Changing accountants during a VAT period

Changing accountants during a VAT period needs a written handover of records, deadlines, access and responsibility for the next return. Confirm which adviser will submit and who will approve the figures so the change does not create a gap or duplicate filing.

Export the ledger and audit trail, reconcile opening figures and identify unresolved queries. Agent authorisation and software access should be reviewed separately.

Agree a precise changeover point

Set out the accounting period affected, the handover date and the adviser responsible for the next VAT return. Name the person within the business who will answer queries and approve the figures. A general statement that the new accountant 'takes over this month' leaves room for both teams to assume the other will submit. Put the arrangement in writing before either team closes its work file.

VAT records must remain available and capable of supporting the return. Changing advisers does not remove the business's record-keeping responsibilities. Plan the transfer of invoices, digital records and supporting calculations alongside the transfer of the accounting balance. The receiving accountant needs enough information to understand how the numbers were produced, not simply a total copied from the previous return. ^[1]

Transfer the working records and the explanations

Request the sales and purchase ledgers, bank reconciliations, VAT control account, previous return calculations and submission receipts. Include the scheme used and any special treatment affecting the business. Add an open-issues schedule covering missing invoices, estimates, error corrections and HMRC correspondence. A concise explanation of an unresolved item can save more time than an additional export of the same ledger without context.

Identify where original documents are stored and who controls each account. An accountant's working paper may refer to an invoice in a separate receipt-capture system that the business cannot currently access. Resolve those gaps before terminating subscriptions or permissions. If records are exported, check that attachments and transaction references remain usable; a spreadsheet of amounts without its supporting documents may not provide an adequate handover.

Reconcile the opening position together

The incoming accountant should compare the last submitted VAT return with the closing VAT control balance and subsequent HMRC payments or repayments. Differences may be legitimate timing items, but they need explanations. Ask the outgoing team about entries that cannot be traced, rather than automatically clearing them to a miscellaneous account. A clean-looking opening balance is not helpful if the adjustment hides an unresolved historic error.

Review transactions spanning the changeover date, including late supplier invoices, deposits and customer credits. Agree which team will process each outstanding item and how updates will be communicated. Avoid maintaining two independent versions of the same quarter. If both teams need access temporarily, establish which dataset is authoritative and a cut-off after which changes require notice to the person preparing the return.

Separate authority from software access

Confirm the steps needed for the new adviser to act for the business and the permissions required within the bookkeeping software. These are separate arrangements. Use appropriate individual accounts and role permissions rather than sending a director's personal sign-in details by email. Keep the business in control of its own records and ensure a responsible person can access them if either adviser becomes unavailable.

When the transition is complete, remove access that is no longer needed, while retaining any access required for specifically agreed closing work. Record what was removed and when. Check connected applications as well as the main accounting login, including receipt tools and bank feeds. A tidy permissions list reduces confusion about who can alter transactions or view customer and supplier information after the engagement ends.

Protect the next filing deadline

Work backwards from the actual VAT deadline and allow time for authorisation, missing information, review and business approval. If the handover is too close to filing, agree a realistic responsibility split rather than assuming every migration task can be completed first. The owner should receive a brief status update showing what is ready, what remains unresolved and whether any issue could prevent an accurate submission.

Read Preparing your first VAT return for the return-preparation process and use VAT return preparation to discuss an accountant transition involving VAT. Provide the next deadline, software name, last submitted period and the main outstanding queries. Ask for a written scope that identifies the first return included and any historic review work separately, so both the business and incoming team have the same expectations.

After the first return under the new arrangement, compare the submitted figures with the approved version and retain the receipt. Use any handover difficulties to improve the record index and responsibility list, making the next quarter easier to complete without repeated requests for the same information.

Illustrative scenario

A business changes adviser halfway through a quarter. The outgoing team supplies the reconciled records and error log, while the incoming team confirms the remaining work and next filing responsibility.

Preparation checklist

• Agree the handover date
• Assign the next return
• Transfer reconciled records
• Review agent and software access