In July 2017, HMRC announced that all businesses and individuals will have to file their accounting information digitally. As accountants in Cheltenham, we explain what this means and what the advantages are.
What does this mean?
By April 2019, businesses who are VAT registered and their turnover is above the VAT Threshold will need to keep digital records and from 2020 this could apply to all other businesses who will be updating HMRC quarterly for their tax obligations digitally. It is a significant change for many of us and means the end of the traditional annual tax return to be replaced with a digital tax account where all your information will be stored in one place.
This change in the way HMRC wants information from tax payers means that you may need to move from your existing desktop or manual record keeping and onto an online accounting package.
The good news is we are certified in the set up and operation of online accounting software which is digitally compliant and specifically designed for small and medium sized business.
Our Accountancy team have trained experts in four main cloud accounting software packages; Xero, Sage Business Cloud, KashFlow and QuickBooks.
What are the advantages of going digital?
Digital cloud accounting software has significant advantages over the traditional ways of bookkeeping.
Imagine if you could:
- See a clear picture of your current financial position, in real-time;
- Have your accounts 100% online, so there’s no software to install and everything is backed up automatically. Updates are free and instantly available;
- Avoid upfront accounting software costs – upgrades, maintenance, system administration costs and server failures are no longer an issue;
- Have your bank feed your data directly into your accounts on a DAILY basis;
- Take a photo on your phone or tablet of a purchase invoice or expense receipt and it can be posted automatically; AND
- See your results, who owes you money, who you owe to and your business bank balance 24/7, 365 days a year from your phone or tablet.
What can I REALLY do with digital accounting software?
- Create and send invoices on the go
- Track sales, purchases, debtors and creditors
- Connect to your online banking
- View a snapshot of your business
- Estimate tax payments
- Easy tax filing that matches HMRC requirements
- Manage customers and suppliers
- Create estimates, purchase orders and manage your stock
Some of our clients have already gone digital and they are delighted with the results. Here are just a few of the comments we’ve heard:
“Amazing, I can’t believe what a difference this has made to my business!”
“We never have to do back-ups of our system again!”
“We love the fact we can post invoices, check the bank and see who owes us money using the App on our phone!”
For more information give us a call on 01242 776000, drop into our office in Cheltenham for a chat or you can send us a message using our contact form.
