MTD for VAT: HMRC cancelling some DD instructions

Hope you all spotted this marvellous improvement resulting from the MTD 'everything digital' way of the future ...

"HMRC will decommission their VAT mainframe in 2022 - and, in order to do this, will move all the remaining customer accounts onto a new IT platform.  This work is intended to start in April 2021 and is hoped to finish by September 2021."

"Here is further information of what businesses will need to do if they wish to continue paying by direct debit after migration to the new tax platform.  This change affects VAT businesses who are not already signed up toMTD VAT and a small number of those who already have."

"UK banking regulations require a valid contact point to be held for customers using direct debit, so HMRC can notify them in advance of the date debits will be taken from their account and the amount.  Therefore, any customers who wish to continue paying their VAT by direct debit will need to supply their (not their agent’s) email address prior to their account being migrated to the new platform.  Unfortunately, if they do not supply an email address, HMRC will cancel their direct debit and they will be required to pay VAT via an alternative method.  HMRC are keen to avoid this, and will bewriting to all affected customers soon advising them of this change, including instructions on how they can provide an email address via their Business Tax Account (BTA)."

"Unfortunately, HMRC cannot advise agents exactly when their client’s accounts will be migrated to the new ITplatform.  When submitting returns on behalf of their client’s, agents will sign into the ‘old’ agent portal as normal.  If the obligation to file their VAT return is showing, the return can be submitted.  If the obligation is not showing, the client’s VAT record has been migrated and the agent should login to their Agent’s ServicesAccount (ASA) and submit the VAT return using the non-MTD filing service that is available from within the ASA."