Client Needs Assessment What Does Your Business Actually Need?
Tick the areas that apply to you and only the relevant questions appear. Company formation, VAT, payroll, Self Assessment, CIS and more. At the end you get a clear picture of what your business needs and how urgently, so the first conversation with us starts in the right place.
It takes about ten minutes, it is free, and there is no obligation at the end of it.
All results from these tools are estimates based on current UK rates and thresholds. Tax rules and rates change, and individual circumstances vary. Please confirm any figure with a qualified adviser at WPC Accountants before relying on it.
What this assessment does
Most people who contact an accountant know something is not right but cannot name it. They know the returns are late, or that VAT is coming, or that the last accountant stopped answering the phone. This assessment builds that list. It is based on the questions our accounts team works through when taking on a new client, put into a form so you can do it in your own time. You tick the areas that apply to you and only those questions appear, so a sole trader is never asked about payroll and a charity is never asked about CIS. At the end you get a summary of what you need and how soon, and we get enough to give you real answers on the first call instead of asking the same questions again. If you just want to know whether your compliance position needs attention, our Business & Compliance Fit Check takes about two minutes. This assessment is the detailed version, for when you already know you need help and want the right conversation first time.
The eleven areas we cover
You do not need to know which of these you need. Tick anything that sounds like your situation and the form will work the rest out. If none of these quite describes your situation, tick the closest and use the box at the end to tell us in your own words.
Company Formation
Setting up a limited company, choosing the right structure, registering with Companies House and HMRC.
Annual Accounts & Corporation Tax
Year end accounts for Companies House and the Corporation Tax return for HMRC.
Bookkeeping
Keeping the underlying records straight month by month, so nothing is a scramble at the year end.
VAT
Registration, returns, choosing a scheme, and dealing with going over the £90,000 threshold.
Payroll
Running PAYE, reporting to HMRC on or before each payday, pensions and statutory pay.
Self Assessment
Personal tax returns for sole traders, directors, landlords and drivers.
CIS
Construction Industry Scheme registration, monthly returns, deductions and refunds.
Company Secretarial
Confirmation statements, registers, share changes, director and registered office updates.
Switching Accountant
Moving to us from your current accountant, including getting your records handed over. See below.
Software Support
Getting set up on accounting software and using it properly, including for Making Tax Digital.
General Business Health Check
A wider look at how the business is doing rather than just what has to be filed.
How it works
- 1
Tell us who you are
Your name, email and phone, and what kind of business you are: individual, sole trader, partnership, limited company, LLP, charity or start-up.
- 2
Tick the areas you need help with
Any of the eleven. The form then shows only the questions that belong to what you ticked, so it stays as short as your situation allows.
- 3
Answer the questions and tell us how urgent it is
There is a free text box at the end for anything that does not fit a question. People often write the most useful thing there.
- 4
Get your summary
You see what you need and how urgently. A member of the team follows up, already knowing what the conversation is about.
What actually happens when you move
This is one of the eleven areas, and it is the one people worry about most. In practice it is one of the more straightforward things we do, and you do very little of it.
| Step | Who does it | What it involves |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | You | Tell your current accountant in writing that you are moving. A short email is enough and you do not have to give a reason. |
| 2 | Us | We write to them for professional clearance, the standard courtesy letter between accountants asking whether there is any reason we should not act, and requesting your records. |
| 3 | Them | They confirm and hand over your accounts, tax computations, payroll records and anything else we need. |
| 4 | You and us | You authorise us with HMRC so we can act on your behalf for the taxes that apply to you. |
| 5 | Us | We check what has actually been filed against what should have been, and tell you if anything is outstanding. This is where problems usually surface. |
You do not need your old accountant’s permission to leave, and they cannot refuse to release your records because you are moving. If fees are genuinely outstanding they may be able to hold certain documents until they are paid, which is worth knowing before you start.
When is the best time to switch?
Just after your year end is the cleanest, because a whole set of accounts moves across in one piece rather than being split between two firms. But it is not the only time, and it is rarely a reason to wait. If your returns are late, or your current accountant has stopped responding, or you are heading into a deadline with no idea whether anything has been filed, the best time is now. Waiting for a tidy moment while a penalty clock runs is the most expensive form of politeness there is. What we would avoid is switching in the last two weeks of January, when Self Assessment season means nobody has the time to do a handover properly.
Setting up a new company
If you tick Company Formation, the form asks whether you have registered yet, what structure you need, what the business will do, when you plan to start trading, and whether you are planning to apply for a Skilled Worker sponsor licence, because sponsorship changes several things about how a company should be set up and how the director should be paid. Registering a company at Companies House costs £100 online and is usually done within 24 hours, or £124 by post taking 8 to 10 days. Registering is the quick part: what follows matters more, registering for Corporation Tax with HMRC normally within three months of starting to do business, setting up PAYE if you will employ anyone, and watching turnover against the £90,000 VAT threshold. The question that costs people money is not how to register, it is whether a limited company is the right structure at all, which is worth ten minutes of conversation before you spend £100. Companies House fees on GOV.UK Those fees changed on 1 February 2026, so older guides quote lower figures.
