Your VAT scheme was chosen the week you registered. Nobody has checked it since, and it might be costing you.
Nasir Rasheed, Director
VAT returns and VAT scheme review: are you on the scheme that costs you least?
VAT returns and VAT scheme review are both part of the monthly fee at Nexus, for established limited companies in Milton Keynes and across the UK.
Most directors were put on the standard scheme at registration, and nobody has looked at it since. If your costs are overseas software and subcontracted services, box 4 stays almost empty every quarter. Sometimes the answer runs the other way.
Nexus Tax and Accounting Solutions is a Milton Keynes accountancy practice run by Nasir Rasheed MAAT AATQB for established limited companies. VAT returns and a VAT scheme review sit inside one monthly fee that also covers accounts, corporation tax, bookkeeping, payroll and the director’s self assessment. Nexus takes three new clients a month.
Accredited and certified
- Nasir Rasheed MAAT AATQB
- Established 2024
- Three new clients a month
- Milton Keynes · UK-wide remote
What you get with Nexus
Pay the VAT the right scheme charges
Standard, flat rate or cash accounting, picked on your actual costs and looked at again when those costs change.
Know the number before the deadline
Your VAT position is prepared from books that reconcile, so nothing arrives as a surprise two days before it is due.
Get an answer from Nasir the same week
You deal with Nasir himself, which is why Nexus takes three new clients a month.
Has anyone ever checked whether your VAT scheme is the right one?
Three things directors tell me in the first call, and what each one costs.
- VAT
“I reclaim VAT on almost nothing. My costs are overseas software and subcontractors, but I have been on the standard scheme since I registered.”
Box 4 sits near empty quarter after quarter. On the same turnover, the flat rate scheme would have charged less.
- Switch
“We moved to the flat rate scheme because someone said it was simpler. Then we took on staff, vans and a lot of stock.”
With real input VAT to reclaim, the standard scheme is usually the cheaper one. Nobody tested it again after the business changed shape.
- Tax bill
“My accountant files the return and emails me the amount two days before it is due. I have never been asked about the scheme.”
The return is correct and the scheme underneath it was never tested. Filing is not advice.
- Day 90
What changes once the VAT scheme has actually been checked
The scheme is chosen against your real cost base, not the default set at registration. The quarterly figure stops being a surprise, because the books are current and the return is prepared from them. And when your costs change, the scheme gets looked at again rather than left alone.
Quick check · no email
If your accountant can’t tell you whether your VAT scheme is right, what your next tax bill will be before it lands, and get back to you this week, you have the wrong accountant
Three questions to put to your current accountant this week.
Question 1 of 3
Could they tell you, on your figures, whether flat rate or standard leaves you better off?
Could they give you your VAT and corporation tax position before the deadline rather than with it?
Could they reply to you themselves this week, without routing you through a new account manager?
That is a real gap, and it usually shows up in the VAT you pay rather than in the filing. The set-up review is where the scheme, the structure and the pay split get tested properly.
That is a reasonable position, so the thing worth checking is the scheme itself. Read the flat rate entry below, where one consultant’s quarterly bill fell with no change to turnover.
You are well served, and there is nothing here you need to buy. Keep the guides for the next time your cost base changes.
Filing the VAT return and choosing the VAT scheme are two different jobs
Plenty of firms do the first one well. The second one is rarely done at all.
A filing-only accountant
Files the quarterly return accurately and on time.
Uses whichever scheme you were registered on.
Speaks to you at year end and around deadlines.
Charges for advice when you think to ask for it.
VAT with the scheme reviewed
Files the return from books that reconcile.
Tests standard, flat rate and cash accounting against your costs.
Revisits the scheme when staff, stock or overheads change.
Advice is part of the monthly fee on a fair-use basis.
Eight questions about your current VAT set-up
Answer these honestly and you will know whether a review is worth your time.
- 01
Do you know which VAT scheme you are actually on?
Many directors do not, because it was set at registration years ago.
- 02
Has anyone compared flat rate against standard on your figures?
If not, the comparison takes one quarter of data.
- 03
Is your box 4 reclaim small relative to your sales VAT?
Low input VAT is the classic sign that flat rate deserves testing.
- 04
Have your costs changed since you registered?
New staff, vans, stock or premises can flip the answer the other way.
