UK. Making Tax Digital for VAT came into effect

On 1 April, the government's Making Tax Digital for VAT (MTD for VAT) initiative came into effect. MTD is a key part of the UK government’s plans to make it easier for individuals and businesses to get their tax right and keep on top of their affairs.
 
HMRC’s ambition is to become one of the most digitally advanced tax administrations in the world. MTD is making fundamental changes to the way the tax system works – transforming tax administration so that it is:

VAT-registered businesses with a taxable turnover above the VAT threshold (currently £85,000) are now required to use the MTD service to keep records digitally and use software (an Application Programming Interface -API) to submit their VAT returns for VAT periods that started on or after 1 April 2019. HMRC does not provide firms with MTD for VAT software. It does, however, list recognised products on the gov.uk site. Businesses are encouraged to contact their software provider to ascertain whether MTD for VAT products are available.
 
The exception to this is a small minority of VAT-registered businesses with more complex requirements. As part of planning for the VAT pilot, HMRC continued to engage with stakeholders and listen to their concerns about business readiness for MTD. There is the decision to delay mandation for these customers until 1 October 2019 to ensure there is sufficient time to test the service with them in the pilot before they are mandated to join.