Have you considered using Cloud Accounting software?

The 31st of January is a stressful time for accountants and for some businesses. If you left the preparation of your accounts and tax returns to the last minute then you may have found that you had an unexpected tax bill and little time to find the cash to pay it. The impact on your cash flow may affect other business investments you hoped to make or suppliers that need to be paid. Now is a good time for business owners to reflect on their accounting systems and ask why they could not provide their accountant with the information sooner.

The tax return submitted by 31 January 2018 could include financial information relating to accounting periods ending as long ago as 30 April 2016. That means it has taken up to 23 months for some businesses to pull together their accounting records and tax is only now being paid on profits that were earned up to 23 months ago.

With the introduction of ‘Making Tax Digital (MTD)’ looming, it is more important than ever that your accounting records are kept as up to date as possible. Not only will it help you meet your obligations under MTD it will ensure that you are aware of your tax liabilities as they arise and enable you to plan and budget for them.

We find that the use of cloud accounting software, and the automation included, allows us to be incredibly proactive with our clients. We are able to prepare management accounts throughout the year, allowing us to give tax advice before the financial year end. We are also able to prepare the accounts within a short time of the financial year end providing more relevant and up to date information and giving plenty of time to plan for tax bills with no unexpected liabilities.

We strongly recommend that all businesses should review their bookkeeping function at this time, and discuss their needs with us, and we will be able to make recommendations suitable for their business. It will take away the stress of January for all concerned.

If you’d like advice or support, please contact our taxation team via taxation@eqaccountants.co.uk or call your local office to speak to one of our tax specialists.

We also have a dedicated department called EQ Accounting, where we offer our expertise and support for your day-to-day financial controls including support with cloud accounting software. If you would like to find out more about how our EQ Accounting team can help your business, contact info@eqaccounting.co.uk or call 01382 312140.