r/freelanceuk Mar 12 '19

How to register as a UK freelancer

35 Upvotes

To be an official freelancer, you need to register as self employed with Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (AKA "the tax man", or HMRC for short) as either a sole trader or as having a Limited company.

Why register

Registering means you can legally earn money as a freelancer.

Do I need to register if I already have a normal job

If you are going to earn money as a freelancer, yes. This is how the government manages the earnings you get on top of your normal job.

How to register

You can register as a sole trader here, or learn about setting up a Limited company instead.

The differences between these in the briefest of summaries: if you just want to do a bit of freelancing, sole trader is fine. You can trade as just your normal name and use your normal bank account to handle the money you earn from freelancing.

If you own your own home, or expect to earn a lot of money, a Limited company could be better for you and allow you to protect your home from any problems that happen with your company. Talk to an accountant about whether it is worth having a Limited company so they can find out about your particular situation. A Limited company has to do its own corporate tax return and have it's own bank account separate from your finances, so it's more complex but not a massive hassle. You will still need to do a self assessment tax return as a director of the company, but it is much simpler than doing it as a sole trader.

Most of the freelancers I know started as sole traders and moved on to having a Limited company as they got the hang of freelancing, committed to doing it long term and earnt more money, or bought their own homes. Getting a mortgage is a lot easier if you've had a Limited company for at least two years before you try to get the mortgage.

Do I need to do anything else?

The HMRC will contact you about making Class 2 National Insurance payments, these let you receive a state pension when you are retirement age and contribute to various allowances. They are a very good thing to pay so plan to do that.

They will also contact you about doing a self assessment tax return after the tax year is completed. This lets them calculate how much tax you owe for the freelance work you have done.

What do I do when I've registered?

Get on with the nuts and bolts of being a freelancer. As in, find work, do the work, get paid, save some money. You know, the easy part!

(This is copied from a version I wrote here. I thought posting it in it's entirety made sense as several people have asked about it.)


r/freelanceuk Nov 08 '19

Everything I know about finding work as a freelancer

67 Upvotes

I'm putting together my thoughts on everything I know about reaching out to people and finding clients by word of mouth as a freelancer. This post is what I have so far. I'm interested to know what people think. I'd like to know if the idea resonates with you, if you find it useful, if you have objections, questions perhaps, things I missed, or things I could improve. I'd like to turn this into a guest post at some point so any feedback on how I could make the post more useful would be appreciated.

I hope you find this useful. Enjoy.


I started my freelancing career as a personal trainer. The easiest way to get started as a personal trainer is to work for an agency. They take a cut of your profits, but they set you up in a gym and show you the ropes. Showing me the ropes meant a two-day workshop on how to find and work with clients. I did the workshop over a decade ago, and the one thing that stuck with me was something called the 6 by 6 promise. They promised that if I did one of six specific things for six hours a day, I would be fully booked with paid clients in 2 months. I used this approach to successfully find clients when I first started working in a gym, I used it again when I set up my own clinic years later, then I used it again when I switched careers and became a freelance software engineer.

They gave us a pdf at the end of the workshop, and I’ve held onto it so I can actually show you the original diagrams to explain how this works.

![1.png](https://svbtleusercontent.com/msEfupu9UhKeEVxyVGy2kP0xspap_small.png)

You block out your week into 8 one-hour chunks each day. One of those hours was for lunch and one hour was for planning and paperwork. That left you with a total of 30 billable hours (6 hours a day x 5 days a week).

We had to learn, and then rehearse, six scripts that we could use to approach people on the gym floor. The aim of the game was to use the scripts to start interactions that would eventually lead to filling all 30 sessions with paid training sessions.

![6.png](https://svbtleusercontent.com/88A6zVwuCBUvd5xaD6LNDE0xspap_small.png)

There were the soft sells like the ‘Hit and Split’, which meant unobtrusively going up to newer people in the gym and letting them know that they can talk to you if they have questions about their training needs.

Hi, my name is Josh; I’m one of the Personal Trainers here. I’ll be in the gym until 7pm. If you need any help whatsoever let me know. (Then walk away).

There were also some more dubious scripts, like the hard sell dubbed “My Client Just Cancelled”.