- 05
Do your books reconcile before the return is filed?
A return prepared from unreconciled books is a correction waiting to happen.
- 06
Do you know the VAT figure before the quarter ends?
Current books mean the number is visible, not announced late.
- 07
Do you invoice overseas or use reverse-charge services?
That changes both the return and the scheme that suits you.
- 08
Was the last scheme conversation started by your accountant?
If you had to raise it, advice is not built into what you pay.
What the VAT work covers each quarter
Three parts, all inside the monthly fee.
Quarterly VAT returns
Prepared from reconciled books and filed on time, with the figure shown to you before submission.
VAT scheme review
Standard, flat rate or cash accounting tested against your real costs when you join and again when the business changes.
Bookkeeping that keeps up
A routine so the numbers are current when a pricing, hiring or investment decision comes up mid-quarter.
Entry 01
One scheme change, a smaller VAT bill every quarter
The turnover did not move. The scheme did.
Clients described by type. Names withheld.
What clients say
How the VAT scheme gets tested in your first ninety days
Four steps, starting before you commit to anything.
You find out which scheme suits your costs
The set-up review looks at structure, VAT scheme, salary and dividends and software, and tells you why each is right or what should change.
The books reconcile, so the return is trustworthy
Bookkeeping gets a routine and the handover from your previous accountant is dealt with, including professional clearance and records.
The scheme is changed or confirmed in writing
If a change pays, it is made and the timing explained. If the current scheme is right, you are told that and why.
Your tax bill arrives a month before HMRC’s does
Corporation tax and dividend headroom are forecast before the year end, so the money is there and the decision is yours.
When Nexus is not the right firm for you
Start-ups in their first or second year, where there is not yet enough trading to review.
Sole traders under £150,000 turnover, where incorporation is not the obvious move.
Property-only landlords and cash businesses.
Owners buying on price alone, who want filing and no conversation.
If you are an established limited company and unsure where you sit, the set-up review answers it before either of us commits.
Questions directors ask about VAT
What does the monthly fee include?
One monthly fee covers year-end accounts, corporation tax, the confirmation statement, VAT returns, bookkeeping, payroll and pensions, and the director’s self assessment. Proactive tax planning is included on a fair-use basis, which means the VAT scheme review, salary and dividend planning and a corporation tax forecast a month before the bill lands. Capital gains returns are charged separately.
We already have an accountant, is a VAT returns and VAT scheme review still worth it?
It is worth it if nobody has tested the scheme since you registered. The review compares standard, flat rate and cash accounting against your actual costs. Sometimes the answer is that your current scheme is already right, and you are told that plainly. If a change pays, you see the quarterly difference first.
Do we have to move our bookkeeping software?
No. Nexus works with what you already use, provided the records are good enough for a return that reconciles. If the current routine is causing corrections or late figures, Nasir will say so and explain what should change. Any move is agreed with you, not imposed as a condition of joining.
What happens with our current accountant if we switch?
You do not chase them yourself. Nexus handles professional clearance and the collection of records, then runs the set-up review and sets out the first-year timetable so you know every filing date. There is no separate charge for the handover. Most switches happen without the director doing more than approving the letter.
How do I know whether the flat rate or standard VAT scheme is better?
It comes down to how much VAT you reclaim. Consultants and contractors whose costs are overseas software, subcontractors or reverse-charge services often reclaim very little, so flat rate can charge less. Trades with vans, stock, staff and premises usually reclaim enough that standard wins. The comparison is done on your own figures.
Do you handle VAT returns and VAT scheme review for companies outside Milton Keynes?
Yes. Nexus is based in Milton Keynes and works with limited companies across the UK remotely, including Bedford, Northampton, Luton, Aylesbury and London. Nasir rarely needs to meet in person. Calls and email run Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, and you deal with Nasir rather than a rotating account manager.
Three ways to take the next step
Book the set-up review
Nasir tests your scheme, structure, pay and software, then gives you a written list of what to change and why.
See if Nexus fits 02 · A question firstWant one question answered first?
Send Nasir your quarter figures and he will tell you whether the scheme is worth reviewing.
Ask Nasir about your scheme 03 · Still decidingStill deciding
The guides set out how flat rate and standard compare for consultants, contractors and trades with stock.
Read the guides →