Help Index

HMRC Making Tax Digital (MTD) VAT Returns

VAT Returns

On this page you can:

  • See a list of VAT returns for the year.
  • See VAT returns for previous years if available.
  • Submit a VAT Return to HMRC.
  • Check the details of VAT Returns you have submitted, including dates and amounts.

Each VAT return in the list shows its start and end dates, as well as the date it was submitted, or the date it is due if it has not been submitted yet.

VAT Return Dates

You do not have to submit a VAT return on its due date. You can submit a VAT return at any time between its end date and the due date. You can submit a VAT return after its due date, but HMRC may apply a surcharge for late payments.

Authorisation

To use these features, you will need to authorise Bookkeeping Today to use the HMRC Making Tax Digital (MTD) service with your company.

If you are not authorised yet, you will be prompted to allow this authorisation. This is a quick process that creates a secure link between Bookkeeping Today and HMRC, so HMRC can be sure they are dealing with a trusted web site.

To authorise your account, just follow these steps:

  • Go to our HMRC VAT Returns page and click the Authorise button. This will take you to the HMRC website.
  • Log in to the HMRC website using the HMRC account details for the company or person you are authorising.
  • Now follow HMRC's instructions to confirm that you want to use Bookkeeping Today to manage your VAT Returns.

After authorising, go back to our HMRC VAT Returns page to start working with your VAT Returns.

Problems authorising Making Tax Digital for VAT

If there is a problem with your HMRC MTDfV registration, Bookkeeping Today may repeatedly ask you to re-authorise your account. (This is also known as the "The client and/or agent is not authorised" error).

There are five reasons this can happen:

  • The VAT Registration Number in your company details is not correct. Edit your company and double-check the VRN is correct.
  • Your company is not registered for MTD for VAT with HMRC yet.
  • If the company is new and only recently registered with HMRC, it may take a few days for HMRC to fully set up your account. It is possible to authorised at Bookkeeping Today before HMRC have fully processed your registration. HMRC will allow you to authorise early, but the authorisation will give the "client and/or agent is not authorised" error.
  • You authorised with a different HMRC account (e.g. a personal account). Are you sure the HMRC login you have used to authorise MTD with HMRC is the correct HMRC account for your company?
  • Is there more than one user (Administrator) on your company HMRC account? Each user on an HMRC company account is registered for MTD separately. If one user on the account has registered for MTD, they will be able to authorise. If a different user on the same company account is NOT registered for MTD, they will NOT be able to authorise. You can log into an HMRC account to check whether it is registered for MTD.

If you have checked all of the above but you still see this error, you should contact the HMRC VAT Online Services Helpdesk. They have tools to identify what is going wrong with this type of problem.

Check a UK VAT Number HMRC VAT Online Services Helpdesk

You can also contact us if you have questions or run into any problems.