UK Based foreign owned subsidiaries

Why do UK-based foreign-owned subsidiaries need a specialist accountant?

Companies based overseas usually establish a UK based operation, with the strategy of expanding the group’s operations into the UK and increasing it’s share of the European market.

However, starting a UK subsidiary or branch gives rise to particular challenges and these typically include:

  • The need for reliable and regular reporting of financial data back to an overseas headquarters.
  • Attention to legislation as it affects the UK operation, including:
    • Employment law
    • Pension obligations
    • Taxation of employee benefits
    • The implication of commercial leases
    • The legal framework in which the branch operates
    • The application and impact of different transfer pricing scenarios
    • Differences in financial reporting requirements between UK GAAP and the regime applicable to the parent company

LEES understand that the costs of meeting UK compliance requirements can be problematic for overseas owners. Often the internal operations of UK based foreign owned businesses are insufficiently skilled to handle the various challenges. This is where LEES add value.

LEES act for overseas groups supporting their UK operations. These may be companies, branches or places of business. In each instance we provide a referral point for the overseas parent for some or all queries relating to UK-specific issues.

We manage your UK based tax and accounting compliance requirements, including your corporate and employment taxes and additionally will help orchestrate local professionals for other professional and bureaucratic issues the business encounters, such as the use of lawyers for legal disputes.

Opening up the UK to your Group can add real value to your business and the cost of dealing with statutory compliance and local management issues should not hindrance. Contact LEES to see how we can help.