The importance of a compliant PSL

It has never been more important for your recruitment agency to consolidate your Preferred Supplier List (PSL) and to ensure every umbrella company is fully compliant with HMRC legislation. With the introduction of the Criminal Finances Act 2017, your recruitment agency and your Directors could face severe punishments for facilitating tax avoidance – even if it was accidental!

Your Preferred Supplier List is incredibly important, and you must get it right

It has never been more critical for every recruitment agency to have an up-to-date, fully vetted, compliant PSL. But why?

The answer is simple: HMRC continues to step up its efforts to reclaim underpaid taxes from workers who have engaged with a tax avoidance scheme. They’re now prepared to seek unpaid tax further down the supply chain if they cannot get it from the individuals who engaged with the scheme in the first place. This means your agency could face huge tax bills in the future – if you refer your candidates to a non-compliant provider. And, it’s worth remembering that HMRC doesn’t care if you referred somebody to a tax avoidance scheme by mistake – you could still be held accountable.

Legislation such as the Criminal Finances Act (2017) should have come as a serious wake-up call to agencies throughout the UK. We appreciate that a huge majority of agencies are compliant and have a strict PSL in place, but unfortunately, a small number of agencies have been known to be irresponsible with their referrals, giving the industry a bad name.

To summarise the legislation – your agency can be faced with severe punishments from HMRC if any of your consultants refer to a non-compliant and unethical umbrella company or accountant. This still applies if the consultant does it without management knowing. Therefore, you must be able to document every referral that is made by every member of your team.

Why should you only have FCSA-accredited and SafeRec-certified umbrella companies on your agency's PSL?

FCSA

FCSA accreditation means a great deal. The FCSA is the UKS’s leading self-regulated professional body. They are dedicated to ensuring the supply chain of temporary workers is compliant and ethical. Churchill Knight is proud to be an accredited member.

To achieve the FCSA’s prestigious accreditation, Churchill Knight Umbrella underwent a thorough assessment process and audit from independent professionals. Every internal process was monitored and evaluated to ensure full compliance with HMRC rules and regulations. If a company isn’t compliant, it cannot obtain FCSA membership.

By choosing an FCSA-accredited business to add to your PSL – much of the time-consuming and stressful due diligence has been done for you. You don’t need to run comprehensive examinations of each business – because the FCSA has done it for you.
Find out more about Churchill Knight Umbrella and why you should add us to your PSL.

SafeRec

Powered by AI, SafeRec uses real-time information to audit the payslips generated by Churchill Knight Umbrella. The audit is also cross-referenced with the RTI sent to HMRC to ensure there are no signs of malpractice. By referring a candidate to an umbrella company with a SafeRec certification, such as Churchill Knight Umbrella, the worker will receive an automatically generated audit report for every payslip, which explains whether or not the deductions on their payslip are compliant. Recruitment agencies will also receive a monthly audit summary with the audit results for all referred candidates to Churchill Knight Umbrella.

For the first time ever, umbrella companies can prove to the entire supply chain that they are processing payroll correctly because an automatically generated audit is sent to the umbrella’s employees every time they are paid. If an umbrella pays employees unethically, agencies (and the worker) will be alerted immediately – helping them identify malpractice the moment it occurs.

SafeRec has been exceptionally well received in the contractor sector because it helps companies hiring temporary workers remain compliant with complex legislation such as the Criminal Finances Act, as they receive real-time information on the payslips being produced and how the workers are being paid by the umbrella companies they refer to.

Preferred Supplier List (PSL) checklist for recruitment agencies

Here are some tips to help you decide which umbrella company to add to your PSL.

FCSA accreditation

Are you referring candidates to a compliant umbrella company?

Only choose FCSA-accredited providers – as you can be sure they’re compliant with HMRC and will pose no risk of non-compliance to your agency.

SafeRec certification

Can you prove that each contractor you referred to an umbrella company is paid compliantly?

As part of our SafeRec certification, all your candidates paid by us will benefit from a payslip audit, and you’ll also receive a monthly report. This level of transparency protects your agency against the risks associated with serious legislation such as the Criminal Finances Act.

Reputation

Always check a company’s reputation – have they been around for a long time, and are they well-respected?

Churchill Knight Umbrella was established in 2017 and is backed by professionals with over 25 years of industry experience. We’re one of the leading PAYE umbrella companies in the UK and we’ve built a reputation we’re proud of – our online reputation is an excellent example of this as Churchill Knight Umbrella has excellent ratings on Google and Trustpilot.

Experience

Are they experienced? This is important because you want to know they know what they are doing.

We are partnered with some of the leading agencies in the UK and pay hundreds of contractors every week. As one of the most established umbrella companies in the UK, you can confidently refer your candidates to us.

Incentives

Do they offer incentives?

If they do, be extra careful. Remember, tax must be paid on incentives, and they must be documented.

Multiple services

Do they have multiple services to suit all your candidate’s requirements?

Churchill Knight Umbrella does not just specialise in umbrella payroll. We can also help your CIS workers with our CIS payroll service and HGV drivers with our Driver payroll service. We also offer umbrella salary sacrifice for your candidates looking to boost their private pensions tax-efficiently.

