IR35 Status Checker

Use our free IR35 Status Checker to find out whether an engagement is more likely to fall inside or outside IR35. You don’t need to know the rules – we’ll take you through the questions that matter and explain why we’re asking them.

Allow around 5–10 minutes. The checker is based on highly detailed research into HMRC guidance and the leading IR35 and employment status cases, with 39 HMRC and legal sources behind the methodology.

Start the status check

Independent IR35 status tool

How the tool works

At its core, IR35 boils down to a single question: what would the relationship between the client and contractor look like if the intermediary (usually the contractor’s limited company) wasn’t there? Looking at the terms of the engagement and how the arrangement works in practice, would the contractor be more like an employee of the client or genuinely self-employed?

The questions you see are based on your previous answers. The engine examines things such as who has to do the work, how much control the client has over the worker, financial risk, how the worker fits into the client’s organisation and whether they are genuinely in business on their own account.

There is no definitive IR35 points test, so our checker doesn’t simply add up a series of ‘yes’ and ‘no’ answers to provide a percentage likelihood that a contract falls inside or outside the rules.

Instead, it follows the principles established by the courts and reflected in HMRC’s detailed employment status guidance.

The underlying research uses 39 sources, including HMRC’s Employment Status Manual and important employment status judgments.

Most checks are completed in 5–10 minutes.

Answer the questions based on the real terms of the engagement and how it works in practice.

If you genuinely don’t know an answer, say “I don’t know” rather than guessing.

Personal serviceDoes the worker have to do the work personally, or could someone else genuinely do it instead?
ControlWhat control does the client have over the work and the way the engagement operates?
Other factorsWhat do the financial risk, working relationship and other circumstances tell us about the worker’s status?

Important: This is a guide, not legal or tax advice. It gives an IR35 indication based on the answers you provide, but it is not a Status Determination Statement (SDS). The final position depends on the contract and the actual working arrangements.