Quickbooks has made its Making Tax Digital suite widely available for small businesses and accountants, which includes software that will allow users to continue to file VAT using spreadsheets.
The updated tools will ensure that anyone filing a VAT return using the tools will be compliant with the government’s new digital tax legislation, set to come into force on 1 April.
The platform comprises tools such as SmartCheck, a pilot software that identifies common mistakes in VAT returns, and Smart Notifications, which notifies accounting professionals when their clients need to file for VAT, advising on due dates and making sure the tasks are scheduled so the deadline isn’t missed.
“Accounting professionals and small businesses are looking to the software industry to make MTD easy,” Shaun Shirazian, head of product Europe, said.
“After conducting numerous pilots, through listening to the feedback of our customers and by working closely with HMRC, we have optimized and iterated QuickBooks and built a best-in-class solution ready for the MTD generation that is available to QuickBooks users.”
A major new feature included in all QuickBooks Online subscriptions is the Quickbooks Bridging Software, which allows small businesses to use spreadsheets to file their VAT return using Quickbooks. The hope is that this will make it easier for businesses already using spreadsheets to file their return to comply with new regulations – something that is likely to be welcome among smaller businesses.
“As digital tax is embraced, our next challenge is to help small businesses and accounting professionals put digital at the heart of their business to help them supercharge productivity, run and grow their business.”
Quickbooks has also launched a helpline for small businesses to check they’re compliant with the new Making Tax Digital legislation. It will also serve accounting professionals using Quickbooks to file returns for both themselves and clients.
A handful of new products will also be made available for SMBs and those that are self employed, including Receipt Capture, which can take photographs of receipts and automatically import the required data.