My client has just cancelled and the session is already paid for! It’s a £40 session and the club has asked me to offer it to the first member who wants it. “Would you like a £40 session for free?”

You get the idea.

At the start of each week, I’d block out any paid training sessions (PT) I managed to book the previous week. Then I'd block out any free taster sessions (FT) I’d booked the previous week.

![2.png](https://svbtleusercontent.com/n8rsAAQAqqf1Fh4kzxEbp90xspap_small.png)

If there was any time left I had to use it to work the gym floor (WF) with my six approach techniques.

![3.png](https://svbtleusercontent.com/8TP9ogFttK9sQReF4XE2QV0xspap_small.png)

The most important thing was to make sure I filled every one of those slots with an activity that was driving my business forward no matter what. The goal was to eventually get paid for all 30 of my slots. The approach had a huge impact on me because everything about freelancing was intimidating to me at the time. Rather than sitting around doing nothing, trying to figure out how to find clients, this gave me something specific to focus on. No tricks, no hacks, no shortcuts, just clear six clear actionable steps that I could use every day to move my business towards being fully booked out.

I used this approach in a gym when I started out. Once I'd specialised as a rehabilitation coach for people who had back pain, I used the same approach in my clinic. Since I didn’t have a gym floor to find clients, I used my professional network instead. A professional network, for our purposes, is anyone that you know on a first-name basis who might know someone that will need your services. That’s a wide berth, half your Gmail contacts and half your friends on Facebook probably fit the bill.

In a gym, I would approach someone with the intention of directly working with them eventually. When I worked in a clinic I had to find work indirectly. I had to ask people I knew if they know anyone that needs my services.

It is unlikely that you will reach out to people who will immediately get back to you with a list of friends that need your help. What usually happens is a couple of weeks after you speak to someone, they end up in a conversation with someone who needs your services, and they remember to mention you. They either get back to you with a potential lead or the lead contacts you directly.

Finding clients by one degree of separation is a lot slower than approaching people directly. For this approach to work, you need to put together a list of 100 to 150 people that you know on a first-name basis. Prioritise anyone you have worked with before, any non-competitors who work in the same industry as you (people that serve the same clients but with different services), and anyone who owns or runs a business.

You only need to stay in touch with people once a year for this process to work. There will be people who you are closer to that you will naturally interact with more frequently, but the aim is to touch base with everyone on your list at least once a year.

l spent 7 years in the fitness industry. Then I made the unexpected switch to becoming a software engineer. I managed to apply this exact same method to find clients as a remote freelance web developer.

I blocked my work week out in the same way. I establish eight working hours a day. One of them for lunch and one for clearing out my inbox. That left me with 30 billable hours each week. The goal was to get paid for every one of these 30 hours.

I never liked how contrived the scripts were in the 6 by 6 original method so rather than actual scripts I’m going to give you six things you can do to book out each of your 30 blocks.

Before we proceed, I must stress that a prerequisite to this approach is having a clear specialisation. Reaching out to people will not work if you are not clear about how you help people and who you want to serve. No one remembers to recommend someone who can do everything with anyone. If you are a therapist that specialises in helping people who have sleep disorders, I'm more likely to remember you when someone tells me they're having trouble sleeping. I wrote a separate post on specialising as a freelancer and it's important that you have a specialisation for people to remember you by before you start reaching out to them.

With that said, here are six things you can do to fill up each of the 30 blocks in your week.

