Consultancy agreement  

• A consultant or self employed person who sells expertise or knowledge
• A “client” requiring a contract to set out trading terms with a consultant or self employed person
• A business using self employed people

This consulting agreement has been drawn so as to be presented to a client on the basis that the client will probably sign it “as is”, but may wish to negotiate.  It is for specific, one off assignments. Of course if you take your clients only off the Internet, you will need a “terms and conditions” document to put on your website. If you do repeat work, choose document "Terms and conditions for a consultant’ from the right hand side.

For thousands of self employed people some version of this document will be presented to a new client as “my contract”. For any business using self employed people it provides the essential starting point for the relationship.

Note however, that although the agreement clothes the transaction with all the characteristics of self employment, simply using one of these contracts will not necessarily avoid the relationship of employer and employed. Both the Inland Revenue and any industrial tribunal will be entitled to look behind the agreement at the reality of the contract. Some of the questions they might ask are:

• Is this the contractors only work or does he work for others too?
• Does the client control how the work is done?
• Are the hours fixed by the client or can the contractor choose when he works?
• Does the contractor work on the clients premises, using the client's equipment?
• To what extent is the contractor at risk as a self employed person?
• Is self employment normal for this kind of work?
• This document is not suitable if you are really an employee.

Not sure? Read the free information on self employment linked above. If you are, your employee must, by law, give you a paper setting out the basic terms under which you work. An employment contract is more suitable.