Pushing back when the agency says 'inside'
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Agencies default to inside for one reason: risk transfer. If they can't or won't assess status, PAYE-ing you removes their exposure. Sometimes the determination is right; often it's just unexamined. Your job is to find out which.
Questions that expose a blanket call
- "Can you share the SDS reasons?" — silence or boilerplate = blanket
- "Did the end client assess this engagement, or is this agency policy?"
- "Is the client small? Then who holds the status decision?"
When pushing back works
When the engagement is genuinely project-shaped: fixed term, deliverable scope, team-based resourcing, real substitution history. Cite the specifics and request the formal challenge process. Rate the trade honestly: an inside rate needs to be much higher to net the same — check yours on the calculator.
When to walk
When the "inside" call comes with employee-style supervision, an indefinite term and a named-person requirement, the label is probably accurate — the problem is the engagement shape, not the paperwork. Spend the energy on finding genuinely outside work instead.
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