Company Formation · Scotland
Company formation in Prestonpans
Setting up a limited company from Prestonpans takes less than an hour of your time when it is done properly. We check the name, prepare the incorporation, guide you through the identity verification Companies House now requires, and register the company for Corporation Tax. Packages from £49 to £199, each with the Companies House fee shown separately.
from £49 · fixed, one-off
Next deadlines
- Companies House identity verification for directors and PSCs, phased in from 18 November 2025
- Confirmation statement due within 14 days of your review date, at least once every 12 months
- Companies House accounts due 9 months after your year end (a 31 December year end files by 30 September)
- Corporation Tax payment, 9 months and 1 day after your year end (a 31 December year end pays by 1 October)
Who this is for
Company Formation for Prestonpans
Anyone in Prestonpans starting a business as a limited company: contractors and consultants leaving employment, sole traders incorporating as profits grow, two or more founders who need the shareholding agreed properly, property investors setting up a company to hold rentals, and overseas founders who need a UK company with a UK registered office.
What is included
Everything inside the fixed fee
- Company name check against the register and the sensitive-words rules before filing
- Incorporation at Companies House with articles, share structure and PSC register completed correctly
- Directors' identity verification guidance under the rules in force since November 2025
- Certificate of incorporation, memorandum, articles and share certificates delivered electronically
- Corporation Tax registration with HMRC and your Unique Taxpayer Reference, plus PAYE where included
- A first-year calendar: confirmation statement, accounts and tax deadlines diarised with reminders
How it works
Company Formation from Prestonpans, step by step
Scope the job
We find out what you need filed, when it is due and what state the records are in, and tell you which fixed-fee package applies.
Agree the price
The fee is confirmed in writing. There is no hourly billing and nothing added for questions during the work.
Hand over the records
Photographs, PDFs, software access or a spreadsheet, sent however suits you. We confirm what we have and what is missing within two working days.
Approve, then we submit
You review the draft with our explanation, sign off, and we file. Receipts, copies and the next deadlines come back to you immediately.
Why IGI
What you get in Prestonpans
One fixed fee for company formation in Prestonpans, agreed in writing before any work starts and never changed part-way through the job, however long it takes us.
We work to the HMRC and Companies House calendar, not an appointment diary. Clients in Prestonpans get reminders at 60, 30 and 7 days before each date that applies to company formation.
We serve Prestonpans remotely by design: records by WhatsApp or email, drafts back for approval, filing electronic. The saving on premises is passed to you in the fee for company formation.
Continuity matters in company formation: the person who prepared last year's work for your Prestonpans business prepares this year's, and remembers what was agreed.
The output for Prestonpans clients is never just a form. It is the form, a one-page summary of what it says, and a note of the decisions it points to for company formation.
Nothing is filed for Prestonpans until you have reviewed and approved it. You see the draft, you ask questions, you sign off, then we submit and send you the receipt.
Local facts
About Prestonpans
Prestonpans is in Scotland, in the EH32 postcode district, Scotland. Tax in Scotland differs from the rest of the UK on earned income: six bands with a 21% intermediate rate and a 48% top rate, identified by an S prefix on the tax code. The interaction between Scottish rates on salary and UK rates on dividends makes the salary-and-dividend split for Scottish directors a distinct calculation, and Land and Buildings Transaction Tax replaces Stamp Duty.
| Place | Distance | Direction |
|---|---|---|
| Cuthill | 0.6 mi | SW |
| Cockenzie | 0.8 mi | NE |
| The Heugh | 1 mi | SE |
| Cockenzie and Port Seton | 1 mi | NE |
| Tranent | 1 mi | SE |
| Seton | 2 mi | E |
| Westpans | 2 mi | SW |
| Levenhall | 2 mi | SW |
Worth knowing
Rules that come up in this work
The trading and property allowances
The first £1,000 of trading income and, separately, the first £1,000 of property income each year is tax free under the trading and property allowances. Below those figures no return is needed for that income. Above them you can deduct the £1,000 allowance instead of actual expenses if that is better, which suits side businesses and single-room lets with few costs.
