(Updated 16/05/2025)
Working for yourself:
If you have a small business, you may be a sole trader. This means you’re self-employed.
Running a business:
You’re probably self-employed if you:
- run your business for yourself and take responsibility for its success or failure
- have several customers at the same time
- can decide how, where and when you do your work
- can hire other people at your own expense to help you or to do the work for you
- provide the main items of equipment to do your work
- charge an agreed fixed price for your work
- sell goods or services to make a profit – including through websites or apps
You can be both employed and self-employed at the same time, for example if you work for an employer during the day and run your own business in the evenings.
Registering as self-employed:
If you’re self-employed, you may need to set up as a sole trader.
Help From Citizens Advice Tax Team:
Citizens Advice IW have a Tax Team who can help self-employed persons with a range of issues.
We can help you to register with HMRC and help you to set up a Personal Tax Account.
We can provide digital coaching for online self-assessment tax returns or for clients who are unable to access digital services, we can complete paper self-assessment tax returns. We will also advise you how to keep your records.
Citizens Advice Tax Team is an entirely free service.
Helpful Links:
gov.uk/topic/business-tax/self-employed
