Accounting and MTD software in Excel

OpenBooks is a full function double entry bookkeeping and accounting package, including Making Tax Digital submissions, all contained within a single Excel workbook. It is available for a one-off licence fee with no subscription. Data is stored on the user’s own computer, not in the cloud.

OpenBooks mimics a traditional manual accounting system, with transactions entered into day books and posted to ledgers, but all the laborious cross checking and posting is done automatically. 

OpenBooks is extremely simple to use; anyone who is familiar with the basic principles of bookkeeping should be able to use it with no training. A free guide to bookkeeping is included for those new to the subject.

OpenBooks helps users prepare VAT returns and Making Tax Digital for Income Tax in-year quarterly updates and submit them direct to HMRC – no other software is required for this. OpenBooks is not cloud accounting software; the user’s data is stored locally on the user’s own computer.

OpenBooks can submit quarterly returns but does not replace tax return software. End-of-year final declarations and tax return work still need to be completed using separate MTD-compatible tax return software or by the user’s accountant.

What OpenBooks does

• Records sales, purchases, cash book entries and journals.
• Produces customer, supplier and nominal ledger reports.
• Prepares VAT return figures from bookkeeping records.
• Submits supported VAT returns to HMRC.
• Prepares MTD for Income Tax trading quarterly update figures.
• Submits supported in-year MTD for Income Tax quarterly updates to HMRC.
• Keeps local submission logs in the workbook.

What OpenBooks does not do

• It does not submit the MTD Income Tax final declaration.
• It does not replace tax return software.
• It does not calculate all personal tax liabilities.
• It does not store customer bookkeeping data on OpenBooks servers.
• It does not provide tax advice.

HMRC recognition status

OpenBooks is currently being prepared for HMRC production access and recognition for supported Making Tax Digital submissions. We will only describe OpenBooks as “HMRC recognised” once HMRC recognition has been granted.