Making Tax Digital

HMRC will be introducing a new initiative to move all personal and business tax online – Making Tax Digital (MTD).  This will start in 2017, with the first tests being completed on income from letting properties, plus taxpayers having the facility to report other sources of income through a digital account.

By 2020 HMRC are aiming for most businesses, self-employed and landlords to be completing quarterly submissions to HMRC through software.

Aardvark Accounting can help you start to prepare for the digital era, alongside the personal service, as part of your accounting package, you will have access to marketing leading software FreeAgent.  However you will already be able to complete your accounts anytime, either at home or on the move with the handy App.  Your records can then be checked before Aardvark Accounting assist with your submissions.

HMRC have said they won’t be providing their own software for these submissions but will make sure that apps and other software products are available.  But having used HMRC’s basic tools previously, I needed a degree in that first before even attempting a submission.

Who will have to move to MTD?

All businesses with income above £10,000 and HMRC aims to be digitally interacting with all individual tax payers by 2020.

The end result will be that one individual will be able to see all of their liabilities, for example income tax, corporation tax, child benefit, VAT, etc all in one digital tax system.  This could finally mean that you can stop phoning multiple HMRC departments to get a full overview of your position!

HMRC have issued an official timeline and the current guidance on MTD here.

When will the penalties kick in?

HMRC have said that they will give both businesses and individuals at least 12 months before they are charged any late submission penalties, to give them time to get used to the new regime.  So, this enables you some time to plan ahead, making sure you are familiar with software that can submit directly to HMRC.

How Aardvark Accounting can help?

This could finally be an end to spreadsheets and good old fashioned bookkeeping!  However HMRC have given a concession to this for a while but let’s see how long it lasts…  It’s finally time to use software to make your life easier.  With our service and being able to use FreeAgent, there’s no need to make “aard” work of it!

Contact Aardvark Accounting today – we’re all ears! We can talk you through how the online software can become your new best friend and still leaving you feel more in control than you ever have.