Should I be on the cash basis?

By default you are, since 6 April 2024, and for most barristers it helps because you are taxed on fees when received rather than when billed. Whether to opt out onto accruals depends on your circumstances, and we work out which leaves you better off.

Can you help with the transition profit from basis period reform?

Yes. We calculate the transition profit, set any overlap relief against it, and spread the charge over up to five years, planning how the spread interacts with your income each year rather than accepting the default.

Do you act for junior barristers?

Yes, and the first years are the best time to get it right. We set you up registered, on the right basis, with clean records and tax set aside so the first payment on account is not a shock.

A fixed fee agreed up front, scaled to your fee book and whether a basis decision or transition spread is involved. Tell us about your practice and we will price it with a deadline.

Accountants for Barristers

Written and reviewed by the Legal Accountants editorial team. Last reviewed 28 July 2026.

A self-employed barrister is taxed as a sole trader, but with the Bar's own quirks: fees that come in slowly, chambers expenses, the cash basis, and a basis-period change that has pushed bills up. We act for barristers specifically, so none of that is unfamiliar.

Fixed fee, agreed before we begin, with nothing charged until you approve it.

What We Handle

Your Self Assessment return and the bookkeeping behind it, worked out on the cash basis or accruals, whichever is right for you, with chambers rent, clerks' fees, your practising certificate, robes and the rest of practice claimed in full.

We handle the two things pushing bills around at the Bar right now: basis period reform and the transition profit, and Making Tax Digital as it arrives.

Where the Bar Is Different

Slow fees are the defining problem. Under the old default a barrister could be taxed on fees a solicitor had not paid for a year or more. The cash basis, now the default, largely answers that by taxing fees when they arrive, but choosing and moving between bases needs judgement, not a default setting.

On top of that, the transition to the tax-year basis has created one-off catch-up charges for barristers who used a 30 April year end. We spread those correctly and plan around your marginal rate rather than accepting whatever falls out.

How It Runs

Send us your fee and expense records and anything with a deadline, in one go. We do the work, show you the numbers and the tax due with the payment dates, and file once you approve. Identity checks come first. Junior barristers we set up properly from the first year, on the right basis with the tax set aside.

Most barristers take the ongoing service so the quarterly Making Tax Digital rhythm, which suits how fees arrive, is handled for them.

What It Costs

A fixed fee agreed before work starts, sized to your practice. A straightforward return is at the lower end; a heavy fee book with a transition-profit spread and a basis decision costs more, and we tell you which you are first.

To get a price, tell us where you are at the Bar and we will come back with a fixed quote and a deadline.