Before you hire
Fractional CFO UK: costs, IR35 and the rules on engagement
Updated
A fractional CFO is usually engaged business to business, which brings a few rules a full-time hire does not.
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Who decides IR35 status
If you engage a CFO through their own company and your business is not small, you decide the off-payroll status. One of the size tests is an annual turnover of more than £10.2 million; the worker can disagree and you must respond within 45 days.
Source: Fractional CFO engagement rules: every row, with its source
What a full-time hire adds
An employed finance director costs employer National Insurance on top of salary: in 2026 to 2027 the rate above the secondary threshold is 15%, and the secondary threshold is £5,000 a year.
Source: Fractional CFO engagement rules: every row, with its source
VAT on the fee
A provider must register for VAT once its taxable turnover for the last 12 months goes over £90,000, so most fractional CFO fees carry VAT on top.
Source: Fractional CFO engagement rules: every row, with its source
The fees
Nine UK providers publish a monthly figure, from £900 to £4,800, a median of £1,795.
Source: Fractional CFO price index: every row, with its source