legal questions
Question
What are the key legal documents and prerequisites for establishing a travel agency or tour operator business in the UK?
Answer
To establish a travel agency or tour operator business in the UK, you will need to prepare and register a variety of legal documents. Key requirements include:
- Registering your business name with Companies House (https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/companies-house).
- Obtaining Employers' Liability Insurance and business insurance (e.g. public liability, professional indemnity).
- Securing Local Authority approval (if operating from a commercial premise) and a lease agreement (if renting premises).
- Having Health and Safety policies and procedures in place.
- Complying with privacy and data protection policies and procedures, in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-data-protection/).
- Registering for a Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) number and, if applicable, for Value Added Tax (VAT) with HM Revenue & Customs (https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/hm-revenue-customs).
- Applying for an ATOL (Air Travel Organiser's Licence) if you plan to sell air travel (https://www.caa.co.uk/atol-protection/), and considering membership with ABTA (The Travel Association) for additional credibility and protection (https://www.abta.com/).
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