File a VAT return under MTD
Prepare, review and submit a UK VAT return directly to HMRC under Making Tax Digital from the YionStack accounting module. No bridging software, no spreadsheet hand-off.
In this guide
Accounting- Steps
- 5
- Prereqs
- 4
- Pitfalls
- 3 common ones
- Related
- 3 guides
Walkthrough only — no setup wizard. The flow is exactly what you do inside YionStack today.
Before you start
- A live HMRC MTD connection on your business (Settings → Integrations → HMRC).
- Your VAT registration number on the business profile.
- A VAT period that has not already been submitted (YionStack reads the next open obligation from HMRC).
- All invoices, bills and bank transactions for the period posted and reconciled.
Steps
- 1
Open the VAT workspace
Go to Accounting → VAT. The page lists every period HMRC says is open or upcoming, with the deadline date and current submission status next to each.
- 2
Pick the period
Open the period you are filing. YionStack pulls every transaction with a VAT treatment that falls within the period dates and groups them into the nine HMRC return boxes.
- 3
Review the nine boxes
Each box shows the figure plus the transactions that compose it. Click any figure to drill into the lines. If you spot something that should not be in the period (a misdated invoice, a reverse-charge bill on the wrong scheme), correct the source transaction; the return recalculates live.
- 4
Approve and submit
Approve the return. The submission goes to HMRC over the MTD API; YionStack waits for the receipt and stores the HMRC submission reference against the period.
- 5
Save the receipt
The HMRC receipt PDF generates automatically and attaches to the period record. The next period opens read-only until its end date is reached.
Common pitfalls
Mid-quarter scheme changes
If you switch between Flat Rate and Standard mid-quarter, YionStack flags the change but you must confirm which scheme applies to each section of the period before submitting.
Domestic reverse charge
Construction reverse-charge bills must be on the CIS scheme on the bill itself; otherwise they land in box 1 rather than box 6/7. Fix on the bill, not the return.
Partial exemption
YionStack applies the standard method by default. If you use a special method agreed with HMRC, set it in Settings → VAT before opening the period.
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If a step is missing or unclear, tell us — every guide is a working document we improve as customers ask.