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Advancements in accountancy software technology over recent years have made keeping on top of expense receipts far simpler. Travel expenses offer a key example. There are loads of different variants of tax and reimbursements when it comes to driving.
For instance, a self-employed driver can claim the VAT back on their fuel. Here we take a look at how a self-employed person can save time and money on travel expenses while also reducing their accountancy workload.
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A Game Changer for the Self-Employed Driver
It’s still necessary to keep your receipts for tax purposes. However, if you use an accountant or tax advisor to do your books, you don’t want to be dropping a bag stuffed with receipts for travel and other expenses off for your bookkeeper every month. One solution has been to take a photo of each receipt and send all that week’s receipts by email at the end of every week.
But with recent new software, you can now do all this yourself. You might not even need to employ the services of a bookkeeper any longer. Using apps on your phone provided by your software, you can now take a photo of each receipt and upload it to your business account.
These services aren’t brand new. However, with more and more people now starting to work for themselves, including from home, this software is only going to continue being ever more widely available.
More Efficient Accounting Practices for Travel Expenses
The advancement in technology has also helped businesses with their accounting practices. In the past any person out on company business putting fuel into a car would have had to ensure to receive and keep a receipt for their travel expenses.
Accounts offices would then have to wait to receive the receipts, sometimes for weeks on end. Then accountants would try and put all the pieces of the jigsaw together.
Working out HMRC mileage rates can still be a time-consuming task. Moreover, since companies are free to diverge from the government’s guideline for mileage rates, claiming the tax back on them can be complex.
Larger companies may choose to provide their employees with corporate cards to skip the complication here. Also, for those using their personal vehicle for work purposes, there are resources online to help them understand those guideline rates.
Alternatively, software solutions can be more effective, providing more accurate tracking of employee travel and other expenses and VAT.
Instantaneous Receipt Tracking with Modern Software
Receipt tracking is instantaneous with this software. This means that accounts departments have access to the details as soon as the driver uploads the receipt. This leads to more streamlined accounts offices. Accountants can stay on top of receipts instead of having to piece everything together at a later date.
Further, the software can break down things like reimbursements for mileage rates and other travel expenses. This saves accountants hours of time-consuming paper pushing and calculations. Moreover, it saves individual drivers and businesses time and money.
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Saving Time and Money on Travel Expenses
Whether you run a small business, are self-employed at home, or are an accounts clerk, these advancements in technology and software will save you time and money. They are unquestionably good news when it comes to keeping up with and paying travel expenses.
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