Billing clients on both sides of the Atlantic?
Consultancies, agencies and professional firms working across the UK and US face their own cross-border knots — where profit is taxed, how partners and staff are paid, and whether serving clients abroad creates a presence there. We keep both sides straight.
Sector snapshot
The quick read on where service firms meet cross-border tax.
Serving clients abroad can create a presence
Sending people to a client’s site, or having staff based abroad, can create a permanent establishment — and with it, tax and filing obligations in a country you thought you were only visiting.
Two payroll systems for one team
A team split across the UK and US means PAYE and RTI on one side and federal and state withholding on the other, plus pensions and benefits rules that don’t match.
Where does the profit get taxed?
When work is delivered from one country to clients in another, deciding which jurisdiction taxes the profit — and claiming relief so it isn’t taxed twice — takes coordinated returns, not two separate ones.
The cross-border friction in this sector
Three places service firms most often trip over the two tax systems.
The services this sector leans on
Corporation tax (both sides)
Reconcile where profit is taxed and claim relief so it isn’t double-taxed.
Payroll & accounts
Run UK and US payroll for a split team, in step, with clean consolidated books.
UK & US market entry
Manage permanent-establishment risk when you serve a new market.
Transfer pricing & structuring
Price intra-group services defensibly when entities bill across borders.
What this sector asks first
Does sending consultants abroad create a tax presence?
It can. Staff working at a client site or based in another country may create a permanent establishment, bringing local tax and filing duties. Planning how and where people work helps manage that.
Can you run payroll for a team split across both countries?
Yes — UK PAYE/RTI and US federal and state payroll handled together, with pensions and benefits on each side, so your people are paid and reported correctly.
How do we avoid being taxed twice on the same work?
By preparing both returns together and applying foreign tax credits and the treaty. Coordinated filing is what stops the same profit being taxed on both sides.
Working across both markets?
A free consultation, no obligation. Tell us where your people and clients sit and we’ll map what’s due on each side — with a fixed price before any work begins.
