Making Tax Digital: What’s Happening?

Despite the digitalisation of all accounting being announced back in 2015, its original anticipation date of 2020 has been put into question. It was recently reported that Brexit projects were being prioritised, and the abolition of the tax return indefinitely put on hold. However, not long after, a statement was released that contradicted this.

With numerous new stories floating around, it can be difficult to determine what is and isn’t truth. Let’s establish what’s actually happening with Making Tax Digital (MTD), and what it means for business owners.

Has MTD been further delayed?

The update from Theresa Middleton, Director of the MTD for Business Programme, affirms that the delivery of the service for both the Self Assessment and VAT are currently on schedule. For those businesses whose income is over the VAT threshold of £85,000, then as expected from April 2019 it’ll be mandatory to submit return information via software.

Although the update says that MTD for Income Tax is going to plan, it also states that – aside from VAT – the earliest any changes would become obligatory is 2020. With no exact date in place, the abolition of the tax return may not be as close as originally anticipated.

Do I need to be prepared for MTD?

With the digitalisation of VAT on track for next April, and the chance of other MTD for Business changes becoming mandatory in the next couple of years, it’s definitely best to be ready in time. However, as digital accounting is still a moderately new concept, you may not know how to get started.
The answer is to utilise tax software. GoSimpleTax will be providing a solution for VAT in advance of the mandate, so you’ll not be racking your brains trying to figure out what to do in April. Our tax software has been recognised by HMRC as a commercial supplier, therefore you’ll be using tools you can trust.

How can I avoid mistakes with my taxes?

If you’ve never used software to complete your taxes previously, then it’s understandable you’ll have concerns. However, it’s been discovered that taxpayers who filled in their Self Assessments manually often made errors, resulting in them increasing their tax liability unnecessarily.

Using a suitable software will combat this, as it’ll work out the calculations for you. You can even reduce your tax bill by using the personalised recommendations that our software offers. And to move you one step further after making your taxes digital, you can even submit your Self Assessment from your smartphone.
Mike Parkes, Technical Director of GoSimpleTax, adds: “We’re continuously committed to providing simple solutions that make doing your taxes much easier, no matter what the government decides”.

It’s a case of when, not if, Making Tax Digital will happen, so it’s best to get ahead of the crowd. With our software, it doesn’t matter whether you’re a technical genius or not – we make it simple for you. Try GoSimpleTax software today for free.

Blog content is for information purposes and over time may become outdated, although we do strive to keep it current. It's written to help you understand your Tax's and is not to be relied upon as professional accounting, tax and legal advice due to differences in everyone's circumstances. For additional help please contact our support team or HMRC.