Any cheap accountant in Dublin?

Should I contact all the accounting firms one by one until I find the cheapest? Would you recommend one, or on line resources which could assist? I was also thinking about contacting a school and hire and student in accounting.

Ralf Lemster wrote:

Hi Marc,
Slightly OT, but your request reminded me of the tactics some agencies use when fishing for the cheapest translator around.


To me, my accountant is much more than somebody sorting out the paperwork: time and again, he has not only helped me avoid costly errors, but provided valuable and insightful advice on how to run my business.

In contrast, a very expensive accounting firm I used in London was rather useless in that respect. What I would suggest is to contact a few accountants whose offices are not too far away, and to talk to them - look for the one who seems to best understand your situation.

Best regards,
Ralf

Tom in London wrote:

Hi Marc

I'm not an accountant and I'm not in Dublin, but I'm Irish so here's an Irish suggestion....

Accountants can be very expensive.

My suggestion is to hire one for the first tax year, get the accountant to help you to get all your papers in order, and then after a year, drop him and do AT LEAST all your monthly bookkeeping yourself. Once you learn how to record all your business expenses, income, capital expenditures etc. yourself, you can set up spreadsheets to do a lot of the work for you.

During the month, just toss all paperwork relating to accounts, into a file somewhere, then on the first of the month, put all these papers in order. It takes a while at first but when you get into the habit of doing it every month I won't say it becomes enjoyable, but it becomes very useful as a way of remembering what you've done, how much you're earning etc.

At the end of the tax year, fill out the tax return yourself. Again, this can be scary at first, but after a few years you get used to it.

In the background, keep your accountant in case you need to ask quick email questions or get clarification of anything. Accountants charge for every minute of their time, so keep the time as short as possible. But do keep in touch with one, in the eventuality that the tax authorities may want to look at your books, in which case you'll need a professional to assist you.

But for the first year, especially if you haven't been registered before as a self-employed translator in Ireland, an accountant will be very useful, although alas not being in Ireland myself I can't suggest any names.




[Edited at 2008-11-18 16:01 GMT]

Kevin Lossner wrote:


My personal experience with accountants in two countries is that the ones who charge the lowest rates are often not the cheapest when one considers the consequences of errors in tax accounting. I would look for a really good one who will keep you out of trouble and be able to advise on legitimate business strategies to reduce your tax burdens.

Orla Ryan wrote:

You could just as easily ask an accountant/bookkeeper in the regions to do your accounts for you; I should think that any such firms based outside Dublin will have slightly lower rates. They don't *have* to be in the capital

Some of my friends are accountants and they helped me out . Why not ask amongst your circle of friends if they know/recommend any accountants?

The best way you can assist is to keep copies of all your invoices and receipts in good order and pass them on to your accountant.

Don't forget to check the Revenue.ie website; you could be entitled to a lot more tax relief than you might think.

Alexandra Goldburt wrote:
I have a degree in accounting and years of accounting experience, and I'll tell you a secret: accounting is not that complicated!
...
Of course, professional accountants will want you to believe otherwise. Of course! The existence of their profession depends on this belief.

Kevin Lossner wrote:



Of course accounting isn't hard per se, though keeping track of the complexities of tax laws, changes in tax laws, relevant case law to argue in case of a dispute, etc. can be rather time-consuming. Most CPAs I have dealt with are idiots who are inexcusably sloppy in their work and are not worth what I pay the guy who rakes the leaves in my yard.

However, depending on your personal situation, if you find someone who really understands how to plan and structure your business for maximum tax advantage, you can more than make up for the cost. Case in point: for years my partner paid thousands of pounds for a second university degree and, following the advice of her "good" accountant, was able to deduct almost none of it from her German taxes. When we got together and she changed accountants, I explained that her studies in occupational therapy were directly relevant to her work as a medical translator and documented how these studies were used to pitch projects. Suddenly all the previously "unacceptable" expenses were considered deductible, and the tax authorities meekly agreed.

I have very little spare time for administrative details, and I find that having an intelligent, creative accountant with a sterling reputation with the local tax authorities saves me a huge amount of time and allows me to keep making money. Routine VAT audits and stupid inquiries from the tax office are usually handled with little input required from me. This also helps keep my blood pressure down, because our local tax office is known for its incompetence (which sometimes works to our advantage, like the time they decided we were to get a refund because they couldn't account for the "extra" money in the account - that was simply bizarre).

My current accountant costs me just a few percent of my earnings and saves me more than that in other costs. However, before finding her, I had to suffer through a series of incompetents who did enormous damage. Finally a friend of mine who has been a leading businessman in Berlin for many years was kind enough to recommend someone who had served him well for over 40 years. The only downside to her services is the actuarial likelihood that I may need to find a replacement in the next decade or so.

You might try asking people in your area who have had established businesses for many years to make a recommendation. If you know some astute business people who can refer you to an accountant who has given decades of good service, you are probably on the right track.

Alexandra Goldburt wrote:

Hello, Marc,

You said you are willing to assist to reduce the tasks to the minimum - well, in this case, why not simply do it yourself? It can't be cheaper than free, and you'll be in control!

I have a degree in accounting and years of accounting experience, and I'll tell you a secret: accounting is not that complicated! If you are good with four basic math operations (advanced math is not needed), have some organizational skill and basic common sense, you are perfectly capable of doing it yourself.

Of course, professional accountants will want you to believe otherwise. Of course! The existence of their profession depends on this belief.

I suggest you take a class and/or read a good book on basic bookkeeping and taxes. For accounting software, I recommend Quickbooks - it's very user-friendly. The only downside of Quickbooks is that it does not allow you to create invoices that you can e-mail. It is an inconvenience indeed, but I go around it by either faxing my invoices or re-creating them in Excel.

Good luck!