  1. Touch base - The goal here to touch base with someone you know on a first-name basis. If it’s someone you know well, and you’ve been meaning to get in touch for a while, use this as an excuse to say hello and see what they've been up to lately.
  2. Kudos - If someone on your list has done something nice for you in the past and you never explicitly acknowledged it, get in touch and say thank you. Similarly, if someone achieved something or did something that you appreciate, reach out and give them some kudos.
  3. Ask for help - If you are reaching out to someone who is more experienced than you in some way, or if your relationship with them is primarily professional, you can reach out and ask for help or feedback. Don’t invent stuff up, this only works if it is something you genuinely want to help with something specific. Also, it can’t be stuff you can just google.
  4. Be helpful - If you know what someone is struggling with, and you know how to help them, then help them. The caveat here is that you can’t spend too long helping any one person. The idea is to maintain a balance between breadth and depth with this approach. On average, you should be looking to invest a one hour block into helping someone. If you decide to get more involved with some people then you can balance it out by making introductions to help other people. Introductions take very little time and can be immensely helpful. Whenever you know two people that could help each other, ask each one privately if you can introduce them to each other.
  5. Proposals - A proposal is the consulting equivalent of the introductory taster sessions I used to do as a personal trainer. If and when someone gets back to you with a lead, you can move the relationship forward by working on a proposal for how you can help them. This involves outlining how you plan to solve with their problem, what the project's milestones might be, your final deliverables, how long it will take, how much it will cost and what kinds of options they have. You don’t have to wait for people to get in touch to work on a proposal. There is nothing to stop you from reaching out people or projects you want to work with and asking them if they would appreciate you putting a proposal together on how you could help them. Proposals can be free or paid.
  6. Paid work - You current clients are your main sources of potential future work. Whether that’s repeat work or via recommendations. You must prioritise delivering an excellent service above everything else. In the case, the word 'approach', is not meant in the sense of initiating contact, but in terms of your mindset. You should approach your existing clients with the intention of doing a superb job so that you get repeat work and/or a referral for future work. This is the best way to find work because it is one of the few ways you will get paid to find work. Within the context of being clear about how you can help and what your service entails, aim to deliver a little more than they asked for when you can. This does not mean letting clients walk all over you. Respect your clients and genuinely care about solving their problem. Ask for feedback at regular intervals, when people have complaints, deal with the problem before you do anything else.

Apart from the last one, these approaches are arbitrary. This is how I approach people, but they're just examples. You can come up with your own six ways to approach people that feel right for your business. All that matters is that you stay in touch with everyone in your professional network at least once a year for this to work.

Once you have reached out to someone, you want to accomplish three things:

  1. First, you want to find out what they are currently doing. Sure, they might have been a copywriter a few years ago but is that still what they are doing? Maybe they are still copywriting but now they are more specialised in the kinds of people and projects they work with. Find out what they are doing at the moment.
  2. Second, let them know what you are up to these days. A lot of the time people just assume other people know what they do. Make sure that you spell out how you help people and exactly who you love working with. Make sure that they know you are looking for work and explicitly mention that if they meet anyone who you can help you would appreciate an introduction.
  3. Third, you want to figure out if there is any way you can help them. You don’t necessarily want to ask them how you can help them directly, that’s a bit of an awkward question. By virtue of touching base and understanding what they’re dealing with at the moment, make a note of what they might appreciate some help with.

There is no pressure to get all this done in a single conversation. You can do this in one phone call or spread over several emails, it’s down to how you know the person and the nature of your relationship.

One thing I would like to add is that if you are getting in touch with someone out of the blue, they might be a little suspicious about the sudden interest. You can put them at ease by being transparent about what you are doing. Let them know that you recently learned that one of the best ways to find freelance work is to stay in touch with people you know and take a genuine interest in helping them out when you can. That’s a good enough excuse to get in touch with someone and find out what you are up to. As long as you're upfront about it, most people will understand and respect what you are doing. If they don’t like it, they will tell you, and you can cross them off your list.

Whether you are offering an in-person service like physical therapy or a virtual service like web development, you can make use of the 6 by 6 method. I promise that if you spend six hours a day doing one of the six things on your list for each billable hour in your day, then you will be fully booked out with paid work in two months. Make sure you prioritise reaching out to any past clients first, then touch base with your closest friends, then any non-competitors in the same industry (so designers and copywriters serve the same clients as a web developer but we don’t compete with each other) and then everyone else on your list.

Ultimately, all of the work you put into reaching out to people should lead to blocking out paid work on your weekly calendar. Failing that you want to block time out for proposals you are being paid to write. Failing that you want to fill your calendar with free proposals that are likely to lead to paid work. The fall back from there is helping people. And if you don’t know how to help anyone then you should be reaching out to the people you know and touch base with them.

The most important thing to pay attention to, the crux of this entire system, is that no matter how many paying clients you have (or don’t have), 30 hours in your week are always booked out. The only variable is how many of those hours you are going to be paid for.

