Can I do my accounts myself?

[Claude & Celeste]

Hi all this may sound a bit of a stupid question but can do my accounts returns for companies house and corporation tax myself?

 

[RBS]

Of course you can, but as soon as you see those forms & accountancy language - you quickly realise its rocket science for basic human beings. I had same idea when I got quote and thought - 1k for few hour job?! I`ll do it yself then. It pays to pay accountant and get it right. It could be very costly mistake if done wrong.

But on other hand you have another option:
http://www.ukbusinessforums.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=175493

BUT I still believe they will chase you as director and you will be liable for all penalties for not filing papers for your company. They clearly state on their website that details will be passed to debt collection agency, possibly bailiffs.

 

[BobBuilder]

but it is possible and may help you understand more about business taxation....

 

[MyAccountantOnline]

Hi all this may sound a bit of a stupid question but can do my accounts returns for companies house and corporation tax myself?

Yes you can assuming you dont need an audit.

My view as an accountant is that company accounts and tax returns need to be dealt with by an qualified and experienced accountant they arent, with respect, easy for someone without the necessary knowledge, skills and experience to do. I've seen people try and get in a terrible mess, often a costly one.

 

[serasan]

If you want to do your own accounts maybe you are in the wrong profession and should re-train to become an Accountant.

I hate doing my books and anything to do with the tax man. My accountant saves me money and easily covers his fee and lets me get on with running my business.

 

[DeanCo]

HMRC and companies house do not specify that filing of accounts have to be completed by an accountant. But, unless you have some knowledge in this field the penalties could outweigh the accountants fees for completing them properly.

 

[RBS]

Annual return to companies house is piece of cake - few easy questions really.

http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk/forms/generalForms/AR01_annual_return.pdf

 

[MyAccountantOnline]

Annual return to companies house is piece of cake - few easy questions really.

http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk/forms/generalForms/AR01_annual_return.pdf

It's better to do it online though than use the paper form - its costs £40 to submit a paper form £14 online.

 

[RBS]

It's better to do it online though than use the paper form - its costs £40 to submit a paper form £14 online.

Yep. Same rule applies with most of the stuff now - cheaper to do online.

 

[accounting-help]

My accountant saves me money and easily covers his fee and lets me get on with running my business.

This is exactly what should happen with any decent accountant.

If you want to do it yourself there are online guides but as stated it can be time-consuming and potentially costly if you make a mistake.

 

[Rolo Tomasi]

In addition to having the necessary skills to prepare accounts they now have to be submitted to the Revenue in a special format (iXBRL). They will no longer accept paper copies of accounts (or indeed pdf, word, excel or any other electonic format) so if you were completing your own accounts you would have to purchase software to convert them into iXBRL.

The cost of this software along with the expertise that an accountant can bring to a company means that, in my opinion, an accountant is necessary for all Limited companies - no matter how small.

 

[David Griffiths]

People can use the Revenue's online software to enter the accounts figures, so there is no need to go to any expense of paying for software.

Hearsay is that it's pretty clunky, but it is freely to use.

 

[DeanCo]

The software from HMRC is not for the faint hearted, but will upload the accounts and tax return in iXBRL format and certainly gets the job done.

 

[teddys]

Most of the compliance stuff for companies are easy and could be done by a non-accountant with a little bit of hard work. And these are all submitted online these days. However, when things get complicated you would need the help of an accountant

 

[gavcooper]

I handle the Payroll, VAT returns and Companies House annual return myself and get our accountant to sort out the important Corporation Tax and Individual Tax Returns.

Companies House annual return takes a few minutes online.

The payroll is quick and cheap to sort out if you have less than 9 employees, free online software is available Payroo

VAT returns are simple if you use a good accounting system that submits the return via its software. I recommend FreeAgent Central, look for the 10% discount to the monthly cost.