MTD VAT Submission
Acxite simplifies your Making Tax Digital (MTD) for VAT filing process by automatically calculating your VAT return figures from your recorded invoices, bills, and receipts. Once your data is in Acxite, you can review, finalise, and submit your return directly to HMRC in a few simple steps.
This guide will walk you through reviewing your VAT summary, preparing your return, and submitting it directly to HMRC.
Prerequisites
To ensure your VAT return is accurate, please check the following prerequisites:
- Your Acxite account must be connected to HMRC for MTD.
- Ensure all your sales invoices, purchase bills, and receipts for the VAT period have been uploaded and approved within Acxite. The accuracy of your return depends entirely on the data you’ve provided.
- In your Acxite business settings, confirm that:
- Your business is marked as VAT registered.
- The VAT scheme is set to Accruals. (See limitations below.)
Understanding the VAT Summary Page
The VAT Summary page is your control centre for VAT filing. It is divided into five key reports to give you a complete picture of your VAT position.
- VAT Return: This is the main report. It calculates and displays the figures for each of the 9 boxes required for your HMRC submission, providing a clear overview of your VAT liability or refund.
- Transaction by VAT Box: This report gives you a detailed breakdown of every transaction that contributes to the total in each of the 9 VAT boxes. Use this to verify your figures and investigate any discrepancies.
- Summary by VAT Rate: This provides a high-level summary of your transactions, grouped by the VAT rate applied (e.g., Standard 20%, Zero Rate, Exempt). It’s a quick way to check if your overall totals seem correct.
- Transaction by VAT Rate: This is the most granular view, listing every single transaction and the VAT rate applied. Use this report for in-depth reviews and auditing.
- VAT Box Mapping (Function): This is not a report, but a critical setting accessible via the ‘VAT Mapping’ button. It allows you to define how each VAT rate contributes to the 9 boxes on your VAT return. Proper mapping is essential for ensuring your return is calculated correctly.
Understanding and Configuring VAT Mapping
VAT Mapping is the process of telling Acxite how the transactions with a specific VAT rate should affect the 9 boxes on your official VAT return. Think of it as a rulebook that ensures every pound from your sales and purchases is reported in the correct place.
While Acxite provides default mapping for standard UK VAT rates, it is essential to review and configure this yourself, especially if you use custom VAT rates from integrated software like Xero or QuickBooks.
How VAT Mapping Works
For each VAT rate in your account, you define its relationship with each of the 9 VAT boxes. The calculation for each box is based on two factors:
- Relationship:
- Add: The transaction value is added to the box total.
- Deduct: The transaction value is subtracted from the box total.
- No Effect: The transaction is ignored for this specific box.
- Amount Type:
- VAT/GST: Only the VAT amount from the transaction is used.
- Net: Only the net amount (pre-VAT) from the transaction is used.
- Gross: The total amount (including VAT) from the transaction is used.
For example, for a standard 20% sales transaction, the VAT amount is added to Box 1, and the Net amount is added to Box 6.
Steps to Configure VAT Mapping
Step 1 – Navigate to the VAT Summary page from the business menu.
Step 2 – Click the VAT Mapping button located at the top right of the page.
Step 3 – A pop-up window will appear, listing all available VAT rates in your Acxite account.
Step 4 – For each VAT rate, review the pre-set mapping or define the correct Relationship and Amount Type for each of the 9 VAT boxes.
Step 5 – Once you have mapped all your VAT rates correctly, click the Calculate button and then close the pop-up.
Your VAT Summary will now recalculate based on these new rules, ensuring your return is accurate and ready for submission.
Step-by-Step Guide to Submitting Your VAT Return
Step 1 – Navigate to the VAT Summary page from the business menu.
Step 2 – Select the open VAT period you wish to prepare from the list of obligations automatically imported from HMRC.
Step 3 – Review the automatically calculated figures in the 9 boxes on the VAT Return tab. If you need to investigate a figure, use the ‘Transaction by VAT Box’ report to see a detailed breakdown.
Step 4 – Click the Submit to HMRC button located at the top right of the page once you are confident that all the figures are accurate.
Note: The ‘Submit to HMRC’ button will be disabled if the selected period has already been filed or is not yet due.
Step 5 – Confirm the submission in the final pop-up window. Tick the declaration box to confirm the information is true and complete, then click the Submit VAT to HMRC UK button.
Step 6 – After the submission is successful, view or print the VAT submission receipt for your records.
Your VAT return should be submitted to HMRC.
Important Considerations & Limitations
Acxite currently only supports VAT return calculations for businesses using the standard Accrual VAT scheme.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: My VAT figures look wrong. How do I fix them?
Do not try to edit the figures on the VAT summary directly. The summary is calculated from your source documents. To fix a figure, you must find the underlying transaction (e.g., an incorrect invoice or a bill with the wrong VAT rate) and correct it. Once the source transaction is fixed, the VAT Summary will update automatically.
Q: Why is the ‘Submit to HMRC’ button greyed out or disabled?
This usually happens for one of three reasons: 1) The VAT period you have selected has already been filed. 2) The period is not yet due (i.e., you are looking at a future VAT period). 3) Your connection with HMRC has expired; in this case, you will see a prompt to reconnect.
Q: I made a mistake and submitted an incorrect return. How can I correct it?
Once a VAT return has been submitted to HMRC, it cannot be recalled or amended through Acxite. You will need to correct the error on your next VAT return. We recommend consulting with your accountant for guidance.
Q: How do I map my custom VAT rates from Xero/QuickBooks?
On the VAT Summary page, click the ‘VAT Mapping’ button in the top right corner. This will open a screen where you can assign each of your custom VAT rates to the correct HMRC VAT box (e.g., VAT on Sales, VAT on Purchases). This is a crucial one-time setup step for integrated accounts.
Related Articles
- Connect Acxite to HMRC
- Set up Two-Factor Authentication
- Manage VAT/GST Rates