Signing up for MTD

Process of submitting a VAT return using MTD

When to sign up

For any VAT period ending after 1st April 2022 for businesses who are VAT registered the return must be submitted in an MTD compatible manner. HMRC will not automatically transfer your business over to MTD, you must register for MTD.

Once you sign up for MTD, from that point onwards you must submit your VAT Returns under the new MTD system and can no longer use the Government Gateway. Before you sign up for MTD, check the following:

  • You are using MTD ready software. (see Compliant software section above).
  • The last VAT Return you want to submit under the Government Gateway has been reconciled and submitted.
  • Your data is up to date, accurate and complete.
  • If you pay HMRC by Direct Debit, sign up at least 5 working days before your next VAT Return is due and at least 5 days after your previous Return has been submitted.
  • You must sign up on the HMRC website in order to start MTD VAT return submissions if you submit them yourselves. See below – Client Sign up
  • If you use FE Metcalfe & Co Ltd as your Agent to submit your VAT Returns we will sign up as your Agent, but you will receive an email from HMRC to confirm you are happy for us to be your Agent. – see below – Agent Sign up

If you are signing up for MTD by yourself:

Assuming your last return has been submitted and the timing is as above for clients paying their VAT return via direct debit then the next step is to sign up for MTD on the HMRC website.

What you will need:

  • your business email address
  • the VAT number of the business that is signing up

The link below takes you directly to the sign up page on the HMRC website which takes you through the sign up process.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/sign-up-for-making-tax-digital-for-vat 

  1. Click the “sign up your business for MTD” tab
  2. Confirm you have MTD software
  3. Confirm you can submit your VAT return with this software
  4. Enter your existing Government Gateway credentials then click Sign in.
    If your business is not yet eligible to join the pilot, a message appears to advise this. We recommend you add this page to your favourites and try again once you receive your HMRC letter advising you're eligible to sign up.
  5. Follow the on-screen prompts, providing any requested information to authorise your record keeping or bridging software provider
  6. When you receive a verification email, click the link in the email to verify your email address.
  7. Read and accept the terms of participation.

HMRC will confirm by email if you can start submitting VAT Returns under MTD. This is usually within 24 hours. When you start submitting under MTD, you can continue to use your existing Government Gateway credentials.

By signing up to MTD this way you are also confirming you are happy to receive any ongoing communication from HMRC electronically.

Where FE Metcalfe & Co sign up for clients as their Agent.

FE Metcalfe & Co have already signed up as a general Agent with HMRC but must reconnect all individual clients for MTD purposes as per the timings explained above.

We will contact you to confirm when this process will take place after your final non MTD VAT Return has been submitted.

It is important that once we contact you explaining that we are about to register you for MTD that you look out for an email from HMRC asking you to verify that we can act as your Agent for submitting VAT Returns. Please verify this email as requested by HMRC. This email verification must take place before we can submit a VAT Return on your behalf.

Any delay in the verification process will delay our ability to submit your VAT returns, so please respond promptly to the HMRC requests.

This verification also confirms to HMRC you are happy to receive any ongoing communication from HMRC electronically.