Choose an accountant for your business

An accountant can help you with all or some of the following tasks:

• Keep certain records, including PAYE (Pay As You Earn) records if you have employees, and VAT records if you're VAT registered. This will involve regular bookkeeping work.
• Submit an annual tax return to HM Revenue & Customs. This will involve the preparation of financial statements.
• Appoint an auditor to carry out an annual audit of your accounts, unless the company is exempt - the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales provides details of audit exemption in Northern Ireland.
• If you're a limited company, you also have to file accounts with the Registrar of Companies - see file your Companies House information online.

You could decide to do some of this work yourself, but many businesses prefer to employ an accountant for at least some of it. For example, you might not have the time or necessary skills available in-house to do all the accounting work yourself.

In addition to basic accounting functions, many accountants also offer other services, such as start-up business and management systems advice.

Chartered Accountants Ireland provides a directory of accountants that you can use to source the right accountant for your business.