Dormant companies
Companies formed to protect a name or hold a future business are dormant but not exempt: Companies House still expects dormant accounts within nine months of the year end and a confirmation statement annually with its £50 fee, and HMRC must be told the company is dormant or it will demand Corporation Tax returns. The filings are short, but the penalties for missing them are the same as for a trading company.
Closing a company
Striking off a company is cheap but must be done in order: stop trading, file the final accounts and CT600, pay the tax, close VAT and PAYE, distribute the remaining assets, close the bank account, then apply. Anything left in the company at dissolution passes to the Crown. Distributions up to £25,000 are taxed as capital gains; above that a formal liquidation is usually needed to keep capital treatment.
Switching accountants
The main reasons people switch accountant are surprise invoices, missed deadlines and not understanding what they are being told. Switching involves a clearance letter between the firms, a transfer of records and agent authorisations, and a short handover of the current position. It takes about two weeks and should cost nothing extra.
Payments on account
Payments on account catch out most people in their second year of self-employment. HMRC assumes next year's tax will match this year's and collects half in January and half in July, in advance, on top of the balancing payment. If profits are dropping you can apply to reduce them, but reducing them too far attracts interest. We calculate the right figure rather than guessing.
The Self Assessment calendar
Self Assessment runs on a fixed annual cycle. Registration by 5 October following the tax year, online filing and payment by 31 January, and a second instalment on 31 July for those making payments on account. The penalties for lateness are automatic and escalate monthly, which is why we file early and chase approvals well before the window closes.
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax
The biggest change to Self Assessment in a generation is Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, now live for higher-earning sole traders and landlords and arriving for the rest in stages. Quarterly updates are due by 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May, built from digital records. The practical consequence is that spreadsheet-and-shoebox bookkeeping is ending for anyone above the threshold.
Questions
Company Formation questions from Prestonpans
What is the difference between a limited company and a sole trader?
A company is a separate legal person: it owns the business, owes the debts and pays Corporation Tax, and you take income as salary and dividends. A sole trader is personally liable and pays income tax on all profits. Companies cost more to run but can save tax at higher profits and protect personal assets. Our free comparison tool shows the numbers.
Can you form a company limited by guarantee or a dormant company?
Yes. Companies limited by guarantee, used by clubs, charities and community groups, are £49 with bespoke objects at £99. Dormant company formation, for protecting a name or holding a future business, is £29. Both carry the £100 Companies House fee and both have their own service pages.
When should I register for VAT and PAYE?
VAT when taxable turnover will exceed £90,000 in a rolling 12 months, or voluntarily before if it helps. PAYE before the first salary payment, including to yourself as director. Both are included in the £99 package or available separately at £49 each.
Does the company need to register for Corporation Tax?
Yes, within three months of starting to trade. HMRC usually issues the company's Unique Taxpayer Reference by post shortly after incorporation. Registration for Corporation Tax is included in our £99 package and above; the formation-only package leaves it to you, and we tell you how.
What is a SIC code and which one do I need?
The Standard Industrial Classification code describes what the company does and appears on the public register. You can have up to four. We pick the right ones from the official list for your trade. Changing them later is done through the confirmation statement, which is our £39 SIC change service.
What share structure should I have?
For a single founder, one ordinary share of £1 is usual. For two or more, the split should reflect the agreed ownership and may use different share classes to allow different dividend payments. We discuss this before filing, because changing it later needs resolutions and filings. We also advise on whether a shareholders' agreement is worth having.
How do I get started from Prestonpans?
Message us on WhatsApp or email with a sentence about your business and what you need. We reply in working hours with any questions and a fixed fee for company formation. Once you confirm, we tell you exactly which records to send and the work begins. Most Prestonpans clients are set up within a day.
Which deadlines matter most for company formation?
The next four dates that apply to company formation are shown at the top of this page, calculated from today. For Prestonpans clients we diarise every one of them from the day you join and send reminders before each, so the work is done in good time rather than in the last week before a penalty.
Start the conversation from Prestonpans
Tell us what you need. You get one fixed fee in writing, and nothing is filed until you approve it.