Answer 8 key questions about your contract and working arrangements to get an instant IR35 status indication — inside, outside or uncertain.
⚠️ This tool gives an indication only based on HMRC's published criteria. IR35 is complex and fact-specific. Always get a formal review from a specialist accountant or IR35 insurance provider before relying on any determination.
Your Contract & Working Arrangements
2025 / 26
1. Substitution — Can you send a substitute to do the work instead of you?
This is the strongest IR35 indicator. A genuine right to send someone else in your place points strongly to being outside IR35.
Yes — genuine right to substitute
Limited — client approval needed
No — I must do the work personally
2. Control — Does the client control how you do your work?
Being told what to do, when and how to do it suggests employment. Contractors should control their own methods.
No — I control how I work
Some — client sets some methods
Yes — client controls my work fully
3. Mutuality of Obligation — Must the client offer work, and must you accept it?
If there is no obligation on either side to continue working together, this points outside IR35.
No — project-based, no ongoing obligation
Somewhat — expected to be available
Yes — expected to work continuously
4. Financial Risk — Do you bear financial risk in the engagement?
Quoting for a fixed price, correcting mistakes at your own cost, or providing your own equipment all point outside IR35.
Yes — I bear financial risk
Some — mixed risk
No — paid for time regardless
5. Integration — Are you integrated into the client's organisation?
Being on org charts, having a company email, attending all-hands meetings or being managed like an employee all suggest inside IR35.
No — clearly a supplier, not staff
Somewhat — some integration
Yes — treated like an employee
6. Exclusivity — Can you work for other clients during this contract?
Being free to work for multiple clients simultaneously is a strong indicator of being in business on your own account.
Yes — free to work for others
In theory yes, not in practice
No — exclusivity clause in contract
7. Equipment — Do you provide your own equipment and tools?
Providing your own significant equipment points to being in business on your own account.
Yes — I provide my own equipment
Mixed — some mine, some client's
No — client provides everything
8. Client size — What size is your end client?
Small companies (under 50 staff, under £10.2m turnover) cannot issue SDS and responsibility falls back to you.
Small company
Medium or large company
Public sector
Uncertain
Based on your answers
Outside IR35 indicators0 / 8
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IR35 is off-payroll working legislation that determines whether a contractor working through a limited company should be treated as an employee for tax purposes. If inside IR35, income tax and NI are deducted from your payments at source — you lose the tax efficiency of operating through a limited company.
What are the key IR35 tests?
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The three primary IR35 tests are: substitution (can you send someone else to do the work), control (does the client control how you work), and mutuality of obligation (must the client offer work and must you accept it). Secondary factors include financial risk, integration, exclusivity and equipment.
Who determines IR35 status in 2025/26?
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For medium and large private sector clients and all public sector clients, the end client determines IR35 status and must provide a Status Determination Statement (SDS). For small company clients the contractor still determines their own status.
What happens if I am inside IR35?
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If inside IR35 your fee payer deducts income tax and National Insurance from your payments before you receive them — as if you were an employee. You keep your limited company but lose most of its tax advantages.
Can I appeal an IR35 determination?
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Yes. You can challenge a Status Determination Statement through the client's formal disagreement process. If unresolved you can raise a dispute with HMRC. Ultimately IR35 status can be decided by a tax tribunal — several high-profile cases have gone this route.