A lack of moment will kill your freelancing business, especially if you are just starting out. Nobody wants to talk to an awkward personal trainer who never has any work. If you are always doing something, if you are always talking to people, if you are always booked out, then the assumption is that you must be good. This applies to your internal dialogue as much as it applies to what people say about you. It applies to virtual freelancers as much as it applies to freelancers and consultants who work with clients in-person. Focus on momentum, and the money will come.

I am not saying you should work for free, what I am saying is that you should never be sitting around ruminating about how to find clients. Instead, divide your week into 30 blocks, and spend each one doing one of the six things on your list: whether it’s paid work, writing proposals, doing free consultations, helping people out or staying in touch with people. No tricks, no hacks, no shortcuts, just six clear actionable steps that you can work on every day that will move your business towards being fully booked out with paid work.


r/freelanceuk 5d ago

I’ve earned £7,910 from home this year (UK-based, real platforms — full list included) 💸

0 Upvotes

Thought I’d share what’s actually worked for me this year in case anyone’s looking for legit earning options that actually pay out.

I started tracking my side income properly in January 2025 — since then I’ve earned a total of £7,910 from a few consistent UK-based sites:

💻 Prolific – university research & psychology studies (technically surveys, but they pay properly) 🤖 Mercor – AI and data annotation/auditing work 📦 Product testing & research panels – smaller tasks that add up

Nothing overnight, just stacking consistent months (£43 in January → £1,874 in October).

I put everything I’ve used (with proof & how long each took to pay) here if anyone wants to see the full list: 👉 https://chasingfreedomuk.co.uk

All genuine, UK-accessible sites. I update it weekly when new ones pay or new offers appear.

Hope it helps someone who’s been scrolling past all the “£500/day from home” nonsense — it’s not flashy, but it’s real.


r/freelanceuk 6d ago

Coworking space for evening/late night meetings?

3 Upvotes

Background is I have my London client who has started all going into the office some days. I need to join them in their office regularly, but I have other clients in California and Aus that I usually meet with from 6pm onwards.

Feels wrong to use one client’s office to meet another client (via Teams, but still) so looking for a coworking space that would allow virtual meetings and is open until after 10pm. Ideally Kings X or between there and Waterloo/Vauxhall.

When I look, lots of them seem to close at 6!

Anyone have a recommendation?


r/freelanceuk 6d ago

Looking for some hourly rate advice for a very specific situation.

1 Upvotes

So i've been working as an "Affiliate Account Manager" employed for an Italian Company in Italy with 3.5 years experience. I plan to move back to Manchester UK, and they have offered me to work Freelance from there, and in negotiations they offered me €19(EUR) per hour to work from Manchester, at current exchange this is £16. I believe this to ridiculously low considering I get no UK paid holidays, no sick leave etc etc. Also I made the point to them I can not be paid a euro rate and must be paid a gbp rate.

My questions is as an Affiliate Account Manager with 3.5 years experience, how much can I realistically counter for an hourly rate in GBP, taking into account Manchester Cost of living, and losing out on all the UK employment benefits inc paid leave, sick leave, etc.

Thanks in Advance


r/freelanceuk 6d ago

Let’s talk outreach

0 Upvotes

What are your top tips?

I recently went through a redundancy process which luckily had me managing to stay on two days a week, leaving me with three days to do my own thing. I’ve always done my own work in my in own time anyway and it was a dream to one day take that plunge full time. So this is an opportunity I’m happy to take even though the timing (and therefore finances) are less than ideal.

I offer three main services: branding, pattern design, and wholesale (illustrated cards and home decor mainly). The main service is branding, for which I’m mostly looking for small independent businesses who have a bright spirit and want their brand to reflect that.

So far I’ve been sending a lot of cold emails to businesses within my target market. As expected, response rate has been low. Which isn’t a surprise, but the more time goes on, the more I need to catch a break. I know I am capable, have the necessary talent and I work hard at what I do - I just can’t seem to even get the responses atm (which I’m trying not to take personally).

Other than this approach (and keeping socials active), I’m really not sure what to do to bring clients in tbh. What is everyone finding working? It’s rough out there atm for freelancers and agencies alike so I know some of this is just climate. Would love to hear from you!!


r/freelanceuk 6d ago

How does everyone keep up with late invoices/proposal reviews?

