Help registering for VAT
VAT registration is compulsory maths with optional strategy. The maths: £90,000 of taxable turnover in any rolling 12 months, or an expectation of crossing it in the next 30 days alone, and you must register — the clock ran from when you crossed, not when you noticed. The strategy: scheme choice, effective date, and whether voluntary registration below the line would actually serve you.
How we handle it
For £49 we do the whole thing: check your true threshold position from your figures, make the scheme and date decisions with you (they follow you for years; the form explains none of them), file the application, and field HMRC's increasingly common follow-up questions until the VAT number lands. First return support is there if you want it, from £35.
The fixed fees behind this service
| Service | Fixed fee |
|---|---|
| VAT Registration | £49 |
| VAT Returns | from £35/mo |
| Bookkeeping | from £49/mo |
VAT Registration
Registered with HMRC properly — the right scheme chosen before the first return, not after.
- Application prepared and submitted to HMRC, with your effective date chosen deliberately
- Scheme recommendation before you're locked in — flat rate, cash accounting or standard
- HMRC's follow-up questions handled by us until the VAT number arrives
| VAT registration with HMRC | £49 |
| Registration + scheme advice (flat rate, cash accounting) | £79 |
| Registration + first VAT return | £119 |
VAT Returns
Quarterly VAT prepared and submitted under Making Tax Digital.
- Quarterly VAT returns prepared and filed under Making Tax Digital
- The right scheme for you — standard, flat rate or cash accounting
- VAT registration and deregistration handled when needed
| VAT returns only (your bookkeeping) | £35/mo |
| VAT + bookkeeping bundle | £119/mo |
| VAT registration (one-off) | £79 |
Bookkeeping
Your records kept clean and current, every month, on cloud software.
- Transactions categorised and reconciled every month
- Cloud software set up and maintained (Xero, QuickBooks or FreeAgent)
- Receipts captured digitally — photograph and forget
| Up to 50 transactions a month | £49/mo |
| Up to 150 transactions a month | £89/mo |
| Up to 300 transactions a month | £149/mo |
From first message to done
WhatsApp or the form — a few sentences is enough. A real person replies the same working day.
One price for the job, confirmed before anything starts. Complex case? We say so now, not on the invoice.
Photos of documents are fine. We chase whatever's missing — that's part of the job, not yours.
You review everything first; filings go to HMRC or Companies House electronically with same-day confirmation.
Deadlines that apply here
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1 month + 7 days after quarter end | VAT return filing and payment deadline for each quarter |
| £90,000 rolling turnover | Compulsory VAT registration threshold — measured over any rolling 12 months, not your accounting year |
Why choose Bohzo Accountants in the UK?
Your fee is agreed before any work starts and never changes mid-job. No hourly billing, ever.
Secure portal and WhatsApp — no office visits, no printing, no waiting rooms.
Bohzo Accountants is a trading name of IGI Security Services Ltd, Company No. 15881180.
We track every HMRC and Companies House date that applies to you, so you don't have to.
Terms you'll meet along the way
Rolling 12-month test
The £90,000 threshold is measured over any consecutive 12 months, not your accounting year — the detail that catches most late registrants.
Effective date of registration
The date your VAT obligations start — set by when you crossed the threshold, or chosen deliberately for voluntary registrations.
Voluntary registration
Registering below the threshold — often smart for B2B businesses (reclaim input VAT, look established), usually a price rise for B2C.
Making Tax Digital (MTD)
HMRC's regime requiring digital records and software-filed returns — long mandatory for VAT, arriving for Income Tax from April 2026.
Flat Rate Scheme
Pay HMRC a fixed percentage of turnover instead of tracking every input. Simpler, but the 16.5% limited-cost-trader rate killed the old easy win for many.
Input vs output VAT
Output VAT is what you charge customers; input VAT is what you pay suppliers. You hand HMRC the difference — which is why missed input claims are pure loss.
Penalty points
Each late VAT return earns a point; at your threshold (4 for quarterly filers) every late return costs £200. Points expire after sustained good behaviour.
Reconciliation
Matching your books to the bank, transaction by transaction — the discipline that makes every other number trustworthy.
Help registering for VAT: your questions answered
I think I crossed the threshold a while ago — how bad is it?
Fixable, and better fixed proactively: HMRC backdates registration to when you should have registered, expects the VAT from then (often partly recoverable from the position you were in), and applies a penalty scaled by delay and disclosure. Coming forward through us, with the calculation done properly, lands at the mild end. Discovery through a compliance check doesn't.
What's needed for the application?
Business details, turnover figures and a description of what you sell, bank details, and identity verification. Where HMRC asks follow-ups — increasingly standard as they screen for fraud — evidence like contracts or invoices settles it. We prepare the application to pre-answer the common queries, which is most of why ours go through faster.
Can I trade and invoice while waiting for the number?
Yes — you must actually. From your effective date you account for VAT even before the number arrives: the clean method is invoicing with a note that VAT will be added, then reissuing once registered. We set this up so no VAT is lost and no customer is confused during the gap.
When do I legally have to register?
When your taxable turnover passes £90,000 in any rolling 12-month period — not your accounting year, which is the detail that catches people. You must also register if you expect to cross it in the next 30 days alone. We'll check your position for free before you commit to anything.
Is registering voluntarily ever worth it?
Often, yes — if your customers are VAT-registered businesses, you reclaim VAT on your costs while your prices stay effectively unchanged to them. If you sell to the public, it's usually a straight price rise. That's exactly the conversation we have before filing.
When do I have to register for VAT?
When your taxable turnover in any rolling 12-month period passes £90,000 — a rolling test, not your accounting year, and the most common way businesses get caught out. We monitor it for bookkeeping clients automatically.
Which VAT scheme is best for me?
It depends on your margins and customers. The flat-rate scheme suits some service businesses; cash accounting helps if customers pay slowly; standard suits most. We'll compare them for your numbers before registering you.
Which bookkeeping software do you use?
Xero, QuickBooks or FreeAgent — whichever suits your business (or whichever you already use). Software subscription can be included in your monthly fee, and we handle all the setup and migration.
What counts as a transaction?
Each line on your bank statement — a payment in or out. Most one-person businesses sit comfortably under 50 a month. If you drift over your band we'll tell you before the fee changes, never after.
Recent client feedback
Verified client reviews will appear here as engagements complete. We only ever publish genuine, verifiable feedback — no purchased or invented reviews, anywhere on this site.