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Work out what changes if you go from sole trader to limited company
Someone's told you to "go limited". Get a plain-English picture of what actually changes day to day, what to ask your accountant and the GOV.UK pages to read, before you decide.
The prompt · ChatGPT
Help me understand what changes if I go from sole trader to limited company. My business: [what you do, rough income] Why I'm thinking about it: [e.g. tax, a client wants it, risk] Staff: [none, or how many] How I pay myself now: [details] First ask me up to 4 short questions. Wait for my answers. Then: 1. A side-by-side table: paying myself, filing, bank accounts, admin time, privacy, liability, costs to check. 2. What a director must do, in plain words, including verifying my identity with Companies House, with the GOV.UK links. 3. Twelve questions for my accountant. 4. The practical switch-over steps if I go ahead (bank, customers, insurance, HMRC). 5. The GOV.UK pages to read, named and linked. Not tax or legal advice. Only use what I've told you, leave blanks for anything I haven't given, and don't invent facts or figures. UK English. For GOV.UK pages on setting up and running a limited company, use web search and name the page you used. If it doesn't search on its own, open View all tools and choose Search. Stay in this ChatGPT chat. Do not turn on apps or connectors, and do not use memory from another chat.
A short example
Fill the blanks, then paste. what you do, rough income: a short note you already have. e.g. tax, a client wants it, risk: a short note you already have. Leave the rest of the prompt as written.
This does not give tax advice. The books stay in the accounting system.
The prompt · Copilot
Help me understand what changes if I go from sole trader to limited company. My business: [what you do, rough income] Why I'm thinking about it: [e.g. tax, a client wants it, risk] Staff: [none, or how many] How I pay myself now: [details] First ask me up to 4 short questions. Wait for my answers. Then: 1. A side-by-side table: paying myself, filing, bank accounts, admin time, privacy, liability, costs to check. 2. What a director must do, in plain words, including verifying my identity with Companies House, with the GOV.UK links. 3. Twelve questions for my accountant. 4. The practical switch-over steps if I go ahead (bank, customers, insurance, HMRC). 5. The GOV.UK pages to read, named and linked. Not tax or legal advice. Only use what I've told you, leave blanks for anything I haven't given, and don't invent facts or figures. UK English. For GOV.UK pages on setting up and running a limited company, switch to Search mode so the answer comes with a citation. Stay in this Copilot chat. Leave plugins off, and do not open a file from OneDrive.
A short example
Fill the blanks, then paste. what you do, rough income: a short note you already have. e.g. tax, a client wants it, risk: a short note you already have. Leave the rest of the prompt as written.
You describe your business, income and why you're thinking about it.
The assistant asks about staff, risk and how you pay yourself now.
You get a side-by-side of daily life as a sole trader and as a company, the questions for your accountant and the official pages.
What happens
Use Copilot to work out what changes if you go from sole trader to limited company
Someone's told you to "go limited". Get a plain-English picture of what actually changes day to day, what to ask your accountant and the GOV.UK pages to read, before you decide.
Tools
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