Tax & Accounting News

Problems With Online VAT Registration

29/10/2009

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is increasingly encouraging businesses to register for VAT online, but there have recently been a number of reports of delays, preventing firms from issuing VAT invoices.

The delays are believed to be due to a new version of the paper form being introduced, which is not compatible with the online system, meaning online applications are now just printed off and processed in the same way as the paper versions.

If there are any problems with the online form, HMRC has to contact the taxpayer by post to ask for the missing or incomplete information, adding further delay to the process.

We still recommend firms apply online to avoid the application getting lost in the post due to the ongoing postal strikes. At present online VAT registration only works well for sole traders, while partnerships can only apply manually.

For more information please contact us.