How to use suiteSheets FULL template
30-second answer
suiteSheets templates are designed to help sole traders and landlords keep digital records in a spreadsheet and prepare figures for Making Tax Digital submissions.
Record your income and expenses, keep them up to date and let the spreadsheet calculate the totals for you.
When a submission is due, upload your spreadsheet to suiteSheets, review your figures and submit them to HMRC.
No monthly subscription. No complicated software. Simply spreadsheets.
This guide is most relevant if you are:
- A sole trader or landlord
- New to suiteSheets
- New to Making Tax Digital
- Looking for a spreadsheet-based approach to Making Tax Digital
- Using Excel or Google Sheets
This guide covers
This guide is provided for general information only and is based on HMRC guidance available at the time of writing.
HMRC allows sole traders and landlords to use spreadsheets as part of their Making Tax Digital record-keeping process.
So you can continue to keep your records in a spreadsheet, as long as those records form part of a digital process and submissions are made using software that works with Making Tax Digital.
In short
HMRC allows spreadsheets. The key requirement is that your records form part of a digital process and can be submitted through compatible software.
suiteSheets templates are designed to help spreadsheet users meet Making Tax Digital requirements without moving to full accounting software.
The template provides a simple structure for recording income and expenses and automatically calculates totals on the Overview sheet to prepare the figures needed for MTD submissions.
Rather than building a spreadsheet from scratch, you start with a structure designed around HMRC reporting requirements.
The landlord and sole trader templates contain slightly different reporting categories, but both are designed around the same simple spreadsheet format.
In short
suiteSheets templates help you keep digital records in a way that supports the Making Tax Digital process.
The suiteSheets templates are designed to make record-keeping as simple as possible while supporting Making Tax Digital requirements.
Although the landlord and sole trader templates contain slightly different categories, they both follow the same basic structure.
Your starting point.
The Welcome sheet explains how the template works and contains the step-by-step instructions needed to get set up.
Use these sheets to record income received during the tax year.
For landlords, this typically means rental income.
For sole traders, this typically means business income.
Use these sheets to record expenses paid during the tax year.
HMRC asks landlords and sole traders to report different types of expenses.
For sole traders, this usually means recording business expenses.
For landlords, there is one small exception. HMRC requires finance costs, such as mortgage interest, to be reported separately from other property expenses.
This is why the landlord template includes additional sheets for finance costs and residential finance costs.
Different business types, same simple structure.
The Overview sheet is the most important sheet in the template.
It automatically pulls together the figures needed for Making Tax Digital reporting and submission.
These are the only figures suiteSheets reads when you upload your spreadsheet for submission.
When you upload your spreadsheet, the suiteSheets platform reads the totals shown in the Overview sheet, displays them for you to review and, once confirmed, submits them to HMRC.
Because of this, it's important that the structure and format of the Overview sheet remains unchanged. The suiteSheets platform relies on that structure to identify and read the correct figures.
The Overview sheet is the link between your spreadsheet and your MTD submission.
A simple tax estimator to help you understand how your figures may affect your tax position throughout the year.
One of the key requirements under Making Tax Digital is maintaining a digital link from your transactions through to submission.
In practice, this means your totals should be calculated digitally, rather than manually typed.
The suiteSheets template is designed with this in mind. As you record transactions, the spreadsheet automatically updates the figures needed for reporting and submission on the Overview sheet.
suiteSheets templates use cash accounting, which is the simplest way to keep records for tax.
Instead of worrying about when invoices were issued, you record money when it actually moves.
When rent or business income reaches your account, record it as income.
When you pay an expense, record it as an expense.
If no money has moved, nothing gets recorded yet.
For many landlords and small businesses, this keeps bookkeeping manageable without needing accounting training.
In short
Cash accounting means recording real money in and real money out.
One of the things that surprises people about Making Tax Digital is that many sole traders and landlords won't need to categorise every transaction into detailed expense headings for quarterly updates.
