Accountants leaving iXBRL until 11th hour

ADVISERS NEED to act quicker if they want to make year-end deadlines, according to Iris Accountancy Solutions.

Accountants could be leaving preparations to file corporate tax returns in new technology too late, putting them at risk of having to rush them through, the IT company warns.

In April, HM Revenue & Customs required all corporate tax returns, which include year ends, to be filed using tax technology iXBRL.

Practices and businesses need at least six weeks to file in iXBRL, including training staff and implementing the software.

Last week, an ICAEW and Thomson Reuters survey revealed that one-third of accountants believe each return could add between two and eight hours to their workload.

Iris has warned that, because about half of all corporate tax returns are filed during the December year-end, accountants need to act now to make their deadline.

Phill Robinson, (pictured) CEO of IRIS Accountancy Practice Solutions, said: "With the December year-end approaching we're expecting to see a surge in queries from corporate customers who are facing the challenge of iXBRL tagging for the first time.

"There are different routes you can take to ensure compliance, but the bottom line is that all solutions require time to implement. Corporate tax and accounting teams need to work together to ensure that the best solution for them won't slip away, simply because they didn't give themselves enough time."

"While it might be challenging to start with, the move to iXBRL also provides finance teams with the opportunity to take a step back and examine their processes. This could help them to complete future returns more efficiently."

HMRC has taken a 'softer' approach to issuing penalties for the first two years of iXBRL's introduction.