Benefits of Contracting

Being a contractor is very different from being employed in the traditional sense. Contracting for some individuals is ideal but for some the loss of financial security and social continuity is frightening.

In the IT sector becoming a contractor is a popular method of employment and comes with a variety of benefits over permanent work.

What are the benefits of contracting?

Contracting shares many benefits such as:

• Freedom. Contractors have greater flexibility and can take longer time off

• IT contractor jobs are often suitable for international workers, looking for jobs in the UK, who have the right skills but do not want to commit long term

• Gaining new experiences and knowledge with different contracts

• Greater control over the development of your skills-set and the direction of your career

• Less involvement in office politics

• Contractors who take professional advice can also greatly reduce the amount of tax they pay.

• Making strong connections in various industries

What are the financial benefits of contracting?

In certain fields such as the IT industry, contracting is sometimes paid significantly more than permanent roles in the same field. In some cases this can be as much as two or three times over a similar time period.

Contracting sometimes also has the benefit of weekly rather than monthly pay, meaning you receive more regular payments for your work.

Some examples of the average current market contractor daily rates with their associated rise or fall % on same period as last year for some IT professionals:

Contractor Role Daily Rate YoY Change

£361 4.71

£429 3.59%

£413 - 1.71%

£478 3.37%

£682 11.70%

£400 0.92%

£462 2.04%

£525 1.34%

£429 - 4.16%

You can also use these contractor calculators to assist you in working out what you may be able to earn from contracting.

What do clients look for in a contractor?

People who are successful as contractors are typically:

• Deadline orientated

• Able to learn quickly and adapt to a companies culture

• Are excellent communicators

• Pro-active problem solvers

• Have reasonably flexible personal commitments and willing to do overtime if required

• Have up-to-date skills set inline with the their type of work

• Can start new contracts quickly

To read more information on becoming a contractor you can visit specialist sites like ContractorUK. These sites have excellent bulletin boards where resident experts are on hand to answer most questions.

Contractor Insurance

IT contractors often need to consider purchasing contractor insurance cover such as professional indemnity or business liability. Hiscox insurance offer packages tailored to IT contractors through Free-Work. Click here to get a quote.

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