For most suiteSheets users, this means recording income and expenses without needing to split every transaction into categories such as travel, advertising or professional fees.
There is one small exception for landlords. Finance costs, such as mortgage interest, must be recorded separately because HMRC requires these figures to be reported differently.
This is why the landlord template includes additional sheets for finance costs and residential finance costs.
Making Tax Digital requires quarterly updates throughout the tax year.
The template follows the standard UK tax year from 6 April to 5 April, helping keep records aligned with HMRC reporting periods.
Quarterly updates are cumulative, which means each update builds on the previous one.
The suiteSheets template automatically maintains running totals on the Overview sheet so your figures are organised and ready when needed.
Before submitting, you'll be asked to review the figures displayed on screen and confirm that they are correct.
suiteSheets reads the figures from your spreadsheet and transmits them to HMRC, but it does not verify the accuracy of those figures. You remain responsible for ensuring your records and submissions are complete and correct.
When a submission is due:
- Review your figures in the Overview sheet
- Upload your spreadsheet to your suiteSheets account
- Check the figures displayed on screen
- Confirm everything looks correct
- Submit to HMRC
The spreadsheet remains your source record throughout the process.
suiteSheets is designed to help spreadsheet users prepare and submit information to HMRC.
When you upload a spreadsheet, suiteSheets reads the figures from your Overview sheet and displays them for review before submission.
It is your responsibility to ensure those figures are complete and accurate before submitting them to HMRC.
suiteSheets does not verify your bookkeeping records, categorise transactions or check whether figures have been entered correctly.
In short
You stay in control of your records and remain responsible for the figures submitted to HMRC.
Creating a suiteSheets account is free.
You can download templates, record transactions and prepare your figures without paying a thing.
When you're ready to make your first quarterly submission of the tax year, you purchase access for that business.
Current pricing is:
- £20 per business for the tax year
- £10 per additional business
Once purchased, you can submit as many quarterly updates as needed throughout the tax year without paying a penny more.
In short
No monthly subscription. Pay once and submit all year.
The suiteSheets template is designed to keep things simple, but there are a few habits worth avoiding.
- Recording annual totals instead of individual transactions
- Waiting until the end of the quarter to update records
- Manually typing figures into formulated cells
- Deleting or overwriting formulated cells
- Mixing up income and expenses
In short
The template works best when transactions are recorded regularly and formulas are left to do their job.
HMRC allows spreadsheets to be used as part of a Making Tax Digital process provided the records form part of a digital process and submissions are made using compatible software.
Yes. suiteSheets is HMRC recognised bridging software.
Excel can be used as part of a compliant MTD process when connected to compatible software.
Google Sheets can be used as part of a compliant MTD process when connected to compatible software.
The template is designed for spreadsheet users, not accountants.
Making Tax Digital requires digital records of individual transactions.
The Overview sheet brings together the figures needed for MTD reporting and submission. These are the only figures the suiteSheets system reads so it is important the format is not adjusted.
Creating a suiteSheets account is free.
Access costs £20 per business for the tax year and £10 for each additional business.
Once purchased, you can submit quarterly updates for that business throughout the tax year without paying again.
Upload your spreadsheet to your suiteSheets account, review the figures displayed on screen and submit them directly to HMRC through suiteSheets.
This guide is provided for general information only and is based on HMRC guidance available at the time of writing.
suiteSheets is software for spreadsheet users. We do not provide tax advice, accounting advice or legal advice. If you are unsure how Making Tax Digital applies to your circumstances, contact HMRC or a qualified adviser.
These HMRC pages provide further context on Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, eligibility, digital records, compatible software and signing up.
Try the FREE suiteSheets template
Want to see what a spreadsheet designed for Making Tax Digital looks like?
Download the free suiteSheets template and explore how income, expenses and totals can be structured for a spreadsheet-based MTD solution.
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suiteSheets is MTD-compatible software designed for sole traders and landlords who prefer a spreadsheet-based approach to Making Tax Digital.
Open your free suiteSheets account and explore Making Tax Digital made easy.