Finance: Taxing decisions

The BTC is advising operators to adtopt digital tax reporting now...

Restaurants and takeaways are being urged to make their taxes digital before the legal deadline as part of a campaign by the British Takeaway Campaign (BTC). The call comes ahead of an April 2022 cut-off for VAT-registered businesses to move their tax records online as part of an effort to cut down on accidental errors in tax reporting.

The BTC says that digital tax reporting helps businesses to become more productive. This is because they subsequently spend less time on tax admin and more time on growing their businesses, while also ensuring that they get tax right the first-time round.

Ibrahim Dogus, chair of the BTC, said: “We’re urging Britain’s café restaurant and pub owners to embrace technology and let the computers do the boring paperwork so you don’t have to. There are many benefits to going digital. It saves time, it prevents mistakes and it makes doing business easier.

“The most important reason, however, is that by April 2022 it will be the law. So, get ahead and do it now.”

The move comes after a year in which cafés, restaurants and pubs have adopted technology at an unprecedented rate in order to overcome the challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic. Businesses have stayed connected with customers and boosted their sales by making use of ordering apps like Just Eat, setting up their own ordering platforms online, and using online stores to launch new products.

Business owners can take steps to make their tax digital by downloading compatible software, such as Microsoft Excel, which connects to HMRC’s tax registration systems. They can also register for the government’s Making Tax Digital programme.

Jesse Norman MP, financial secretary to the treasury, explained: “The Making Tax Digital initiative is creating a system that helps businesses get tax right from the start. This is so they can spend less time doing tax admin and more time growing sales and profits and creating jobs. 

“Small businesses, including takeaways and independent food businesses, will be key to making sure that our tax system works as well as possible, and they stand to benefit as well. So they should sign up to move their tax affairs online as soon as they can.” 


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