Are you going to kick off your career as limited company contractor? Well, you need highly skilled and professional contractor accountant to handle the financial affairs. It is vital to check that your accountant is competent. How can you choose the right accountant for the exponential growth of your business? Here are the 10 checks to find reliable and efficient professionals:

1. It is advisable to ensure that your online contractor accountant possess extensive knowledge of the niche market. Make sure that he is well versed with the functioning of contractor business and understands the methods how contractors usually work. The highly experienced specialists are acquainted with the payment cycle function, and knowhow of the specific tax legislation including IR35, Managed Service Companies, and the Agency Workers Regulations.

2. In order to hire the services of contractor accountants fitting your bill, it is vital to know the competitive prices of their service charge. It has been observed that accountants usually charge a fixed monthly fee. It covers various aspects of accounting as well as dealing with HMRC and Companies House.

3. One of the most important factors to check out is whether they are set up fees or not. There are some organizations that incorporate such set up cost in the regular monthly fees.

4. Make sure the firm is recognised by one of the professional accountancy bodies in the UK, such as ICAEW (Chartered Accountants), or ACCA (Certified Accountants), or ICAS in Scotland.

5. Does the accountant provide any online facilities? Online contractor accountancy is rapidly growing in popularity, so make sure you know exactly how web-enabled your prospective accountant is. Do they provide full online access so you can view your accounts 24/7, or merely allow you to submit expenses and paperwork online?

6. How knowledgable are any potential accountants of any tax rules which may affect the industry? Most important of all is knowledge of the Intermediaries Legislation (IR35). There is a massive difference in take home pay between those caught by the IR35 rules, and those who are not. 

7. There are many types of contractor accountant out there, from massive 1,000+ contractor outfits, to micro accountants who deal with just a few dozen contractor clients. You may also have a personal leaning towards a firm of a certain size.

8. How much experience does the firm have? How many clients does it have? Ask if you can speak to existing clients, or ask to see testimonials from other contractors.

9. Some accountancy firms provide a host of bolt-on services, from professional indemnity and business liability insurance cover, to free IR35 contract reviews. Naturally, these services do not come cheap, so find out how much it would cost you to buy any extra services separately before signing up.

10. Perhaps the most important tip of all is to get recommendations from existing contractors. However flash the website, or reasonable the monthly fees, it is the overall service which matters, and only existing contractor clients will be able to give you the inside story.

When choosing an accountant, you won't be fully aware of how good they are until you become a client. By taking precautions beforehand, and researching the market thoroughly, you will maximise your chances of finding a suitable accountancy firm for your business.

Jeff Kaips is the author of this article on IR35 accountant. Find more information on IT contractor accountants here.