Consultancy services

Many businesses bring in consultants, typically on a temporary basis, for their expertise in particular areas (such as design or integration services) or to support a one-off project (such as an audit). These consultancy services are usually provided to the customer under a consultancy services contract. The consultancy services can be provided either by a consultancy company, who would then supply individual consultants to provide the services, or through contracting with an individual consultant directly.

As with most service agreements, the nature of the consultancy services to be provided must be clearly defined. Consultants are independent contractors and not employees of the customer; however, take care where they have been hired for ongoing projects, and where they are working exclusively or predominantly for one customer so as to ensure they are true consultancy arrangements. Otherwise, if a consultant is deemed to be employed by a customer, there will be employment and tax law consequences.

This subtopic contains a range of materials concerning consultancy services and the key considerations relating to this type of arrangement.