On average, self-employed accountants can earn around £52,000, but the best part is that roughly 90% of these accountants are satisfied with their jobs and life. You may decide to take a IGCSE Accounting course with sites like International Home Study. So, accounting is not only a great career choice but is also a rewarding one when we look at the average earnings!
A question that is often asked is how can I become a self-employed accountant? If you also have these questions, then you are in luck because that’s what we will be discussing today!
How to Become a Self-Employed Accountant?
Accounting is well regulated, and thus you can’t enter this field if you are not qualified. So the first step toward becoming an accountant is to acquire the relevant qualifications.
In the United Kingdom, the minimum qualification to start offering accountancy services is AAT or also known as the Association of Accounting Technicians. The diploma offered by the AAT has different levels, and once your complete level 4, you can start offering services as an accountant.
And as you reach the higher levels and gain more experience, you will be able to offer more services as well!
Another path to becoming a certified accountant is through the ACCA body. If you have already completed AAT, then it becomes easier as you can fast-track through the initial 3 papers of the ACCA.
Entry Requirements for AAT Level 4
In general, the entry requirements for AAT Level 4 are pretty relaxed, and as long as you have completed GCSE English and GCSE Maths, you can apply for this course. The minimum grades for both of these subjects are 4-5 (C).
In addition, if you have already completed something like IGCSE Accounting or GCSE Accounting, then it becomes easy to understand the different accounting concepts taught in this course! Completing IGCSE accounting online can be much more flexible then going to college.
Legal Requirements for Self-Employed Accountants
Depending on your country, you may also need to fulfill a couple of legal requirements before you can become a self-employed accountant.
The first requirement is to register yourself as self-employed. Another thing to remember is to ensure that you are fully compliant with the industry guidelines as well as any other legal requirements.
The second requirement is to register with the relevant authority/body, such as the HMRC. When you register with a body such as this one, then you will be supervised and monitored by the various supervisory authorities such as ICAEW, CIMA, ACCA, and AAT. The reason for this supervisory is to ensure that accountants are following all the relevant anti-money laundering regulations.
And since you will be holding clients’ personal data, you will also need to notify the office of Information Commissioner.
All of these requirements are pretty basic and are followed by all countries – However, the exact steps to complete these legal requirements will differ from country to country.
How Much Money Can I Make As A Self-Employed Accountant?
How much money you can make as an independent and self-employed accountant depends entirely on how much work you do, your experience, and the number of clients you have. In general, accountants can earn around £30,000/year on average. And the chartered accountants who work as full-time employees can earn around £85,000/year.
But as a self-employed accountant, you are free to set your own rates and even your own working hours. However, you can get an idea of the earning potential of this career by looking at the earnings of full-time accountants.