The question whether someone is employed or self employed is determined by the nature of the relationship between the parties involved and is not a self-determined label. HMRC have a tool to help you determine the correct status.

The Check Employment Status Tool (CEST) is an online tool that can be used to help determine employment status.

It can be used by the worker, the employer or the agent to check the worker’s or contractor’s status. The system is based on HMRC interpretation of established cases and works by asking a series of questions. The outcome is determined by the answers given by the user.

The result given by the tool will provide an indication of the worker’s employment status.

The employer can rely on the CEST outcome, say HMRC, provided the answers to the questions accurately reflect the terms and conditions under which the worker provides their services. You must also print out or save the enquiry details screen and the CEST result screen as evidence of the decision made.