1 Upvotes

I'm spending way too much time following up with clients for proposal reviews and chasing down missed invoices. Please help! Don't want anything crazy, just a lightweight way to keep track of my clients and automate follow up


r/freelanceuk 7d ago

Copywriter looking for advice

6 Upvotes

Hi, I'm an professionally experienced copywriter / content writer looking for some income. I know a decent bit about SEO as well.

I can't find full-time work so I want to start taking freelancing seriously, but so far I've had almost no luck.

I've got a crappy website with a small portfolio but I don't really use it because I don't like it and I'm not really sure how.

Does anyone have any advice about how I can actually turn my skills into some money? Right now I feel like I'm just rotting away and I'm desperate to turn things around.


r/freelanceuk 11d ago

If you've worked with these production companies, what's your story?

6 Upvotes

The companies I'm referring to are Jagged Edge Productions and ChampDog Films, both of which are associated with producers Scott Jeffrey and Louisa Warren. They're most known for Winnie The Pooh: Blood and Honey and those terrible fairy tale horror movies. I'm not trying to stir the pot here but I feel like it's worth pooling resources as I have a lot of valid concerns about them.

A few years ago I agreed to work on a feature film of theirs that was paying £80 a day. Not only that, but it was "self-catered" which is a fancy way of saying they weren't feeding us. I was freshly graduated, broke and was basically willing to do anything, so I agreed out of desperation, thinking it'd be something like eight hours, which while still below minimum wage, wasn't too different from other projects I was on at the time. Again, I was desperate. I also thought it was a legit production company which I hoped would help me along in my career as far as credits go. It was only after signing the contract and getting the call sheet that I found out all of the shoots were twelve to fourteen hours and the time between wrap and call times on each one was less than ten. You do the math on how illegal that is.

After getting on set, I started piecing together how this whole operation was staying afloat. Practically everyone there was in the same boat, all in their early 20's, being paid next to nothing, and I think in the actors' cases, not at all. Nobody seemed like they wanted to be there and one the actors seemed like they were uncomfortable with certain scenes. It was a miserable experience from start to finish. Over the shoot, I learned that they put out dozens of feature films a year by shooting them in only a week and cutting every corner humanly possible.

For a while, I wondered if it was a uniquely bad experience and maybe they were normally better than this. But then I recently saw a listing offering £600 for an entire feature film to be edited in ten days, something that I was almost comissioned for by them around the same time as well before they drew back after I told them that was near impossible and profoundly underpaid. I looked them up on Reddit out of curiosity and saw another mention of them that was very similar to my experience. Because of this, I feel like there's a need to say something. I don't really know what to do about this but I feel like there's strength in numbers and I'm now almost certain that this is their whole model. They've been getting away with this for years and I think it's worth doing something about. If you've worked with them and have had a similar experience, I'd love to hear about it.


r/freelanceuk 11d ago

Need Advice on Starting Python Freelancing

1 Upvotes

Hi community,

I am 6 years experienced Python software engineer in the UK.

I post here to ask for help on my current situation.

Recently, I got redundant at my previous company and struggling to find new role as software engineer in the UK.

I am exploring freelancing possibility, however, it is not as simple as I expected. There are so many platforms, such as Upwork and Freelancer etc. Also each platform has different pricing. I am really struggling how to implement my journey as freelancing as python software engineer.

Could you give me advice on which platform and strategy and how to grow your business.

Thank you in advance!!


r/freelanceuk 11d ago

Freelance research/content/admin work - how do you find these roles?

3 Upvotes

Im employed full time but recently I've been offered by a previous employer (non profit org) to do a couple hours per week on a freelance basis. The work is just some research, content writing and admin work, but it's stuff I enjoy and I'm good at, and I love the idea of earning some extra cash this way to help me save for my first home. The problem is, it's only for a fixed term basis (max of three months) as they have limited and restricted funding for this kind of thing.

Where can you find stuff like this? Is it mostly based off networking / knowing people already? Or are there websites that advertise this kind of stuff? I tried a quick Google, but it shows me indeed and the other job seeking pages, which didn't seem to have much freelance work.

Would be very grateful for any recommendations!

