VAT, payroll & compliance
The recurring obligations, run on a schedule instead of a scramble
VAT records and returns, Making Tax Digital awareness, payroll administration, PAYE, RTI submissions and employer obligations — organised around the deadlines that govern them.
- VAT returns
- MTD awareness
- Payroll
- PAYE
- RTI
VAT, payroll, and compliance support depends on business structure, turnover, records, employees, payroll data, VAT status, software access, deadlines, HMRC rules, client approvals, and agreed scope.
Agreed in advance
- Reporting cycle and cut-off dates
- Information required from you
- Who submits, and after whose approval
- What sits outside scope
VAT
VAT, from registration question to submitted return
VAT rewards good record structure and punishes improvisation. The work is mostly in making the records produce the return.
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VAT registration considerations
Whether registration is required, and what voluntary registration would mean for your position, discussed against turnover, activity and customer base. Thresholds and rules are set by HMRC and change.
- Turnover and activity reviewed
- Timing of registration considered
- Customer base and recovery position
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VAT records
Records structured so a return can be prepared from them directly, with VAT codes applied correctly at the point of entry.
- Correct coding at entry
- Digital records maintained
- Evidence for input recovery
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VAT returns
Returns prepared from reconciled records, reviewed with you, and submitted where filing sits within agreed scope.
- Prepared from reconciled data
- Reviewed before submission
- Approval required to file
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Making Tax Digital awareness
Digital record-keeping and digital-link requirements considered where they apply to your VAT obligations.
- Digital record requirements
- Digital links preserved
- Software compatibility considered
On VAT thresholds and rules
VAT registration thresholds, rates, schemes and digital requirements are set by HMRC and are subject to change. Nothing on this page states a threshold or rate, and no advice should be taken from it. Your position is assessed individually against the rules applying at the relevant time, using published HMRC guidance.
Payroll
Payroll administration and PAYE
Payroll is unforgiving about timing and detail. It runs best when the information flow is agreed before the first pay run rather than negotiated during it.
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Payroll administration
Payroll run to an agreed cycle from the information you supply, with payslips and reports produced for each period.
- Agreed pay cycle
- Payslips and period reports
- Changes processed on notice
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PAYE
Deductions calculated from the details provided, with codes, thresholds and adjustments applied as notified by HMRC.
- Deductions from supplied data
- Tax code notifications applied
- Liability reported each period
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RTI
Real Time Information submissions made for each pay period where within agreed scope, with the timing requirement explained.
- On-or-before submission requirement
- Period-by-period reporting
- Corrections handled properly
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Employee records
Starters, leavers, changes and statutory payment information recorded and reflected in the payroll.
- Starter and leaver processing
- Statutory payments recorded
- Data kept to what is needed
Compliance
Deadlines, workflows and responsibilities
Compliance work is a calendar problem before it is a technical one.
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Deadlines
VAT periods, payroll RTI dates, payment dates and annual obligations scheduled in one view so nothing collides unnoticed.
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Compliance workflows
Repeatable routines for each cycle, with the information required from you and the date it is needed by agreed in advance.
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Penalties and responsibilities
How penalty and interest regimes operate in general terms, and where responsibility sits. Penalty avoidance and removal are never guaranteed.
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Employer obligations
Employer duties including workplace pension considerations flagged, with regulated pension advice referred to an appropriately qualified specialist.
One calendar, not five
VAT quarters, payroll periods, corporation tax dates, accounts filing windows and Self Assessment deadlines all pull on the same records and the same fortnight.
Most compliance failures are not technical failures. They are scheduling failures: the VAT quarter closes in the same week the payroll runs and the accounts are due, the records are not ready, and something slips.
Mapping every recurring obligation into a single schedule makes those collisions visible in advance, which is the only point at which they can be solved. Where a deadline is genuinely at risk — because of late instruction, missing records or delayed approval — that is raised early and plainly rather than discovered afterwards.
- All recurring obligations mapped in one schedule
- Information requests issued ahead of each cut-off
- Approvals sought before any submission
- Collisions between deadlines identified early
- Realistic warning where a deadline is at risk
HMRC & Companies House
Dalton & Holland Accounting Ltd is an independent accounting and tax advisory company. It is not HMRC, is not endorsed by or affiliated with HMRC or Companies House, and does not describe itself as an HMRC-approved service. HMRC guidance, tax legislation, filing requirements, thresholds, deadlines and Companies House obligations are set by those bodies and can change.
Submissions, registrations, authorisations and correspondence remain subject to HMRC and Companies House processes, timescales and acceptance. HMRC acceptance of any return, claim, relief, credit, election or filing is never guaranteed.
Third parties and platforms
HMRC, Companies House, pension providers, payroll software, cloud accounting platforms, banks, insurers, lenders, auditors, solicitors, and other third parties may have separate rules, costs, deadlines, availability, requirements, and terms.
Cloud accounting subscriptions, payroll software, bank feeds, filing software and agent authorisations are provided by those third parties under their own terms. Availability, feature changes, outages, pricing and processing times are outside our control.
No guaranteed outcomes
Tax refunds, tax savings, tax-credit outcomes, relief eligibility, HMRC acceptance, filing outcomes, audit outcomes, penalty avoidance, cash-flow improvements, and commercial results are not guaranteed.
Scope and dependencies
VAT, payroll, and compliance support depends on business structure, turnover, records, employees, payroll data, VAT status, software access, deadlines, HMRC rules, client approvals, and agreed scope.
Recommendations depend on client status, income, expenses, records, business structure, applicable tax rules, HMRC guidance, deadlines, eligibility, evidence, and agreed terms.
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Please do not send UTRs, National Insurance numbers, HMRC Government Gateway credentials, bank logins, payroll passwords or tax identifiers through this website. Sensitive documents are shared through a secure agreed channel after initial contact.