Self producing year end accounts

[SneakySimon]

Hi

Question around doing your own year end accounts which since I am now permie, are very straighforward with perhaps £5 - £10k income and maybe a small outgoing of £2k.

I have signed up for doing the accounts myself on HMRC and taking a look at them - I notice on top of the abbreviated accounts and CT600, there is several sections you need too enter Profit and Loss etc - if I used a professional software, would that complete these bits as well as the abbreviated accounts and CT600?

Before a certain someone asks, I have asked my accountant who was not hugely forthcoming since they want the business!

[northernladuk]

Before a certain someone asks, I have asked my accountant who was not hugely forthcoming since they want the business!

Point out the low figures and fairly straight forward question and suggest there is no business to be had here really but if he wants the possibility of any more business from you in the future a little bit of a gesture would help.

[SneakySimon]

Point out the low figures and fairly straight forward question and suggest there is no business to be had here really but if he wants the possibility of any more business from you in the future a little bit of a gesture would help.

Thanks for the advice but I was planning on doing it myself, hence asking.

[TonyF]

If the accountant is not forthcoming, why not ask the software vendor?

Without knowing what you are planning to use to do your accounts, the answer can only be "perhaps".

[SneakySimon]

Ok, I want a software that will do the whole job of filling everything - what do others use?

[TonyF]

Ok, I want a software that will do the whole job of filling everything - what do others use?

An accountant

[SneakySimon]

Get a room

An accountant

Trying to be like NorthernLad is not a good look.

[TonyF]

Sign up to taxfiler on the solo scheme, pay your £10 a month and then cancel it?

[drumtochty]

I have run three limited companies one in around 1980 and used an accountant.

2011 to 2013 and used an accountant who gave me the wrong information and cost me a good £2,500 in bad advice as I did not use the tax bands properly.

He was not in the slightest embarrassed when I pointed that out to him after I did not check everything he said against info online. I thought £1,500 a year charges for his services meant I did not have to check his advice not actual number but advice. Yes even with an accountant you have to check the numbers make sense as it is your company and you cannot pass that responsibility to your accountant.

Latest company 2014 to ongoing, I prepare my own company accounts from a spread sheet and use the HMRC Corporation Tax portal to send my accounts to both HMRC and Companies House.

You used to download a clever CT600 sheet and fill it in and that if I remember was upload to HMRC.

Now it is a bit easier.

You prep your data as before. You then enter the information on to a web based system and also put in text information re notes on dividends, employing disabled employees etc.

At the end of the process, the system produces a set of accounts and then from that it automatically fills in the CT600 from that information, you print off and double check your accounts and CT600.

When happy with the numbers and notes etc. You press the send button to send it to HMRC and Companies House.

It is a bit of a problem to get your head round the accounting speak but I consider it an achievement to submit my accounts and CT600 without external help but in reality the majority of people will find it just a bit too picky.

[SneakySimon]

I have run three limited companies one in around 1980 and used an accountant.

2011 to 2013 and used an accountant who gave me the wrong information and cost me a good £2,500 in bad advice as I did not use the tax bands properly.

He was not in the slightest embarrassed when I pointed that out to him after I did not check everything he said against info online. I thought £1,500 a year charges for his services meant I did not have to check his advice not actual number but advice. Yes even with an accountant you have to check the numbers make sense as it is your company and you cannot pass that responsibility to your accountant.

Latest company 2014 to ongoing, I prepare my own company accounts from a spread sheet and use the HMRC Corporation Tax portal to send my accounts to both HMRC and Companies House.

You used to download a clever CT600 sheet and fill it in and that if I remember was upload to HMRC.

Now it is a bit easier.

You prep your data as before. You then enter the information on to a web based system and also put in text information re notes on dividends, employing disabled employees etc.

At the end of the process, the system produces a set of accounts and then from that it automatically fills in the CT600 from that information, you print off and double check your accounts and CT600.

When happy with the numbers and notes etc. You press the send button to send it to HMRC and Companies House.

It is a bit of a problem to get your head round the accounting speak but I consider it an achievement to submit my accounts and CT600 without external help but in reality the majority of people will find it just a bit too picky.

Thanks for that, I was a bit stumped at first when I saw the web bits you fill in - the naming convention does not correlate directly to what is on the CT600 so I was worried I was doing something wrong - I will look again!