One of Wales’ leading chartered accountancy firms, UHY Hacker Young, has created a new team of experts to deal with all aspects of Making Tax Digital and Cloud Accounting.

On April 1, 2019 HMRC will introduce a digital tax system which claims to be more effective, more efficient and easier for businesses and individuals to use.

Currently, 87 per cent of UK businesses submit a VAT return online via the HMRC Portal.

However, under MTD, this portal will no longer exist and paper submissions will no longer be accepted.

All businesses above the VAT threshold (£85,000) will be required to submit digital reports to HMRC on a quarterly basis, through their digital MTD-approved account or be faced with HMRC penalties.

UHY Hacker Young’s bespoke MTD team of cloud software professionals will be led by its head of cloud accounting, Carys Turner.

She said: “Regardless of your opinion of the new MTD system, it remains the biggest change to the UK’s tax system that Welsh businesses have seen in decades.

"The true issue is that, though no fault of their own, many businesses are totally unaware of these developments. Others are aware but have no idea how to meet the requirements.

“However, many solutions exist in the marketplace which will allow for a smooth transition into compliance with MTD, so no business should be adversely affected if they start their preparations now.

"Our goal is to support businesses to understand what MTD will mean for them and ensure they are prepared for its arrival in April.”

Many businesses and industry bodies have voiced uncertainty over the implications of MTD since it was first announced in 2015.

With clients ranging from sole traders to large corporations across south Wales and the wider UK, UHY Hacker Young’s leadership recognised a real need to provide a dedicated cloud accounting provision.

UHY Hacker Young’s managing partner, Paul Byett, said: “Larger organisations with greater resources will naturally be in a better place to manage new HMRC systems, but no business needs to be apprehensive. We know that with the proper support all businesses can prepare, which is why we’ve seen the value in providing a dedicated team of cloud-based system experts who can advise clients affected by the new legislation.”