Before setting up your health business, you will need to incorporate your company. During the company incorporation process on Companies House, you will need to provide your company’s SIC code based on the nature of your business and services. There are over 600 codes on the list of SIC codes to choose from which can be overwhelming. This article explains what a SIC code is and how to choose one for your new health business.
What are standard industrial classifications?
A Standard industrial classification code (SIC code) is a five-digit business code which describes a company’s economic activities and business services. These codes help the Office for National Statistics (ONS) track the state and growth of United Kingdom (UK) companies. The condensed UK SIC code list maintained by Companies House is available on the gov.uk website. A private limited company (the most popular type) can have multiple SIC codes. Dormant companies and non-trading companies are also required to have a SIC code.
Your health business can have multiple SIC codes if it has multiple business activities. SIC codes can also be updated via a confirmation statement if ever the business’ activities evolve or you carry-out new activities.
What SIC code should I use for my health company?
There are 13 SIC codes concerning business activities that deal with human health. These are different from SIC codes that concern animal health and welfare. In this section we will discuss which SIC code is relevant for each type of human health related activity.
Clinical Activities
Clinical activities involve things such as hospital care and treatment. If your business concerns hospital activities you should use the SIC code 86101. Similarly if your business provides medical nursing home care, which is different to general care homes mentioned below, you should use the SIC code 86102.
If your business provides more general medical practice activities, such as GP surgery, you should use the SIC code 86210. Conversely, if your medical practice is more specialist, such as a chiropodist business or physiotherapy business you might want to consider using the SIC code 86220.
Residential Care
If your business provides residential care (excluding that medical as mentioned above) then you will need to define the type of residential care your business is providing.
If you provide residential care for those with learning difficulties, mental health issues or substance abuse issues, such as a rehabilitation centre, then you should use the SIC code 87200.
If your care focuses on that of the elderly and disabled then you should use the SIC code 87300, such as for elderly nursing homes.
If your business provides general residential care facilities then you should use the SIC code 87100 or if it provides any other type of residential care n.e.c. (not elsewhere classified) then you should use the SIC code 87900.
Dental care
If your business activities involve dental care, such as a orthodontist, hygienist or dental business, then you should use the SIC code 86230.
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Social work and Childcare
If your business delivers social work activities for the elderly or disabled without providing accommodation then you should use the SIC code 88100. Alternatively, if your business involves child day-care activities, such as in the case of nurseries and childminding businesses then you should use the SIC code 88910.
If neither of these social work or childcare SIC codes capture your business’ activities then you should use the SIC code 88990 for all other social work activities (without accommodation) that are n.e.c.
Miscellaneous
If you feel as though none of the above apply to your business that relates to human health then you can use the SIC code 86900 that covers all other human health activities.
Conclusion
Once you have navigated the industry classification system and chosen a SIC code for your technology business and finalised the incorporation process, you will need to generate legal contracts to structure your business activities. Creating lawyer-approved agreements can be costly and it can be tempting to download free templates online. However, this process is risky and unnecessary thanks to contract management platforms like Legislate. Legislate allows to tailor the essential agreements to hire and grow your business such as employment, consultancy and internship agreements. To create a lawyer-approved contract for only £9.95, sign up to Legislate today!
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The opinions on this page are for general information purposes only and do not constitute legal advice on which you should rely.