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Making Tax Digital - when should you sign up?

Unfortunately, there seems to be quite a lot of confusion over Making Tax Digital (MTD) and it may be that HMRC haven't helped the situation with a recent letter to all VAT-registered businesses. It implied that everyone should sign up straight away, but – in fact – there's a very specific window for you to do so.

Your particular window will depend on the dates of your VAT period. And if you sign up for MTD before submitting your last non-MTD VAT return, you won't be able to submit your VAT return via the old HMRC online portal or your non-compliant software.

As a guideline, the first MTD VAT return dates for quarterly VAT periods are as follows:

  • Mar/Jun/Sep/Dec returns – the first MTD compliant return is the period 01 April – 30 June
  • Jan/Apr/Jul/Oct returns – the first MTD compliant return is the period 01 May – 31 July
  • Feb/May/Aug/Nov returns – the first MTD compliant return is the period 01 June – 31 August

The window during which you should sign up, for each of the above periods, is as follows:

  • For an 01 April – 30 June return the sign up window is 15 May – 23 June
  • For an 01 May – 31 July return the sign up window is 17 June – 23 July
  • For an 01 June – 31 August return the sign up window is 15 July – 22 August

Monthly returns

For those businesses who submit monthly VAT returns, April will be your first MTD compliant return period and the MTD sign-up window for your April VAT return is 15 May – 28 May.

Complex VAT

If you have a particularly complex VAT situation and have had your mandate for MTD compliance deferred to October 2019, you will have already been notified by HMRC. If you haven't received this notification, then you can assume the dates shown above apply to you too.

You will be able to sign up for MTD through your HMRC online account. Please note that if Page Kirk prepares and files your VAT return, then we will ensure that your business is signed up for MTD at the appropriate time.

Want more information? Contact us on 0115 955 5500 or email enquiries@pagekirk.co.uk.