What the spreadsheet route really requires
- The records have to be created and stored in the spreadsheet, not written on paper and typed up later
- Moving a figure between sheets means linked cells, not retyping the number
- Sending records to anyone else, including the person who files, needs a digital link: email the file, pass it on a memory stick, or use a CSV, XML or API transfer
- Once a figure has been sent in a quarterly update, it must not be moved by hand or copied anywhere
None of that is impossible. It is simply the part of the spreadsheet approach that people discover after the first update.
Three things that catch spreadsheet users out
- Each update covers from 6 April to the end of the period, not just the last three months, so the totals are cumulative
- A quarter with no income and no expenses still has to be reported, even if every figure is zero
- The accounting period choice, tax year or calendar, is locked in after your first update, and joint property expenses or a late Rent-a-Room decision come back in the fourth update
Where the work really sits
| Job | Software | You |
|---|---|---|
| Creating the records | Holds them as they are made | Make them when the work happens |
| Category totals for the update | Adds them up per period | Nothing |
| Sending the update | Sends it to HMRC | Nothing, once it is set up |
| Corrections | Carries them into the next update | Notice and fix the record |
| Tax adjustments | Carries the figures into the return | You or your accountant |
| The return and the payment | Submits the return | 31 January, as always |
What the software is doing while you work
In a records-first tool the update is not a filing event, it is a side effect of the records you were keeping anyway. The invoice you raised in April is the income record, the receipt you photographed in May is the expense record, and the mileage you logged on the way to the job is already attributed to the right category.
That is the version TradeKit is built for: quotes, invoices, expenses, mileage and photographed receipts go in once from the phone, and the four quarterly totals are assembled from them. The update becomes a review of four numbers, not a reconstruction of three months.