Choosing an accountant
Do I need an accountant for a side hustle?
By Pick My Accountant Editorial · Updated 9 July 2026
The £1,000 allowance, properly understood
The trading allowance exempts up to £1,000 of gross trading income per tax year — gross means takings before any costs. Stay under it and there's nothing to file for that income. Go over and you must register, but you then choose: deduct the flat £1,000 allowance, or deduct actual expenses instead, whichever is bigger. A side hustle with real costs (materials, postage, mileage) usually beats the allowance quickly; a low-cost service hustle often doesn't.
HMRC probably already knows
Since 2024, UK digital platforms report sellers' income and transaction counts to HMRC each January under international reporting rules. That doesn't create new tax — the rules on declaring were always there — but it ends the era of assuming small platform income is invisible. If you've had undeclared side income in past years, a voluntary disclosure through an accountant is dramatically cheaper than waiting for HMRC's nudge letter.
The growth triggers for getting help
Get an accountant conversation on the calendar when any of these happen: profit approaching the higher-rate threshold on top of your salary; turnover heading toward the £90,000 VAT threshold; you're invoicing businesses that ask about your status; you're weighing sole trader versus limited company; or MTD quarterly reporting will catch you (income over £50,000 from April 2026). Until then, decent bookkeeping software and one careful January evening usually suffice.
People also ask
My side hustle made a loss — should I still declare it?
Often yes, deliberately: registered losses can usually be carried forward against future profits from the same trade, and in some cases set against other income. An unregistered loss saves you nothing.
Does the £1,000 allowance cover selling my own old stuff?
Selling personal possessions isn't trading at all — no tax, no allowance needed (rare exceptions for single items sold over £6,000, where capital gains rules apply). The allowance matters when you buy or make things to sell, or sell services.
Salary plus side hustle — how does tax work?
Your employment uses your Personal Allowance through PAYE; side-hustle profit stacks on top and is taxed at your marginal rate through self assessment. Budget roughly 30% of side profits (basic-rate taxpayers) for tax and NI and you'll rarely be surprised.
This article is general information for UK businesses, not tax, legal, or financial advice, and thresholds change — confirm current rules on GOV.UK or with a qualified accountant before acting. Fee figures are indicative benchmarks from ourmethodology.