OpenBooks Privacy Policy
Last updated: 19/6/26
1. About OpenBooks
OpenBooks is desktop spreadsheet-based bookkeeping and Making Tax Digital software. It is designed to help users keep digital accounting records and submit supported in-year VAT and Making Tax Digital for Income Tax quarterly updates to HMRC.
OpenBooks is not cloud accounting software and is not provided as software as a service. Your accounting records are stored locally in your own OpenBooks workbook and in your own computer or storage environment. OpenBooks does not host your bookkeeping data on its own servers.
This Privacy Policy explains what personal data may be processed when you use OpenBooks.
2. Who provides OpenBooks
OpenBooks is provided by: OpenBooks Software Ltd
Website: www.openbooks.uk
Contact email: [email protected]
For the purposes of UK data protection law, OpenBooks Software Ltd is the data controller for limited customer administration data that it holds about its customers. You remain responsible for the data you enter into your own OpenBooks workbook.
3. What data is stored in your OpenBooks workbook
Your OpenBooks workbook may contain accounting and tax information including, for example:
customer and supplier names;
sales, purchase, cash book, journal and ledger entries;
VAT return figures;
MTD Income Tax quarterly update figures;
HMRC authorisation status and submission logs;
HMRC OAuth access and refresh tokens created when you authorise OpenBooks to communicate with HMRC.
This data is stored locally in your workbook. OpenBooks does not automatically send this data to the software provider, except where you deliberately provide a copy for support purposes.
4. HMRC authorisation and tokens
OpenBooks uses HMRC’s OAuth authorisation process to connect to HMRC services.
OpenBooks does not store your HMRC username or password.
When you authorise OpenBooks to communicate with HMRC, HMRC provides authorisation tokens. These tokens may be stored locally inside the workbook so that OpenBooks can submit VAT returns or MTD Income Tax quarterly updates and refresh authorisation when required.
You can revoke authorisation through your HMRC account or by clearing the stored authorisation tokens in the workbook.
5. Data submitted to HMRC
When you use OpenBooks to submit information to HMRC, OpenBooks sends the relevant VAT return or MTD Income Tax quarterly update information to HMRC using HMRC’s API.
OpenBooks may also send HMRC fraud-prevention header data required by HMRC. This may include technical information about the device and environment used to make the submission, such as connection method, local IP address, device identifier, screen information, operating system details, user identifiers, product name, product version and licence identifier.
This information is required by HMRC for fraud-prevention and security purposes.
6. Data held by the OpenBooks provider
The OpenBooks provider may hold limited customer administration data, such as:
customer name;
business name;
email address;
postal or billing address, if required;
licence number;
version supplied;
purchase or support history;
support correspondence.
This data is used to supply, licence, support and administer OpenBooks.
The OpenBooks provider does not routinely hold or access your bookkeeping records, VAT return data, MTD Income Tax quarterly update data, HMRC credentials or HMRC tokens.
7. Support access
If you request support, you may choose to provide screenshots, extracts or a copy of your workbook. You should only provide information that is necessary for the support request.
If you provide a workbook or accounting data for support, the provider will use it only for the purpose of dealing with that support request, unless you agree otherwise.
You should remove or anonymise confidential information before sending a workbook for support where practical.
8. Legal basis for processing
The OpenBooks provider processes customer administration data where necessary to:
supply and license the software;
provide support;
manage customer records;
comply with legal and tax obligations;
protect the security and integrity of the software.
Where you enter data into your own workbook, you are responsible for ensuring that you have a lawful basis for processing that data.
9. Security
OpenBooks is a local desktop workbook. You are responsible for keeping your workbook, computer, network and backups secure.
You should:
keep your workbook in a secure location;
restrict access to authorised users only;
use appropriate Windows, Microsoft 365, network and backup security;
keep your workbook backup copies secure;
avoid sending unencrypted workbooks by email where they contain sensitive data;
revoke HMRC authorisation if a workbook is lost, stolen or no longer required.
The OpenBooks provider takes reasonable steps to protect the limited customer administration data it holds.
10. Data retention
The OpenBooks provider retains customer administration records for as long as needed for licensing, support, legal and business purposes.
Data stored in your workbook remains under your control. You decide how long to keep your accounting records, subject to any legal record-keeping requirements that apply to you.
11. Sharing data
The OpenBooks provider will not sell your personal data.
Customer administration data may be shared with service providers where necessary to operate the business, such as email, website, payment, accounting or support service providers.
Data may also be shared where required by law, regulation or HMRC.
12. Your rights
Under UK data protection law, you may have rights to:
access personal data held about you;
ask for inaccurate data to be corrected;
ask for data to be deleted in certain circumstances;
object to or restrict certain processing;
receive a copy of your data in a portable format where applicable;
complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office.
To exercise your rights, contact: [email protected].
13. Customer responsibility
You are responsible for the personal data you enter into OpenBooks, including customer, supplier, employee or taxpayer information.
You should ensure that your use of OpenBooks complies with applicable data protection, tax and record-keeping obligations.
14. Changes to this policy
This Privacy Policy may be updated from time to time. The latest version will be included with the software or made available by the OpenBooks provider.