Border Merchant Systems has said it is committed to ensuring CounterAct remains compliant with all current legislation ahead of Making Tax Digital for Business which will come into effect in April.
Government legislation will require businesses with turnovers above the VAT threshold to submit their VAT returns electronically. Most companies will need to submit their return this way for the first VAT period after April 2019.
Border’s development department has reportedly been in regular contact with HMRC to specify the necessary work to enable CounterAct to be listed as functionally compatible software for the new legislation.
Border has sent a questionnaire to all customers to find out further details about their VAT reporting setup. For the vast majority of customers with one or more companies, each having their own individual VAT registration number, it will be relatively straightforward. However, CounterAct can also support multiple nominal VAT accounts for group reporting where multiple companies report under a single VAT registration number.
The latest CounterAct release (2-7C) includes the new ‘Making Tax Digital for Business’ dashboard. On first use, users will need to enter their HMRC authorisation code. Once done, they will have access to the dashboard and to electronic submissions direct to HMRC.
The dashboard will pull the necessary submission information from the Sales & Purchase ledgers into CounterAct, which will allow users to view payments and liabilities and also keep records of submissions already made. Users will be able to drill down for further information with the dashboard noticeboard also prompting users when submissions are due.
Phil Davies, Commercial Manager at Border, commented: “All CounterAct users will receive release 2-7C as part of their support contract, and in plenty of time, for their first VAT return after April. Border has released a YouTube video for users: MTDfB VAT https://youtu.be/Pomf0L8bBEA. If you have a query please contact us at Border.”
