Contractors & Remote Workers
Cross-border tax for independent professionals: self-employment tax, totalization certificates, IR35, entity choice, and coordinated estimates for income that crosses the Atlantic.
Two returns, one plan.
Remote work erased borders for clients, but not for tax authorities. A US person invoicing UK clients, or a UK contractor serving US companies, answers to two systems with different rules on self-employment tax, entity treatment, and residence. Treated separately, the two systems overlap and double-charge you. Planned as one, they fit.
We manage the whole picture: which country's social security covers you, what entity you work through, how IR35 affects your engagements, and when your estimates are due on each side.
How we help contractors and remote workers
Compliance and structure for independent work that spans two tax systems.
Cross-Border Contractor Returns
Whether you're a US person invoicing UK clients or a UK contractor serving US companies, we prepare both sets of filings so income is sourced correctly and foreign tax credits land where they belong.
Self-Employment Tax & Totalization
The US/UK totalization agreement means you pay into one social security system, not both. We determine which country covers you and obtain the certificate of coverage that stops double self-employment tax.
IR35 & Status Analysis
UK off-payroll rules can reclassify your contract as employment, which changes who withholds and what you keep. We assess your engagements and coordinate the IR35 answer with your US filing position.
Umbrella Company Review
Umbrella arrangements solve a UK payroll problem and often create a US one: employment misclassification, murky withholding, and pension schemes with PFIC exposure. We review the structure before you sign.
Entity Choice Across Borders
Sole trader, US LLC, or UK Ltd? The right vehicle depends on where you live, where your clients are, and how each country sees the entity. We model the options, including traps like a US LLC owned from the UK.
Quarterly Estimates in Two Systems
US estimated taxes and UK payments on account run on different calendars with different rules. We build one payment schedule covering both so neither system hits you with penalties or a surprise balance.
Get your contracting setup reviewed before double social security or an entity mismatch costs you a year of margin.
Get StartedExplore our tax services
Your clients may be borderless, but your taxes aren't.
The most common contractor mistakes (paying self-employment tax on top of National Insurance, running income through a mismatched entity, drifting into UK residence) are all preventable with the right setup. We build it once and keep it current.
Double social security is the tax leak nobody checks for.
Foreign tax credits fix double income tax, but they do nothing for social security. Self-employed people working across the US/UK border routinely pay National Insurance and 15.3% US self-employment tax on the same profits for years. The totalization agreement exists to stop this, and using it is our starting point on every contractor file.
Coverage Certificate Strategy
We determine which social security system should cover you, obtain the certificate, and attach the right disclosures, which ends double self-employment tax at the source.
Entity Mismatch Prevention
The same entity can be transparent in one country and opaque in the other. We check both systems' view of your structure before income flows through it.
One Calendar, Two Systems
We merge IRS quarterly estimates, HMRC payments on account, and both filing deadlines into a single schedule you can actually follow.
Residence Day-Count Monitoring
For mobile workers, we track UK Statutory Residence Test days and state tax ties so a working trip never changes your tax residence by accident.
Why contractors choose US/UK Cross Border Tax
Both Sides, One Team
US CPAs and UK tax advisers work the same file, so your contract income, entity, and social security position never contradict each other.
Independent-Work Fluency
Contracting, freelancing, consulting, portfolio careers: variable income across two systems is our daily work rather than an edge case.
Structure That Fits the Work
We match the entity and coverage position to how you actually work, and we change it when your client base or country of residence shifts.
Fixed, Transparent Pricing
Cross-border filing shouldn't mean open-ended hourly billing. We give you a fixed quote up front that covers both jurisdictions.
"For two years I paid National Insurance and US self-employment tax on the same freelance income because nobody told me a certificate of coverage existed. They fixed the coverage position, amended my returns, and now both systems run off one payment calendar."
Contractor & Remote Work Tax Questions
Common questions from independent professionals working across the US and UK.
Two Tax Systems, One Team
Email Us
hello@usukcrossbordertax.comLondon Headquarters
4 Crown Place
London EC2A 4BT
United Kingdom
Manchester
CORE
Brown St, Manchester M2 1DH
United Kingdom
San Francisco
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San Francisco, CA 94108
United States
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New York, NY 10003
United States