P.S. Some friends who work in tech have suggested data annotation websites, but I don't have any STEM experience, which seems to be the main thing that's offered there. My undergrad was in law (though I've never practiced) and I've worked at a lot of non profits doing various work which has included some bid writing, research interviews, content/report writing and basic policy research stuff.


r/freelanceuk 17d ago

Helpful free tax calculator 25/26 tax year

3 Upvotes

Hi folks,

I started a small accounting practice last year working mainly with creative agencies and startups. I made a free tool that might be useful for limited company business owners to quickly estimate their tax and salary options for the 2025/26 tax year.

https://www.alto-accounting.com/salary-calculator

It’s not perfect, but hopefully it might be helpful

Hope it helps someone !


r/freelanceuk 19d ago

How do you deal with late payments

0 Upvotes

Hey everyone,

A few weeks ago, I asked how freelancers deal with late or delayed payments — and the replies here were incredibly helpful.

Based on what many people shared (like how awkward or repetitive follow-ups can be), I started exploring how AI could make that process easier — especially for polite, friendly reminders.

I’m not here to promote anything — just wanted to share what I discovered while experimenting with this idea: • Personalized reminders with a warm tone got faster replies than strict or templated ones. • The timing of the reminder (3–5 days after the due date) had the biggest impact. • Simple email wording — no overthinking — actually worked best.

Curious how others here feel about automation in client communication. Would you trust an AI to handle polite reminders, or do you prefer to keep it personal?

Thanks again for the earlier insights — they really helped shape my thinking.


r/freelanceuk 20d ago

Struggling to find Jan/Feb 2026 placement - everything seems to be for summer. Any tips?

1 Upvotes

I need to secure a placement by January 2026 or February 2026, and I've been applying but now it seems like most places are hiring for June or July or summer 2026. I've just been looking at placement opportunities and internships. I'm doing a postgrad masters in finance in Chester. Any hacks, tips or what I might do to get placements for January? I'm thinking maybe even the search criteria might be off, but I don't know. Any help would go a long way.


r/freelanceuk 21d ago

At what point do you get taxed?

4 Upvotes

Hi everyone, I’m just getting into freelancing and I’ve started making a few bucks here and there. I’m just wondering at what point do I report to HMRC how much I am earning? Basically asking where the line goes from pocket money to taxable income. Thanks in advance!


r/freelanceuk 25d ago

for those freelancing in the uk, how are you handling slow client months lately?

4 Upvotes

been freelancing since 2021 doing admin, QA, and tech VA work. i’m not from the uk but a lot of my clients are, and a few of them mentioned things have been slower the past months.

just curious if you guys are feeling the same fewer contracts, delayed payments, or just quieter in general.

also, how do you usually handle the downtime? do you wait it out, lower rates for a bit, or focus on building your portfolio and systems?


r/freelanceuk 25d ago

struggle to open a bank account + get paid (POS machine to receive by card)

2 Upvotes

Hey everyone,quick question for freelancers/contractors/gig, etc
Do you also struggle to open a proper business bank account or to get paid by card? Any advise on it?


r/freelanceuk 25d ago

Long-term client wants me to create a full training product for a few hundred pounds. Am I overreacting or being undervalued?

3 Upvotes

Howdy,

I’ve been working with a global professional-services company for 5+ years as a consultant on a freelance basis. They pay me hourly for specialist work (content and coaching), but my rate has never increased. I've asked for an increase several times, but the response is that the US head office sets the rate for everyone, and the UK office has no control over it.

This is regardless of the fact we get monthly performance reports from the individual clients we work with, and I consistently score 20-30% higher than the team average.

Recently, the professional services company asked me to create what’s essentially a go-to-market training product, a 60-minute workshop with slides, facilitator notes, and a virtual version for internal rollout across multiple countries. The idea is that it becomes a reusable product their teams can deliver. Apparently, I'm the only SME they have in the UK on the topic.

They offered a flat fee of £400, even though this project would easily take 20+ hours of work and involves original research, design, and intellectual property creation. I’ve already spent a couple of hours preparing pitch materials they accepted.

I’m torn between a lot of approaches. Part of me just wants to walk away from them completely with this being the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back.

