Leigh, a plumbing and heating engineer based in Horsham, was running his business using paper invoices. Business and personal transactions were mixed together in his personal bank account, making the records difficult to organise and leaving him without a clear, regular view of his profit.
With Making Tax Digital for Income Tax changing the way affected sole traders maintain records and report during the year, Leigh needed a simpler system that would work alongside his day-to-day business.
The challenge
Leigh’s records were traditionally sorted retrospectively. Paper invoices and mixed bank transactions made bookkeeping more time-consuming and made it harder to understand how the business was performing during the year.
The prospect of maintaining digital records and completing quarterly MTD updates initially appeared complicated.
What Digivolve did
Digivolve helped Leigh open a separate Mettle business bank account, separate business transactions from personal spending and set up FreeAgent under the arrangement linked to his eligible Mettle account, at no additional software cost.
We replaced the paper-led process with a practical digital bookkeeping routine and established quarterly reviews to support his MTD for Income Tax requirements. The complete transition was delivered within one week.
The result
Leigh now uses his separate business account and FreeAgent to maintain clearer digital records. For the first time, he has a regular view of the business’s profit and loss rather than waiting until the end of the year to understand the figures.
Digivolve now reviews the records and processes the required MTD for Income Tax work each quarter.
The improved visibility also allowed potential higher-rate tax exposure to be identified before the end of the tax year. A possible pension contribution is being considered as part of Leigh’s ongoing planning before 5 April 2027. No contribution has yet been made and no tax saving is assumed.
“I thought this was going to be a lot harder, but some simple lifestyle changes, such as using a different bank account, made it a lot easier.”
— Leigh, plumbing and heating engineer
Preparing for MTD does not need to be disruptive
Leigh’s experience demonstrates how separating business banking and introducing suitable bookkeeping software can make digital record-keeping and quarterly reporting more manageable.
If you are a sole trader preparing for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, Digivolve can review your current records and help establish a practical system for your business.
This case study describes one client’s experience. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and rules can change.