Unlike traditional employees, contractors do not receive any ‘perks’ from their clients, such as non-contributory pensions, health insurance, or any other type of protection in case things go wrong.
Fortunately, a wide range of financial services is available to contractors – including a number of tax-efficient products to protect your income.
Here we provide an overview of the main financial products you can access as a contractor, including income protection and life cover.
Income Protection
Unlike permanent employees, who in many cases enjoy protection from their employers if they are unable to work for an extended period, contractors are very much on their own, and for this reason, we recommend you consider what would happen if you fell ill and were unable to undertake your contract duties.
There are various income protection policies on the market, but they all operate in the same fundamental way. After an initial deferred period has expired after you have notified your insurer of your illness, the policy will pay out a pre-agreed sum each month. The longer the deferred period, the lower the monthly premiums. And unsurprisingly, the higher the monthly income you need if you fell ill, the more you can expect to pay.
The tax treatment of any money paid out under an income protection policy will depend upon whether you take out the cover via your own limited company, or personally. A specialist IFA will be able to help you work out which is the most prudent route for your own needs.
Find out more about income protection for contractors.
Critical Illness
This type of policy pays out a lump sum upon diagnosis of a covered condition, which would be used to cover a variety of needs – such as settling a mortgage, paying off debts, or paying medical bills.
Unlike other types of policy, you receive the income upon diagnosis rather than death, so you can use the funds to improve your lifestyle and pay the bills while you recover.
This is often taken out at the same time as an income protection policy.
Read more in our guide to critical illness cover for contractors.
Relevant Life Cover
Alongside traditional life cover policies, which cover you and your family should you die, limited company contractors can now fund a life insurance policy through the business, with no benefit in kind (BIK) or income tax implications.
This type of ‘keyman’ life cover policy operates via a discretionary trust, and can easily be transferred either to a new employer (or to you personally) should you decide to close down your company, or stop contracting, for example.
This product works by providing ‘death in service’ benefits to a company’s employees – so that the income received by the beneficiaries is also free from Inheritance Tax.
Find out more in our guide to relevant life insurance for contractors (paid for by your company – the most tax-efficient option).
Keyman Insurance
If you run a small company which would be significantly financially hit if one or more ‘key’ employees became seriously ill, or even died? This type of cover is taken out by, and is payable to the business itself should one of these events occur.
The cash lump sum payout could keep the business functioning whilst a replacement is found. It could fund ongoing costs, and pay loan repayments or tax bills.
Find out more in our guide to keyman insurance.
Pensions
Pensions have been described as the ‘last remaining tax break’ available to contractors. In recent years, the tax benefits of contributing to a pension scheme have been reduced by successive chancellors, but there still remain good tax-saving opportunities if you opt to save for your retirement using a pension.
Find out more in our concise guide to contractor pensions.
Mortgages
In the early days of the contracting industry, many contractors found it hard to secure a typical ‘high street’ mortgage, or certainly not ones which offered competitive rates. It used to be notoriously hard to prove your income, especially if you had only just embarked on your first contract. Without three years accounts, most lenders would be unable to help, and even then – many unenlightened lenders were unable to understand how contractors operate.
Fortunately, most major lenders are now more familiar with the financial profile of contractors, and you can now access mortgage products previously reserved for traditional employees. The industry as a whole has had to play catch-up as the UK’s workforce moves from a decades-old model where most professional people hold long-term employment, to one where flexible working is becoming far more commonplace.
Mortgage specialists within the industry can also secure competitive contractor mortgage rates based on your contract rate alone; you no longer need to have several years of accounts behind you to pass the affordability checks. Of course, your credit profile and financial history will need to solid – especially as lenders have more stringent checks in place following the sub-prime crisis and subsequent credit crunch.
Find out more in our guide to contractor mortgages. Plus try our Top 10 contractor mortgage tips.