Welcome to London, 'The Heart of Europe'. You're here, You've done it. You have done the open top bus ride and taken a photo of Buckingham Palace. Now all you need to do is find a job: These are plentiful as long as you know where to look and have something to offer . Most company's will not be able to offer you full time employment as much of the work is seasonal. Often the most sensible idea is to join an Employment Agency for temporary work and there are thousands of these. The best way of finding a good agency is by word of mouth, in the local press or advertised in the hostels and house shares around London. Make sure that the agency you choose is a member of 'REC' (The Recruitment and Employment Confederation) as there can be some less than scrupulous ones out there.

If an agency wants to charge you a registration fee, go elsewhere. There is plenty of work out there without paying for it. You might have to register with a few before you find the right one for you, but depending on the time of year, your skills and commitment, you should get offered work straight away. The key is to be reliable, proving yourself to be a hard worker and willing to apply yourself to a variety of tasks. This will gain you lots of goody points with your agency.



Contrary to popular belief, you are not automatically entitled to a tax rebate if you are on a working holiday visa. Once working you will probably find yourself on the PAYE system (Pay as you earn). The tax calculations are worked out that you will work a full tax year and only if you fail to work this full year will you then be entitled to a rebate. (April 6 to April 5). Then again you are only entitled to a percentage of the net tax back. Confused? You will be. A working persons tax code in Britain is currently 647L, which means you are allowed to earn £6475 before paying tax. However, this does not mean you will not pay tax until you reach this figure as your tax contribution is paid weekly:



If you were earning £16,000 per annum, you will only be taxed on the £9525. which is minus your tax-free allowance of £6475. Of that £9530. the first £2,440. is taxed at 10 per cent and the remainder at 20 per cent upto £37,400. National Insurance contributions are also deducted. If you are moving from employer to employer, you need a copy of your P45. This is an official tax document, which states what you have earned and paid in tax and NI in the current tax year. Each time you start a new job and hand in your P45, your earnings will automatically be added onto the new employer until you finally reach the end of the tax year. Your current employer will then issue you with a P60, which is a summary of your yearly earnings. You will need all copies of your P45's, and P60's (your payslips will also come in handy) to make a claim for a tax rebate, so keep them in a safe place. So if you have not worked the whole year you are now entitled to make a claim for a tax rebate, but remember this is only a percentage of the tax you have already paid. You can either contact the tax office yourself or pay a commission to a tax rebate agency to do it for you. Either way it will take 4-8 weeks.



We all have to pay NI contributions and as such you need to obtain your own personalised number, which you must supply to each employer. You get this from your local Department of Social Security Benefits Office (listed in the Yellow Pages). You need your passport and letter from your employer. Some agencies will charge for this service so check with them before starting work. Your NI contributions payable, based on a weekly basis are as follows: For the first £110. earned you don't pay any NI. From £110.01 to £770.00 you pay, 11%. Tax and NI will then be deducted through the PAYE scheme. You will be able to see these deductions on your wage slip. An extra 1% will be deducted on weekly earnings over £844.01.



A way of avoiding these payments is to 'Buy' a Limited Company. These are widely advertised in the traveller's press like the TNT. There are advantages and disadvantages to this. Many workers find themselves eventually paying out more than they would have done on PAYE, as they do not understand or are too busy having fun, to work out their annual accounts or corporation tax. Having a chartered accountant to prepare your annual accounts could cost £500 -£600. A lot of company agencies will also not employ you as a Limited Company as in the long term, if you fail to pay your own NI and tax, the company can be held responsible. There are many tax agents in London who are more than willing to help you, for a price, but our advice is, unless you are genuinely running a business, forget about Limited Companies. Just pay your Tax and NI and get on with things.



Now you need somewhere to put all that hard earned money. Opening a Bank Account can be more painful than finding a job. If you have a letter of introduction from your bank at home, you have one foot in the door. Otherwise expect some trouble. Most banks require as much ID as possible including your passport. They often like to see proof of where you are staying, normally in the form of a bill with the address on. This is not always possible, as you may have just arrived in the UK.

Once you are working you can request a letter from your employer to verify you are working for them. Some companies may charge for this. Most Banks will only let you open a Savings Account. This normally only allows you to pay in and take out with the means of a ATM card. Once you have banked for a while and have proved you are good credit, they will let you apply for a current account, which entitles you to a cheque book and guarantee card. Spend a day shopping around to find the best bank for you. So you now know how to find a job, how the confusing British tax system works, how to claim a tax rebate and how to bank your money. All you need now is advice on how to spend it. No, I think you will work that one out all by yourself. 'Have a ball in the heart of Europe'.