you need to pay, and check on the ICO's website.
Where does an accountant fit in all this?
We handle the work that carries a legal filing deadline or a tax consequence. Much of what founders pay advisers for early on is available free from the organisations on this page.
