I'm hoping someone can advise on what should be simple, but is proving very over-complicated.
I'm a small business paying VAT on the flat rate scheme, and also registered for annual accounting. Last year was my first annual return and I found the online guidance unclear, to put it mildly.
My question is: when submitting online, how are the interim payments I've made throughout the year deducted? If, as instructed, I enter the entire amount of VAT payable in Box 1, there is no automatic deduction of the the interim payment amount to arrive at the balancing figure.
If I make the calculation myself and enter the amount I actually owe into Box 1, this triggers a refund of the interim payments, as HMRC's system assumes I've overpaid.
There appears to be no instruction as to how to proceed correctly so that the entire amount of VAT due is declared, but the interim payments are factored in and a balancing figure is arrived at.
Can anyone please advise?
Replies (4)
Please login or register to join the discussion.
Report only
The return is a report only. It is intended to tell HMRC how much output and input VAT you have for the year, The result is a total liability to the year, which should be matched with the payments you have already made, leaving a balance due. You just have to pay the balance.
.
Thanks for the speedy reply. I've been informally advised, though (not by HMRC), that if I just pay the balance, HMRC won't necessarily link this with my interim payments, and I need to ring them and explain. This seems unnecessarily long-winded to me! So you'd advise that simply paying the balance should be OK, with no further need to notify, for example, the Error Corrections team?
Provided your Vat number is used for all payments (and they are made to the correct HMRC account), I cannot envisage HMRC not matching the payments with your account and your Vat return. http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/tools/bankaccounts/v/vat-uk.htm