Services to Companies

We have developed, Touchdown Europe, a unique service that makes your European move simpler, faster and hassle free. We take the strain and leave you to take care of your business. We've helped more than a hundred companies, many of them NASDAQ listed, to successfully enter the UK and other European markets.

Touchdown Europe is a network made up of professionals from a wide range of disciplines that have been chosen because of their understanding and expertise in helping companies to set-up and expand in Europe.

The beauty of Touchdown Europe is that we can provide an integrated, reliable and cost-effective solution for the whole life-cycle of your expansion project.

Our 10 step guide gives you an idea of the things we can help with:

STEP ONE - MARKETING

The first and one of the most crucial steps is your ability to define your market context and business direction. What markets are you intending to enter? Are there any barriers to entry? What are the market strengths in your particular geographical location? Who will be your competitors?

STEP TWO - STRUCTURE

What type of operation will you have? You need to consider the differing tax, operational and marketing benefits offered by different types of operation. You can choose between Representative Office, Branch or Subsidiary company with limited liability. We'll outline the pros and cons relating to your particular situation and help you to decide which option is best for you.

STEP THREE - TRADING STRUCTURE/TAX

How will your European entity earn its income? The operation may book all the sales it makes in the region and so be trading on the normal profit and loss basis. Alternatively it may act as a service provider to the US parent, eg by providing local marketing expertise. In this case your method of recognising revenue will depend on the type of trading structure: the options include a commission basis and a mark up on costs.

We'll advise you in selecting a suitable trading structure, assist you with intra-group trading agreements and transfer pricing documentation as required by revenue authorities, assist you in optimising your European tax structure and take care of your tax filings and other compliance matters.

STEP FOUR - VALUE ADDED TAX

Value Added Tax/Customs Duty is complex. The new business is likely to be required to register for VAT. We can advise whether this is necessary (or advantageous) and if so, help with registration and compliance - a process, which normally takes 2 to 3 weeks. We will explain all the reporting requirements and can provide a VAT reporting service. In addition, we would review any planning opportunities if your products are liable to import duty.

STEP FIVE - PEOPLE

Using our own in-house team, as well as recruitment and human resource consultants, we can help you with all your HR issues. We will advise on tax efficient relocation of staff and use an immigration and visa consultant to deal with work and residence permits. In addition, we will counsel individual staff on personal financial issues, all helping to build your "caring employer" image.

We will advise on and implement appropriate employee benefits packages to attract and retain the best staff and implement and manage a whole package of staff benefits, insurances and investment schemes, tailored to suit your business requirements.

After review and set up, our employee benefits team will administer comprehensive employee benefits schemes, linking in with UK and US financial services companies and make payments/deductions via our payroll service.

Payroll and Expenses - If you're employing even one staff member, you'll need to ensure compliance with European payroll systems. We can accommodate any size of payroll and for a fixed monthly fee, your payroll will be run smoothly and efficiently. All employee expenses and deductions for benefits can be paid through our payroll service. We also deal with all year end returns and completion of annual returns of benefits form.

STEP SIX - FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

Suitable banking and finance facilities will need to be implemented to ensure the efficient transfer of funds between Europe and your corporate HQ. We can make appropriate arrangements on your behalf and have bank accounts opened with cheque books and cards ready within a week.

Keeping tight control of an overseas operation can be a worry. We provide a menu of accounting support services to ensure you retain control. Most of our clients who are new to the UK outsource all of their accounting to ensure control of available funds through the operation of an independent accounting function. We can report to local management or directly to HQ. We can handle:

Preparing monthly management accounts and reports
Sales invoicing
Credit control
VAT returns
Purchase ledger management
Payments to suppliers
Expense claims - checking and reimbursement

STEP SEVEN - SITE SELECTION

Tenon techlocate can provide you with a single one-stop-shop resource, including advice on the best locations for your business, details grants and incentives available and introductions to local and regional development agencies. Not only do we take the pain out of finding the optimum location for your business, we can add some serious value to your bottom-line by making sure all available incentives are considered.

STEP EIGHT - OFFICE SPACE

We can advise you on commercial and residential property issues, highlighting the choices available to you and the best one for your business needs. We can source you serviced office accommodation in any European country or advise you of larger development options.

STEP NINE - COMPLIANCE

Many of our clients use an international firm of CPAs to deal with their audit services. We have a partnership with Blueprint Audit Ltd, a company who can deal with everything up to and including the preparation of audit files for the appointed auditors, so minimizing your audit costs.

STEP TEN - EUROPEAN MARKET

Many of our international clients start their business operations in the UK as a stepping-stone into Europe. After the UK operation has been established it may soon be time to consider opening branches, offices or subsidiary operations in other European countries. Acting as your European financial and administration centre, we can help to recruit accountants who can deal with local employment issues, run payrolls and deal with local taxes. We continue to control all accounting and reporting from the UK.

Our network extends throughout Europe and includes service partners in most countries. Working with them, we can offer guidance, support and practical assistance in most areas of business, finance, human resources and administration.

Contact Douglas Clark - douglas.clark@tenongroup.com - for more details.