Hello,

I am from the UK, and I would love to run my own webhosting company. The only problem I currently face, is TAX.

My questions.

As a sole trader, do you pay tax at the end of the year? (my dads self employeed and he dose)
Is the Tax 17.5%?
What are the rules on tax out side of the UK? Europe?, USA? Asia? ect
Do you have to make x amount to pay tax?
What about VAT...This is the one that could be 17.5%?

What happens if the servers are overseas, but Im running everything from the UK?

I have looked, left right and centre, at http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/ but I didnt seem to find what I was looking for.

If you dont earn X amount, dose someone top up your income? or is that child benifits?

It's my understanding that you have to charge VAT. I'd still consult an accountant just to be sure.

As a sole trader you'll have to pay your personal tax, which is based on your income. Plus National Insurance.

You do not have to charge VAT until you are VAT registered.

No one is going to top up your income if you are only earning a certain amount, and child benefits are for when you have kids yourself.

Please also bear in mind that until you are 18 you cannot enter a contract to provide a service (not quite sure how old you are).

As a sole trader you'll have to pay your personal tax, which is based on your income. Plus National Insurance.

You do not have to charge VAT until you are VAT registered.

No one is going to top up your income if you are only earning a certain amount, and child benefits are for when you have kids yourself.

Please also bear in mind that until you are 18 you cannot enter a contract to provide a service (not quite sure how old you are).

Im 18, is the tax 17.5%?

Im 18, is the tax 17.5%?
No VAT is 17.5%
Personl Tax rates depend on the level of your income, and can be as high as 40% Income tax plus 12% National Insurance. Then think about putting at least 10% into a pension and plan to live on 35% or less of your actual salary, saving the remainder for the bad times.

For the acurate levels and %ages check the HMCR websites, figures quoted are "rounded" to save me looking them up.

It is all very confusing...

VAT is 17.5% which your not liable for until your yearly turnover exceeds £60,000.

VAT is applicable to Uk residents and in some cases EU residents , if your clients are American , I do not think they have to pay VAT , But I highly suggest consulting an Accountancy firm as well as a Lawyer for other areas.

Dont they cost?

It is all very confusing...

I would recommend you spend an hour with an accountant before going any further.

Dont they cost?

Of course they cost. Nothing in this world is free.

An accountant will give you better advice than your local revenue office.

I am afraid they do cost a great deal , But this is a business and this industry is the same as many others , you do need accountants and lawyers .Its just that alot of people in this industry seem to think its a get rich scheme or that you don't need these things , Wait till the taxman comes knocking or you have legal issues.

As far as I am aware what I said before is correct , but do get advice.

Ok, I am now looking into accountants, and lawyers.

Also, can anyone help with this topic, http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showthread.php?t=619339 I dont have a clue on how to network blade servers up.

I'm almost 98% sure that your US Clients don't have to pay VAT

Ok, I am now looking into accountants, and lawyers.

Also, can anyone help with this topic, http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showthread.php?t=619339 I dont have a clue on how to network blade servers up.

Perhaps you should consider becoming a doctor/surgeon?

I think you have about the same level of experience in both the web hosting, and the medical fields by the way this post (and the one you're referencing) reads.


“A fool and his money are soon parted.”

Im just new to running a business.

I have never used blade servers, but i am a very quick learner

You got a hell of a lot of learning to do kiddo.

are there any tutorials that you can recommend i use?

Go get a job at a successful webhosting company for a few years. Learn as much as you can from them, and figure out what areas they are doing things well in and what areas you could do things better.

Write down a proper business plan.

That step alone would cover most of the basic questions you're trying to ask here. But, you still seem to be hoping that someone else will do it for you.

A 2 second google search on "topics a business plan should cover" resulted in:
"First, here is what a standard business plan should cover:
* The company (its legal formation, history, ownership).
* What it sells (the product or service).
* The market (including size of market, growth, and trends).
* The plan (sales forecast, sales and marketing strategy, milestones, assumptions, and tasks). - The management team (organization structure, managers´ backgrounds).
* Financial analysis (cash flow, profitability, balance, returns)."

I'm sorry, but that sort of level of research doesn't mean asking on a free forum, "Do y'all make good money?" type questions. :)