Locums

Locum Pay

As a locum there are three options of payment methods:

• PAYE –If you are a PAYE employee elsewhere and decide to locum in your spare time this could be a good option for you.
• Umbrella Company – This is where you are paid by a third party company and the advantage is that you may be able to claim tax relief on some of your expenses. However there are charges levied by the umbrella company.  There are several umbrella companies operating in the UK and the choice can be confusing. Our preferred umbrella companies are I4Group and Exceed Outsourcing.
• Limited Company – In April 2021, the UK Government is introducing changes to the tax regime under the broad umbrella of IR35 Reform and Off Payroll Working.  Specialist advice should be sought in this area to ensure you are fully compliant.
• Sole Trader – registered self-employed individuals.

For guidance on current tax legislation visit: H.M. Revenue & Customs

For effective tax planning you should appoint an accountant and it is helpful to find one with experience in veterinary taxation matters.

Veterinary Insurance

Some veterinary practices will provide insurance cover for locum staff under their practice policies however this is not the case for all practices and the cover provided may not be adequate for all eventualities. It is very important to make sure that you are fully covered by professional indemnity insurance while working as a locum. There are many insurance companies out there but the majority of the veterinary profession are covered by the Veterinary Defence Society (VDS). For more information visit: https://www.thevds.co.uk/

Veterinary Locum Services

At Medicus, our team has a vast amount of experience of supplying veterinary locum staff to a wide variety of veterinary practices throughout the UK and there are many ways in which we can help you become a successful locum with a full work calendar. 

Our services for locum vets and locum vet nurses is FREE of charge and there are no hidden charges for you. We believe in providing you the greatest flexibility in finding locum work so we do not restrict you from working with other agencies. Usually, we’ll agree your day rate with the client and invoice them for your rate plus our small daily admin charge.  Once we’ve collected your fees, we’ll pass them straight along to your umbrella company or limited company the same day.  This means that you don’t have to chase up late payments, Medicus will do it for you!

In some circumstances, you may be authorised to invoice our client directly for your fees.  This can be arranged with special provisions made on your behalf.  We’ll be sure to talk you through it in detail so you are clear about when you’ll be paid and from where.

For those on our locum register we will let you know first about any locum requirements we feel may be of interest to you. If you are interested in a locum job we will liaise with the practice on your behalf. 

To help you we make sure you have the full address of any practice you will be working at and the time you need to arrive. To make things easier, wherever possible we will put you in touch directly with the practice before you start so that you have already spoken with a contact person there! 

Our team will make sure the practice is clear how you are to receive payment to help keep things simple and stress free for all.

We would advise that you clearly mark any equipment that you take with you to avoid any confusion while you are there.