6 - Submitting your Tax Return online by FBI:
Having completed (and maybe printed your) Tax Return you have a couple of options to consider before submitting your Tax Return.
Validating your Tax Return
SA Submission Pro contains the facility to validate your Tax Return.
By clicking [Validate Return] at the bottom right of the screen the software will check your Tax Return against a series of rules provided to us by HMRC to try and help us ensure that your Tax Return is accepted first time by HMRC.
If your Return fails any validation checks (for example not all income has been allocated between the partners) then you will be presented with a list of errors and details of how to correct them.
Please note validating your Tax Return does not confirm that the information entered on your Return is accurate.
It is not mandatory to manually run validation checks on your Return as SA Submission Pro will automatically run these checks before the submission of each Return.
FBI Attachments
Selecting [Submission options] from the left hand menu will give you the option to attach the following items with your Return:
- Schedules: Using the various calculators and notepads in SA Submission Pro will create a backing schedule of information for you to provide to HMRC. Any backing schedules created by the software can be selected here. Please note HMRC.
- External files: If you have any further information you would like to submit with your Return (for example accounts), this can be done by clicking the [add file] button. Please note HMRC only accept external files in PDF format.
- Internal files: In certain circumstances (for example you have multiple trade pages); SA submission Pro will add an internal file. These cannot be removed unless you change the content of your Return as they are required by HMRC and are created following their guidance.
Submitting your Return
Having considered the above options you will now be ready to submit your Tax Return. This can be done as follows:
- Click the [Submit] button from the bottom left of the screen.
- The Tax Return declaration screen will open, enter the date the Return was signed and click [Submit]
- If this is the first time you have submitted a Return you will then be presented with the following 2 options:
- Send immediately: if this is the only Return you have to submit or you have multiple returns to submit but want to do individually, then select this option and your Return will be processed to HMRC straight away
- Batch Process: If you have multiple Returns to submit select this option and the Return will become locked and stay pending for submission. Once you are ready to submit the Return select [Submit Pending Returns] from the main client menu
- Once the Processing of your Return has completed you be able to view the HMRC response, if the Return was accepted this will act as a receipt for your submission. If your Return was rejected this will provide details of the amendments required before it can be resubmitted.
- Once your Return is accepted by HMRC, SA Submission Pro will lock your Return to stop amendments being made to the return until you choose to unlock the Return.
Submitting Amended Returns
There will be certain occasions that following the successful submission of a Tax Return you will need to make amendments to the Return and resubmit it HMRC.
Before making any amendments to your Return you will first need to unlock your Return, this can be done in two different ways:
- Open your client from the main menu
- Select [Process Dates] from the left hand menu
- Click [unlock Return]
Or alternatively when you click to view your Tax Return the software will provide the option to view the return as ‘Read only’ or to ‘Unlock return’, selecting [Unlock return] will allow you to make any amendments your require.
Once you have made any changes you wish to make select [Submission Options] from the left hand menu, then select the box [Tick if this Return has already been accepted by HMRC]. Once you have done this you will be able to submit the Return as normal.
Two things to remember about amended Returns:
- If you submit a Return without first having an original return accepted online, then HMRC will initially accept the Return but will subsequently contact you and say it can’t be accepted as no original return exists. You will then need to resubmit without the amended return box ticked
- If you attempt to submit an original return twice the second will be rejected as a duplicate return and you will need to resubmit the return with the amended return box ticked
The software does provide warnings in the above scenarios to try and mitigate the chances of these problems occurring.