# How do I start my own accountancy practice in the UK?

Pick My Accountant (https://pickmyaccountant.co.uk/answers/how-do-i-start-my-own-accountancy-practice/): How do I start my own accountancy practice in the UK? — Quick answer. To start a UK practice legally you need three things sorted before your first client: a practising certificate if you're a professional body member (ICAEW, ACCA, AAT and ICAS all require one for public practice), anti-money-laundering supervision (through your body, or registered directly with HMRC if you're unaffiliated), and professional indemnity insurance. After that it's structure, software, pricing, and the real challenge — your first twenty clients.

## Key facts

- Practising without AML supervision is a criminal offence — register with your professional body or HMRC before taking clients
- ICAEW, ACCA, AAT and ICAS members offering public services need a practising certificate — providing services without one risks disciplinary action
- Professional indemnity insurance is mandatory for regulated members and essential for everyone — typically a few hundred pounds a year to start
- Most new practices reach viability somewhere around 30–60 small-business clients depending on pricing
- Employed accountants going solo: check your employment contract for client non-solicitation clauses before you resign

## The legal foundations, in order

First, your professional body's rules: qualified members almost always need a practising certificate before offering services to the public, with requirements around experience and continuing development. Second, AML supervision — every accountancy service provider must be supervised, either automatically through a body-issued practising certificate or by registering directly with HMRC (budget a few hundred pounds and real paperwork; operating unsupervised is prosecutable). Third, professional indemnity insurance at your body's minimum level. Only then think about business cards.

## Structure, software, and the boring-but-important setup

Most new practitioners trade through their own limited company for liability protection and credibility. The modern software stack is lean: a practice suite or combination covering proposals and engagement letters, bookkeeping (you'll live inside Xero/QuickBooks/FreeAgent), tax filing, and AML checks — plan for MTD-compatible tools from day one since quarterly digital filing is now the direction of everything. Set your engagement letter and onboarding process before client one; retrofitting professionalism is harder.

## Pricing: don't start with a race to the bottom

New practices habitually underprice to win early clients, then spend years dragging fees up. UK benchmarks give you cover: sole trader packages commonly run £39–£89/month and micro limited companies £83–£227/month. Price within the market range, differentiate on responsiveness and a niche rather than cheapness — the £50/month client who churns when you raise fees was never really your client.

## The first twenty clients

They come from everywhere at once: former colleagues and contacts (within your contract's limits), one or two referral relationships with a solicitor or broker, free listings claimed and completed everywhere relevant, a Google Business Profile collecting reviews from day one, and comparison platforms where buyers are actively choosing. Say yes to slightly-wrong clients early, then shape the base towards a niche as you fill up — the practice you have at fifty clients won't look like your first ten.

## FAQs

**Q: Can I start a practice without being chartered?**
A: Yes — 'accountant' isn't protected, so unqualified practitioners can offer accounts and tax services (not statutory audit). You must still register with HMRC for AML supervision, and you'll compete against badged firms — an AAT licence is a common credibility route that also solves supervision.

**Q: Can I run it from home alongside my job?**
A: Many start exactly that way. Check your employment contract for conflict and moonlighting clauses, get your practising certificate and AML position right anyway (the rules don't care that it's evenings-only), and be honest with yourself about response times — slow replies kill young practices.

**Q: How long until a new practice replaces a salary?**
A: At typical pricing, replacing a £45,000 salary needs roughly 35–55 monthly-retainer clients — for most solo starters that's 18 months to 3 years, faster with a bought fee bank or a strong referral network, slower on evenings-only.

Updated: 2026-07-09

Source: https://pickmyaccountant.co.uk/answers/how-do-i-start-my-own-accountancy-practice/