IR35 status determinations explained

Who decides

The end client decides, provided it is a medium or large business. The decision must be communicated in writing, with the reasons that led to it, to the worker and to the next party down the chain.

Until the statement has been passed on, the client keeps the PAYE responsibility it was trying to transfer.

What reasonable care means

• Assess the engagement, not the role title or the department.
• Use the facts of how the work is actually done.
• Record the reasoning at the time the decision is made.
• Re-assess when the working arrangement materially changes.

A blanket determination applied across a category of workers is the standard example of failing this test.

The challenge window

A worker or fee-payer may dispute the determination. The client has 45 days to respond, either confirming with reasons or replacing it.

Silence is not a neutral outcome: missing the deadline moves the liability back to the client whether or not the original answer was correct.

Getting it right first time

Determinations are cheap to make carefully and expensive to defend carelessly. The evidence you would want in an enquiry is the evidence to gather when the decision is made.