Digital Record Keeping UK —
Paperless, Compliant & Always Accessible

For VAT-registered businesses (turnover above £90,000), Making Tax Digital requires digital record keeping using HMRC-approved software. MTD for Income Tax will require digital records for sole traders and landlords with qualifying income from April 2026 (above £50,000) and April 2027 (above £30,000). All UK businesses must keep financial records for at least 6 years.

We set you up with a receipt capture app — photograph paper receipts with your phone and they’re automatically processed, categorised and stored. Alternatively, forward email receipts and invoices to your dedicated capture address. Most clients find the app takes less than 30 seconds per receipt.

HMRC requires most business records to be kept for at least 6 years from the end of the accounting period they relate to. For companies, this means 6 years after the year end. For sole traders, 5 years after the 31 January Self Assessment deadline for that tax year. Our system retains all records for the full statutory period automatically.

Yes — we use enterprise-grade cloud accounting platforms (Xero, QuickBooks) and document management tools that use bank-level 256-bit encryption, multi-factor authentication and regular security audits. Your data is backed up continuously and stored in UK data centres compliant with ISO 27001 and UK GDPR requirements.

Yes — we can migrate you to digital record keeping at any point in the year. We’ll digitise your existing paper records, set up your cloud accounting system and ensure there’s a complete, unbroken digital record from the start of your current accounting period. Most migrations complete within 5 working days.

HMRC now accepts digital copies of receipts — there is no requirement to keep physical paper for VAT or income tax purposes (as long as the digital copy is legible and a true representation). Keeping physical receipts adds storage cost and retrieval complexity with no benefit. Switch to digital capture today.

Standard Excel spreadsheets don’t meet MTD requirements because there is no digital link between the spreadsheet and HMRC’s systems. VAT-registered businesses using spreadsheets must use bridging software to create the required digital link — or switch to HMRC-approved accounting software. We assess your current position and advise on the most practical solution.

Relying on a single local hard drive for financial records is a serious risk — hardware failure, fire or theft could destroy years of financial history. All Britvex clients’ records are stored on enterprise-grade cloud platforms with continuous backup and geographic redundancy.

Many businesses delete financial records after a few years to save storage space — unaware that HMRC requires them for 6 years (limited companies) or 5 years (sole traders). Early deletion can make it impossible to respond to a late HMRC enquiry. Our system retains all records for the full statutory period automatically.