Do i need an accountant if i get a limited company or can i file my own accounts at companies house?

Question

accountants seem to be so expensive and I would prefer to do stuff myself as its a learning curve and i dont have deep pockets

Answer 1

You can do the accounts but they have to be signed off by a certified (?) accountant. He will probably charge you almost as much for this.  

Answer 2

There is a difference between filing an annual return with Companies House and filing one with the tax office.

You do not need an accountant to file your annual return with Companies House. You can even do it via their online filing system now.

Answer 3

It depends on the turnover of your company.  Assuming you are a small company (based on your other post) you would get total exemption from audit and not need an accountant to prepare or sign your accounts

Answer 4

A good (key word here) accountant will save you money. Of course, one can learn accounting on their own, but then you would need to know how to do two things well, what you are doing to make money, and accounting. In my opinion. I've seen many business fail with someone who does one thing well, and had messed-up books.

Answer 5

They have to be audited accounts. Prepared by an auditor/chartered accountant.

Answer 6

You should get an accountant to set up your accounts and provide you with guidelines on how to make each common type of entry.

The first year or two you should definitely have the accountant do everything for you.  

You may think accountants are expensive, but if the UK is anything like the US not using an accountant to set things up for you can prove to be much more expensive.

Hope this helps

Jerry-the-bookkeeper