If you are closing a company
There is a box at the top of the form for this, and ticking it takes you straight to a contact form rather than through the rest of the questions. Closing a company involves specific legal and tax steps, including final accounts, deregistering with HMRC, distributing what is left and formally striking off or liquidating, which is not something we can assess through a form. Take money out in the wrong way and it is taxed as income rather than capital. Strike off with assets still in the company and they can pass to the Crown. Strike off with a debt outstanding and a creditor can have the company restored. Please get in touch and we will walk you through it. closing a limited company on GOV.UK
What your result means
Each area you tick is assessed on its own, and the answers combine into one overall priority. It is a priority rating, not a mark out of ten, and it is never a price.
| Result | What it means |
|---|---|
| You look well set up | The areas you have told us about look well covered. Nothing here is urgent. We will still get in touch to go through the summary with you, because the useful conversations are often about what is coming next rather than what is wrong now. |
| Some areas need attention | Most of your position is in order, but there are one or two areas that would benefit from attention in the next few weeks rather than the next few months. None of it is alarming. |
| Needs a closer look | There are things here that need attention soon. That is a common position and it is fixable, but the sooner we look at it the more options you have. We will be in touch quickly. |
What this assessment is not
- It is not a quote. It gives an indicative priority only. A member of the team will follow up with proper pricing once we have read your answers. Our pricing starts from £99, and the final fee depends on your circumstances and on the volume and complexity of your transactions.
- It is not advice. It is a structured way of finding out what you need. Advice comes after someone has looked at your actual position.
- It is not a commitment. Completing it does not sign you up to anything, and if we are not the right fit we will say so.
- It does not replace the conversation. It makes the conversation shorter and more useful, which is the point.
This gives an indicative priority only, not a fee. A member of the team will follow up with a proper quote once we have reviewed your answers. Your details will be used to contact you about your enquiry and will not be passed to anyone outside the WPC group.
Frequently asked questions
- Tell your current accountant in writing that you are moving. Your new accountant then writes to them for professional clearance, which is the standard letter between firms asking whether there is any reason not to act and requesting your records. Your old accountant hands over your accounts, tax computations and payroll records, and you authorise the new firm to deal with HMRC on your behalf. You do very little of it yourself, and you do not need anyone’s permission to leave.
- It is the letter your new accountant sends to your old one when you move. It asks whether there is any professional reason why they should not take you on, and requests the records needed to continue your affairs. It is a courtesy required by the accountancy professional bodies rather than something you have to arrange, and in most cases you never see it.
- They cannot refuse simply because you are leaving. Where fees are genuinely outstanding, they may be entitled to hold certain documents until they are paid, so it is worth checking whether anything is owed before you start. Records that belong to you, such as your own invoices and bank statements, should always come back to you.
- Just after your financial year end is the cleanest, because a whole set of accounts moves across in one piece. But if your returns are late or your current accountant has stopped responding, the best time is now, since waiting while a penalty clock runs costs more than the awkwardness saves. The one period to avoid is the last two weeks of January, when Self Assessment season means nobody has time to do a handover properly.
- There is no legal requirement to use one. There is a legal requirement to file accurate accounts and returns on time, and most directors find that easier and cheaper with help than without. The genuine question is not whether you need an accountant but which parts you want to hand over. Some clients give us everything, others just the year end and keep their own bookkeeping.
- Registering at Companies House costs £100 online, with the company usually registered within 24 hours, or £124 by post taking 8 to 10 days. Those fees changed on 1 February 2026, so older guides quote less. The registration is the cheap part. The more important question is whether a limited company is the right structure for you at all, which is worth a conversation before you spend anything.
- Register for Corporation Tax with HMRC, normally within three months of starting to do business. Set up PAYE if you are going to employ anyone, including yourself as a director taking a salary. Watch your turnover against the £90,000 VAT registration threshold. Open a business bank account and keep it separate from your personal one. And note your filing dates, because the first set of accounts is due 21 months after incorporation and it comes round faster than people expect.
- The administrative side of running a company: filing the confirmation statement each year, keeping the statutory registers up to date, and recording changes to directors, shareholders, share capital and the registered office. It is not glamorous and it is easy to forget, which is exactly why it gets missed. A missed confirmation statement can eventually lead to the company being struck off.
- Yes. Getting set up on software is one of the eleven areas in this assessment. It matters more than it used to, because Making Tax Digital for Income Tax requires digital records and quarterly updates for anyone over the threshold, and a spreadsheet will not satisfy it. Having software is not the same as using it properly, and most of the value is in the setup.
- About ten minutes if you tick several areas, less if you only need one or two. You only see the questions that relate to what you have ticked, so a sole trader who needs a tax return answers far fewer than a company that needs formation, payroll and VAT.
- They go to the team who will contact you, so the person who calls already knows what your enquiry is about rather than starting from scratch. We use your details to respond to your enquiry and we do not pass them to anyone outside the WPC group.
- Not from the form. You get an indicative priority rating, and a member of the team follows up with proper pricing once they have read your answers. We would rather look at your actual position than have a form guess at it, because a number produced without understanding the work behind it helps nobody.