The National Association of Specialist Dental Accountants and Lawyers (NASDAL) has welcomed the Government’s move to drop Making Tax Digital (MTD) from Finance Bill 2017 ahead of the upcoming General Election.

NASDAL has described the move as “good news” for dentists – but Milsted Langdon is advising clients that the plans may be reinstated in a second Finance Act to be introduced once the Election has passed.

Previously, NASDAL has voiced concerns that the dental sector would face “specific challenges” under the plans, which would make it compulsory for most businesses to submit digital quarterly reports to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).

Such a move may not pose significant problems for many businesses who are already used to paying VAT on a quarterly basis and preparing monthly management accounts. However, this is not typically the case for dentists.

Alan Suggett, media officer at NASDAL, explains: “Dentists are not registered for VAT and even larger practices do not generally prepare monthly management accounts, or if they do, these don’t represent a true picture of turnover as such and various adjustments are required at the year-end.”

He suggested that, should MTD go ahead as planned, the vast majority of practice owners would probably need to seek external support in order to prepare their accounts.

He added: “It seems that with a General Election looming, it offered the Government an opportunity to review MTD more closely and allow for proper scrutiny over how the scheme will work in practice.

“This could be seen as a pragmatic decision to ensure the Government gets MTD right first time,” he said.

For more information about Milsted Langdon’s specialist tax and accountancy services for dentists, please contact us.