Umbrella FAQ's

‘Pay intervals’ are the periods of time in between payments you receive, usually a week or a month. The odd day or days at the end of the last complete tax week are added up to make a full week – known as week 53.

If you think your tax code is incorrect, you should contact HMRC directly.

A notice of coding shows your tax code if you are going to pay through the PAYE system. The notice is usually sent out in January or February for the tax year beginning on the following 6 April.

If HMRC does not have enough information to issue a full tax code, an emergency tax code is generated until more information is received

This is the amount retained by your umbrella company when they pay you to cover their costs.

There are certain costs that all employers face, such as Employers National Insurance - these are retained by your umbrella company and paid over to HMRC as part of PAYE legislation.

Unfortunately, not. Visas can only be sponsored by the company who you will actually be performing the work for. Because an umbrella company is an intermediary, they are not permitted to sponsor visas.

Typically, the costs of working through an umbrella company are less than running a limited company, although without the tax advantages. For any contractor captured permanently under IR35, it can be the best way to work in compliance with HMRC guidelines.

Umbrella companies pay employees using the standard PAYE system, calculated the same way for all employees in the UK. This is applied to your salary after their margin and employer costs have been retained from your gross contract rate.

PAYE stands for Pay As You Earn. It is a method of paying income tax and National Insurance contributions and is used by all employers operating a payroll in the UK.