Our sister company, Churchill Knight & Associates Ltd, can help your candidates who operate outside IR35 or require an accountancy service. Churchill Knight & Associates Ltd is the perfect option, because they offer:

Partnering with a business that can handle all your candidates’ requirements makes sense!

Registered in the UK

Where is the company registered?

Make sure every provider you refer to is registered in the UK. This will help ensure you don’t use tax avoidance schemes by mistake.

Expenses

Do they advertise expenses as part of the service?

After the introduction of Supervision, Direction and Control, far fewer contractors can legitimately claim expenses. If you notice a payroll provider actively promoting that they pay expenses without asking questions – alarm bells should be ringing, and you should avoid them at all costs. Every compliant payroll provider should be extremely strict with expenses.

Knowledgeable about industry legislation

Are they knowledgeable and up-to-date on the latest legislation affecting contractors and freelancers?

The staffing industry is not straightforward, and there are many rules and regulations that you must be aware of. Only partner with businesses that are well-educated and up to speed on the latest news and laws affecting your business and your candidates.

Did you know that Churchill Knight Umbrella has a dedicated Recruiters Zone? This area on our website is exclusively for recruiters and contains information on legislation, tips to remain compliant, advice for consultants and news on our latest competitions. We even have a dedicated Recruiters Blog! By partnering with us, you’ll form a relationship with knowledgeable experts here to help your consultants and candidates.

Our Recruiters Zone features a series of guides on important legislation. These guides cover legislation including IR35 (off-payroll), Agency Worker Regulations (AWR), Employment Intermediaries, the Apprenticeship Levy, Travel and Subsistence, and more!

Are they partnered with useful and trustworthy businesses?

This is important. For example, if your candidates are looking for an IR35 review or need additional insurance, can the businesses on your PSL help them? Churchill Knight Umbrella is partnered with Kingsbridge, a specialist provider of contractor insurance packages and IR35 reviews.

What are the benefits of partnering with Churchill Knight Umbrella?

We’re delighted to work with hundreds of recruitment agencies throughout the UK. By partnering with us, you’re teaming up with an umbrella company you can trust. We’ve built a reputation we’re proud of, and you can be assured that your recruitment agency, consultants, and candidates will become our priority.

Here are a few reasons why you should contact our friendly Agency Team today to arrange a meeting in your office:

  • Agencies cannot afford to have a non-compliant payroll provider on their PSL, and we are incredibly proud that Churchill Knight Umbrella has achieved the prestigious FCSA accreditation. You can refer your candidates to us with total peace of mind.
  • Being a SafeRec-certified umbrella company gives our recruitment agency partners a huge benefit because they can check the payslips of the candidates we process payroll for and prove to the entire supply chain that they are only referring candidates to a compliant provider. This provides an additional layer of protection against legislation such as the Criminal Finances Act.
  • We are partnered with IR35 specialists who can help your end client and your agency with IR35 assessments, Status Determination Statements, and more.
  • When you partner with Churchill Knight Umbrella, you will have a dedicated Business Development Manager and Account Manager to support your business and your candidates. You will also have access to our Payroll and Compliance Team, who will be happy to answer any questions you may have.
  • We make it our priority to stay up-to-date with the latest news and legislation affecting the supply of temporary workers, and our Agency Team would be happy to deliver training at your office for Consultants who want to learn more.
  • Your candidates are your priority, and we respect this. You have our word—they’ll become our priority, too. We recently established an Onboarding Department to ensure your candidates’ registration is seamless, and we always go the extra mile to ensure the service we deliver is beyond expectations.
  • We work in a highly regulated industry and take our compliance very seriously. However, it is also great to have some fun along the way! When you partner with us, you will have access to various fun and exciting competitions with the chance to win fantastic prizes. Keep an eye out for emails and social media posts.

Arrange a meeting with our Agency Team

Compliance within the contractor payroll sector has never been so important. Your agency must have a PSL exclusively containing compliant umbrella companies with the best practices in place and a perfect track record. Churchill Knight Umbrella is accredited by the FCSA and certified by SafeRec. Therefore, by referring candidates to us, you can be confident that your business and contractors are in the safest hands.

Our highly trained Business Development Team is located throughout the UK and would be delighted to visit your office and discuss the many benefits of working together. Please call 0808 2525533 to schedule a meeting with one of our team members at a convenient time or email agency@churchill-knight.co.uk.

Compliance will always be our priority

Churchill Knight Umbrella is proud to be one of the first UK umbrella companies with both an accreditation from the FCSA and SafeRec Certification. We're partnered with hundreds of agencies who equally value compliance and service, and we ensure all of the temporary candidates (contractors and freelancers) that are referred to us receive an exceptional payroll experience - from the initial calculation we provide them to processing their pay for the first time.

10 reasons to refer to us

The FCSA is the UK’s leading professional body committed to ensuring the compliance of the supply chain of temporary workers.

SafeRec is revolutionary, and having a PSL exclusively composed of SafeRec certified umbrella companies will protect your business and candidates.