What is control in the IR35 tests?
Answered 11 March 2026
Here is a comprehensive answer on what "control" means in the IR35 tests.
What the law says
The IR35 legislation (ss.48–61 and ss.61K–61X ITEPA 2003) requires a determination of whether, if the worker had contracted directly with the client, that contract would have been a contract of employment. Control is one of the essential tests in that analysis, derived from the Ready Mixed Concrete criteria.
HMRC guidance / practice
The core concept
Control concerns the right to control what the worker must do, where it must be done, when it must be done, and how it must be done. It is the right to exert control that is significant, not whether that right is actually exercised. Control is a necessary pre-condition of a contract of employment — there must be evidence of a "sufficient degree of control" over the worker.
Ultimate authority / framework of control
The correct test is "whether ultimate authority over the man in the performance of his work resided in the employer so that he was subject to the latter's order and directions". Where there is no express contractual term dealing with ultimate control, a term conferring that right can be implied.
It is not necessary for the engager to have a contractual right to intervene in every aspect of the work. A sufficient framework of control can exist even where direct day-to-day supervision is absent. The distinction is drawn between day-to-day control and the situation where the engager "retained the right to step in and give instructions".
Skilled workers
Where the worker is highly skilled, control over how the work is done may not be present or appropriate — but this is not determinative. The Court of Appeal in Atholl House confirmed that the requirement for a contract of employment is control in the sense of what, how, where and when the worker carried out their work, as appropriate in the context of the employment in question. A "narrow compass" of control over what a worker does will not prevent control from existing for skilled workers.
Positive and negative means
Control can be exercised by both positive and negative means. The Supreme Court in PGMOL found that a combination of contractual obligations (e.g. codes of conduct, assessment systems, and consequential sanctions) gave a sufficient framework of control, even where it was not practical to intervene in real time.
Supervision and quality monitoring
Regular appraisals and monitoring of a worker's performance can go beyond what would be expected of a genuinely self-employed individual and can constitute a degree of supervision and quality control sufficient to point towards employment.
Where no control exists
Where the engager has no right of control whatsoever, there will not be a contract of service.
Citation sources
the role and the experience of the worker. However, where direct control as to “how” to perform personal service is not present there must be a framework of control as the absence of control is antithetical to a contract of employment. In this sense control reflects a requirement that in order to be an employee the ultimate authority over the worker in the performance of his work resides with the employer (see summary provided of case law up to and including Montgomery at paragraphs 19 – 21 of t
The intermediaries legislation, commonly referred to as IR35, is anti-avoidance legislation designed to stop individuals gaining a tax and National Insurance advantage by disguising their employment status. In an IR35 case, an individual provides their services to a client via an intermediary. The intermediary is usually a company but can also be a partnership or individual. The intermediary earns all, or most, of its income from supplying the individual’s services in circumstances that would be
s does not necessarily mean that there cannot be employment although the greater the level of control there is, the stronger the pointer towards employment. You must also bear in mind that the right of control is only one factor to consider and must be considered in context. The right of an engager to exert control over a worker is a strong pointer towards employment. When investigating the status of a worker you need to establish whether the engager has the right to control the worker. The fact
Where the right to control how the work is done is present it can be a strong pointer towards employment. However, control over how a job is done can only be exercised where there is scope for it. The Supreme Court in PGMOL found that the combination of contractual obligations imposed on referees as to their general conduct, such as the Code of Conduct, and their behaviour during a game, such as the merit table, matchday procedures, and assessment systems, gave PGMOL a sufficient framework of co
evidence and also the contractual provisions. Henderson J found that the Special Commissioner was entitled to conclude that Mr Bessell’s performance of his duties was subject to a degree of supervision and quality control which went beyond being merely directed over when and where to work. It was accepted that control over the how in the case of a skilled man is not determinative, however the regular appraisals and monitoring of Mr Bessell went beyond what would be expected of a self employed in
If a genuine contractual right of control to a sufficient degree exists, it does not matter whether that right is actually exercised. The contract gave the BBC first call on the services of Ms Ackroyd “as it may require”. The Tribunal held that the reference to what the BBC may require was a reference to using whichever of Ms Ackroyd’s services as it may choose, such as presenter, reporter etc. The BBC could direct which service it required. The Tribunal was satisfied that despite the contract h