As a business owner in England, you will know just how important it is to keep on top of your financial obligations to ensure that you are compliant with HMRC’s regulations.
In 2025, we have seen a long list of financial updates, from Making Tax Digital to updates to corporation tax and payroll. Businesses need a clear framework to ensure they pay the correct taxes and avoid consequences.
At Tax Driven Accountants, we have seen many businesses suffer due to simply not knowing their financial responsibilities.
In this blog, we will provide a step-by-step accountancy checklist, designed to help businesses remain compliant within the next financial year.
Annual Financial Health Review
Businesses must perform annual financial health reviews, which can show their profit margins and highlight areas for improvement.
When offering our management accountant services to clients, we always highlight the importance of these reviews and the importance of breaking these reviews down into separate categories to make the process easier.
Profit and Loss Review
A profit and loss review involves examining your company’s revenue and expenditures. This data is one of the best ways to understand your business’s financial performance and assess its profitability.
Understanding your profit and loss allows you to make decisions that will benefit your business. Doing a semi-regular profit and loss review can also help you establish whether or not you require external support with your finances, whether through better bookkeeping or understanding your cash flow projections.
Balance Sheet Audit
Businesses should dedicate time to conducting a balance sheet audit to verify the accuracy of their financial statements. This process helps review your company’s financial position and boosts your credibility by maintaining trustworthy financial records.
A balance sheet audit is essential for any business with stakeholders. It provides a comprehensive review of the company’s financial position and ensures transparency and accuracy in reporting.
Cash Flow Check
Financial clarity is essential when running a business; performing a cash flow check is one of the best ways to achieve this. Cash flow checks can identify any cash shortfalls, allowing you to make more informed decisions about your business’s future.
Assessing your cash flow allows you to develop a plan based on these projections, which can improve your business success.
Growth and Risk Analysis
Businesses should conduct a growth and risk analysis to make informed and proactive decisions. This process aids resource allocation and supports long-term sustainability by pinpointing potential threats and opportunities within their financial forecasts.
2025 Tax Compliance Essentials
If you are a business owner who wants to ensure that you are paying all of your obligated tax bills or a new business that doesn’t know where to start, here are some of the tax bills you must comply with.
Corporation Tax
Businesses operating within the UK are legally obligated to submit their corporation tax returns within 12 months following the conclusion of their company’s accounting period. This requirement ensures compliance with UK tax laws and helps the government accurately assess the company’s financial activities for taxation purposes.
You must file your tax return within the provided time period and pay your tax on time and in full. Otherwise, you may be charged interest on the full outstanding amount on a daily basis.
VAT
To stay VAT compliant in the UK, businesses need to register for VAT if they exceed the turnover threshold, apply the correct tax rate, adhere to Making Tax Digital (MTD) regulations, maintain detailed records for six years, and submit accurate returns and payments to HMRC promptly.
Failure to register your business properly for VAT can result in significant fines, penalties, and even criminal charges.
Payroll and PAYE
Paying your staff accurately, on time, and in accordance with the national wage is essential for a business owner. With minimum wage increases, ensure that all your software is updated to reflect the new living wage.
Employers should proactively set aside a budget for upcoming updates to National Insurance Contributions (NIC) thresholds and rates to ensure compliance.
It is also crucial to verify that employee deductions are calculated accurately and consistently, as mistakes could lead to HMRC investigations. This proactive strategy helps maintain compliance, prevent penalties, and support smooth payroll processes.
We understand that this aspect of business ownership may be time-consuming or even overwhelming, which is why we always recommend that businesses outsource their payroll responsibilities to independent accountancy services.
Allowable Expenses and R&D Credits
Allowable expenses are the costs associated with operating your business that can be deducted from your profits before calculating taxes. These expenses decrease your taxable profit, which in turn lowers the tax you owe.
Many businesses fail to fully leverage their eligible expenses and miss valuable tax relief opportunities. R&D tax credits are a government incentive to motivate companies to invest in innovation. If your business invests in developing new products, services, processes, or enhancing existing ones, you could qualify to claim these reliefs.
Self-Assessment
Directors who receive dividends and salaries should be aware that they may be required to file personal self-assessment tax returns. Payments on account might be applicable, so it’s important to include these in your cash flow planning. Doing so can help you avoid unexpected tax bills and ensure financial stability throughout the year.
Payroll and Employee Considerations
If you have employees in your business, you will have added complications and tax responsibilities. If you fail to meet your payroll responsibilities, you may face consequences. Some tax obligations that you must consider when you have a payroll and employees include:
PAYE Submissions
Ensure that all Real Time Information (RTI) is calculated with precision and submitted promptly to meet compliance standards and avoid penalties. Accurate and timely reporting of RTI is essential for maintaining operational efficiency and adhering to regulatory requirements.
This guarantees that your employees receive the pay they are entitled to and ensures that your records filed with HMRC are accurate.
Pensions and Auto-Enrolment
As an employer, you are responsible for ensuring that all of your employees’ pension contributions are made correctly and that your company records are up to date.
Mistakes made with pension auto-enrolment not only impact your business, but they could also significantly affect your employees. We understand that keeping on top of all of these aspects of your payroll can be overwhelming, so it is recommended that you work with an accountant on your payroll responsibilities.
Expenses and Benefits
If your business offers benefits, though there are exemptions, these benefits may be liable for income tax and NIC. It is a legal requirement by HMRC to ensure all taxable income is properly accounted for.
The nature of the benefit impacts the reporting method, with high-value benefits reported under P11D and PSA used for irregular or minor benefits. You must understand what to file your benefits under, as making mistakes may cost you, which is why having an accountant who understands how to file these benefits and self-assessments on your side is so beneficial.
How an Accountant Can Help
If you have read the checklist above and are already worried that you won’t be able to keep up with your responsibilities, we recommend that you work with an accountant to ensure that you are compliant with your accountancy obligations.
Some reasons you should consult an accountant for support with your business’s financial responsibilities are as follows.
Compliance Made Easy
Accountants help ensure compliance by keeping up with changing tax laws and regulations, offering expertise on filing requirements and deadlines, maintaining precise and organised financial records, and providing strategic advice to avoid costly errors, penalties, and legal complications.
There are many evolving regulations concerning businesses and taxes, so you must work with someone who understands these regulations and can support you.
Time Savings
If you’re not skilled with numbers, working out your tax obligations can be very time-consuming, and that doesn’t even take into account the time you have to spend checking whether or not your initial calculations were correct.
Time is money, and the more time you spend on your accountancy, the less time you can spend on your business operations. Letting an accountant take the lead can save you valuable time that can be allocated to more critical tasks.
Proactive Advice
When it comes to accountancy, businesses must be aware of many complexities, and it can be a lot to learn, especially when you’re not mathematically inclined. A good accountant won’t just help you file your financial statements; they will provide insightful advice on managing your finances better and building your business.
If your business is struggling financially, they will also advise you on how to raise finance and improve your position.
Tailored Support
A good accountant won’t just provide you with blanket advice that doesn’t necessarily fit your business; they’ll assess your business and your finances and make informed decisions based on what they think is best for your individual business, and ensure that you are supported the whole time that you work with them.
There is no perfect, cookie-cutter approach to managing a business’s finances, and a good accountant will acknowledge this.
Take Control of Your Finances With Tax Driven Accountants
Are you a business that’s struggling with your finances? Do you need extra support to ensure that your bookkeeping and taxes are compliant before the end of the tax year?
Get in touch to find out how Tax Driven Accountants can support you.