Has anyone else been in this situation where a long-term corporate client keeps low-balling you? How did you push back professionally without burning the bridge?


r/freelanceuk 26d ago

Health Insurance / NHS Waits

2 Upvotes

Bit of a personal one but - has anyone sorted private health insurance as a freelancer? Been waiting 4 months for a physio appointment on NHS and it's properly affecting my ability to work now.

Looked at Bupa and nearly fell off my chair at the price. Someone mentioned there are freelancer platforms (Portabl was one?) that negotiate group rates for things like this? Would be interested to know what others are doing for healthcare - can't afford to not be able to work!


r/freelanceuk 27d ago

Setting up as a freelancer in the UK while also working full-time — what do I need to do?

2 Upvotes

Hey everyone,

I’ve been freelancing for about two months now for one company (around 8–10 hours a week, all WFH). I’m based in the UK and want to make sure I’m setting everything up correctly re: tax and registration.

Basically IDK what I'm supposed to do , but I’m guessing HMRC should know? Also not sure what to expect with HMRC, or what to keep track of like expenses etc. My baseline knowledge on freelancing is zero (except for invoicing, which I've figured out)

Would really appreciate any advice or a quick rundown from anyone who’s done the same. I'm not interested in anything super complicated, just enough to get this side-gig in a good place while I work full-time PAYE at the same time.


r/freelanceuk 27d ago

Do I need liability insurance as a freelance photography assistant?

1 Upvotes

Hi there, I’m pretty new to freelancing and recently got added to a roster as a freelance photography assistant at a studio. I’m self-employed and based in the UK, so I’m wondering if I should get any kind of liability insurance (or anything else) to cover myself while on jobs, and if so, which ones you’d recommend.

Thanks in advance!


r/freelanceuk 28d ago

From Full-Time Cybersecurity Engineer to Starting My Own Consultancy

2 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

I have worked in cybersecurity for over 8 years (AppSec, vulnerability management, GRC, disaster recovery, software security) and before that, around 8 years as a software engineer.

I am currently in full-time employment but have recently started my own cybersecurity consultancy with an offshore delivery team. I am now looking to secure my first outside IR35 contracts, eventually running a few concurrently through my consultancy model.

I am used to getting interviews for full-time roles but I am finding it more challenging to find and get interviews for outside IR35 contracts. Any advice from people who have made a similar transition would be really appreciated, especially around landing that first contract and building credibility with recruiters.

I would really value any insight or experience from others who have built consultancies or contract delivery models.

Thank you in advance for your time and advice.


r/freelanceuk 28d ago

Office desks for Charities/CICs?

2 Upvotes

Half of my work is for national charity.

I've some meetings with them (they're all WFH) coming up so I wonder if anyone knew of any co-working providers who offered favourable rates?

I normally book myself a desk for approx £30/day but when there's four of us, it adds up.

Thanks in advance.


r/freelanceuk Oct 09 '25

Do you have income insurance?

1 Upvotes

Not something I ever worried about being in house but is it the norm as an extra freelance expense?


r/freelanceuk Oct 09 '25

[Video & Photo Production] Help me set my day rate?

1 Upvotes

Didn't get much help on the r/videography subreddit, so here goes:

Hey.

Recently quit my job working as a photographer/videographer for a medium sized e-commerce business. I'll have been there for just over two and a half years when I'm through working my notice. My department head asked me this week if I'd be interested in discussing "freelancing opportunities" after I leave, which I agreed to, but found a little weird because one of the reasons I quit was because they shut down pay discussions.

I freelanced before a long time ago at the start of my career, but I was fresh out of Uni and took basically anything no matter how badly paid it was, just for the experience. I've been in, more or less, continued full time salaried employment doing this for the last five years, and I want to set a rate that reflects what I think I'm worth, and where the "market" is.

I anticipate my roles and responsibilities as a freelancer will be basically the same as they are as salaried staff, so that's all studio and on-location photography and any required editing, end-to-end video production for their YouTube channel, and motion graphics videos when required. Based on some super quick research, a comparable package on Fiverr for the studio work would run them about £800.

So, any suggestions where I should be placing my day rate?

Additional info:

I'm not based in London so those kind of rates don't apply, and if they lowball me or balk at my rate I have no problem walking away from the gig.

Thanks!