Accountants for start-ups — Winchester & Hampshire

Just starting out? Perfect timing.

Getting your finances right from day one is far easier than untangling them later. We work with businesses from their first day of trading through to around £10m turnover — so we can set things up properly and then grow with you.

When should a start-up get an accountant?

Ideally before you incorporate. Choosing between sole trader and limited company, setting your year end, deciding on VAT registration and getting bookkeeping right from day one is far cheaper than unpicking it later. That said, it's never too late — we take on companies at every stage.

Correct for the 2026/27 tax year · last reviewed August 2026 · Chris Sullivan ACA

How it works

From first call to fully set up

1 · Free consultation

A no-obligation 30-minute call to work out the right structure and what you actually need. If you don't need us yet, we'll say so.

2 · Company formation & set-up

Company registration, VAT and PAYE registration, Xero set-up — everything needed to trade properly from day one.

3 · Ongoing compliance

Statutory accounts, corporation tax, payroll and VAT returns. The parts most founders dread, handled to deadline.

4 · Growth & strategy

As you grow, so does our involvement — management accounts, forecasting, and salary-versus-dividend planning.

Common questions

What new founders usually ask

It depends on profit level, risk, and whether you need limited liability. A limited company is a separate legal entity with its own filing obligations, and above a certain profit it's often more tax efficient once salary and dividends are planned properly. We'll model both on a free call rather than give you a rule of thumb.
Not automatically. Registration is compulsory once taxable turnover exceeds £90,000 in any rolling 12 months, or if you expect to exceed it in the next 30 days alone. You can register voluntarily below that, which sometimes helps if your customers are VAT registered or you have significant input VAT to reclaim.
Our Lite package is £180 a month and is built for newly incorporated companies — Xero subscription, statutory accounts, corporation tax, director's payroll and monthly bank reconciliation, with email support. There's no separate year-end bill. See full pricing →
Open a business bank account, register for Corporation Tax within three months of starting to trade, decide on VAT and PAYE, and get your record-keeping in place. We've written the full first-steps checklist: read the new-company checklist →
Get Started

Ready to make your idea official?

Incorporating for the first time, or taking on your first employees? A free 30-minute call, no obligation.

Book free 30-min call → See pricing
From the blog
Tax & Profit Extraction Salary vs dividends: how to pay yourself in 2026/27 → Cash Flow Profit vs cash: why your bank balance doesn't match your accounts → Bookkeeping & Admin Good bookkeeping: less admin, more accurate accounts →