Tax specialists for businesses trading on both sides
Growing businesses with operations in both the US and UK need specialist tax preparation. We handle the corporate returns, cross-border filings and international tax compliance that mid-market businesses face on both sides.
Cross-Border Business Tax & Accounting
Businesses operating across the US and UK face complex tax and accounting obligations, from transfer pricing documentation to international payroll and VAT and sales tax compliance. Each entity in the group brings its own returns, and they have to agree with each other.
We prepare the filings that cross-border expansion creates, report intercompany transactions, claim the credits and treaty relief available on each return, and keep both IRS and HMRC compliance up to date. Our tax accountants understand the specific challenges of businesses at all stages, from startup expansion to established multinational operations.
With deep expertise in the US-UK tax treaty, withholding requirements and foreign entity reporting such as Form 5471, we help businesses avoid double taxation and penalties while maintaining accurate financial reporting across both jurisdictions.
Why a cross-border position matters more for this group than a domestic one.
How an engagement runs
Two authorities, one file. Here is what working together actually looks like.
- Review
We look at both sides together: what you file, where, and what has already been filed or missed.
- Position
We set out the treaty position and reliefs that apply to you, with the numbers behind each option.
- File
We prepare and submit to the IRS and HMRC, keeping the two sets of filings consistent with each other.
- Keep current
Two tax calendars means deadlines all year. We track them and tell you before they arrive.
What we handle for you
The filings this group needs most, on both sides of the Atlantic.
Questions we are asked most
The ones that come up in almost every first conversation with this group.
Not always. It depends on whether your activity creates a taxable presence, which turns on where people work, where contracts are concluded, and how you hold inventory. Setting up an entity you do not need adds filings; not setting one up you do need creates exposure.
It is a US anti-deferral rule that can tax US shareholders on a controlled foreign company's profits as they arise, rather than when distributed. A UK company owned by US persons can fall into it, which surprises a lot of founders who assumed UK corporation tax was the end of the matter.
Each employee generally creates obligations where they work, which can mean PAYE and National Insurance on one side and federal and state withholding on the other. Social security is the part most often missed; a totalisation agreement usually prevents paying into both systems at once.
They can, and they work nothing alike. VAT is a single national system with registration thresholds; US sales tax is set state by state and triggered by economic nexus rules that vary. Selling into several states can create several registrations.
It often does. US shareholders in a UK company can bring Form 5471 and GILTI reporting with them, and US funds may ask for US tax information the company has not produced before. It is easier to have that reporting in place before the round closes than to catch up after it.
Let's get both sides right
Tell us your situation and we will map out exactly what you owe, where, and when.