Backgr​ound

IR35 refers to the United Kingdom's anti-avoidance tax legislation designed to tax 'disguised' employment at a rate similar to employment. In this context, "disguised employees" means workers who receive payments from a client via an ​intermediary, for example, their own limited company, and whose relationship with their client is such that had they been paid directly they would be employees of the client. The legislation aims to identify key parts of what defines employment as opposed to self-employment. From 6 April 2017 all public authorities (including the university) became responsible for deciding if the rules applied where they contracted workers who provide services through their own intermediary.

Ultimately, the outcome of the IR35 process will direct hiring managers along the correct hiring path, either through a Staff Authorisation Form (SAF) via HR, or through a Purchase Order via procurement

All IR35 checks must be completed before any work is started by the worker. IR35 checks are the responsibility of the hiring manger.

Once a draft contract has been received, the IR35 process should be commenced. The contract should support the answers in the CEST tool.

More information on IR35 and further guidance than is included in this page can be found on the HMRC website.

How to perform IR35 Checks​

To try and make the process as simple as possible, we have created the following flow-charts to aid hiring manager’s decision making. The process should take no more than 30 minutes.​

​

 Click​ this link to open the flowchart for more info​rmation​

Status Determination Statements referred to are at the bottom of this page.

 Cl​ick this link to open the flowchart for more info​rmation​

Status Determination Statements referred to are at the bottom of this page.​

Status Determination Statements:

 Click this link to open SDS1

​ ​Click this link to open SDS2

 C​lick this link to open the Dispute Form​