Free Tool
IR35 contract checker
Get a quick indication of whether your contract might fall inside or outside IR35. Answer 7 questions about your working arrangement. This is for guidance only and not legal advice.
Your working arrangement
The right of substitution is one of the strongest indicators of self-employment. If your contract allows you to send a qualified replacement in your place, it suggests you are genuinely in business on your own account rather than being a disguised employee.
If the client dictates your methods, working hours, and location, it looks more like employment. Genuine contractors typically decide how they deliver the work, choosing their own tools, processes, and schedule.
Being required to work fixed hours (e.g. 9 to 5, Monday to Friday) is a strong indicator of employment. Contractors are usually engaged to deliver a specific outcome rather than to be available during set times.
Providing your own laptop, software licences, and other tools suggests you are running your own business. If the client provides all your equipment, it looks more like an employer-employee relationship.
Working for several clients at once (or having the freedom to do so) is a hallmark of genuine self-employment. If you work exclusively for one client with no freedom to take other work, it may indicate disguised employment.
Financial risk is a key factor. If you must correct defective work at your own expense and on your own time, you are bearing genuine business risk. Employees typically have mistakes corrected on company time and at company cost.
Mutuality of obligation (MOO) means the client must offer you work, and you must accept it. In a genuine contractor relationship, the client has no obligation to provide further work after a project ends, and you have no obligation to accept it.