Making Tax Digital · Sole traders
How to set up your Avona account with less admin
ONLY£15A MONTHGetting started with tax software is easier when you know what needs to be ready.
Getting started with tax software is easier when you know what needs to be ready. Creating an account can be quick; completing HMRC authorisation, connecting a bank and checking historical records are separate tasks. A sensible setup gives each of them enough attention.
Prepare the details before opening the app
Have access to the email address you intend to use, your HMRC sign-in, National Insurance number and existing Self Assessment information. List your separate trades and property businesses. For a joint property, establish your ownership share rather than entering all the rent as yours.
Start from Avona.app and follow the account-creation method currently displayed. If a sign-in link is offered, use the newest link and keep it private. Do not assume that an app login also signs you up for MTD.
Connect the right services
Follow the supported HMRC connection process and check the taxpayer and businesses returned. For a bank connection, authenticate through the bank's approved route and read the consent details. Then inspect the date range imported: a successful connection does not guarantee that every earlier transaction has arrived.
An address lookup can save typing, but it does not establish beneficial ownership, income entitlement or tax residence. Confirm those facts yourself. Avoid rushing an unfamiliar screen simply to meet a three-minute target.
Worked example: one trade and a rental property
Sam runs a repair business and receives rent jointly with a sibling. Before setup, Sam lists both income sources, identifies the relevant bank accounts and agrees the rental share. After connecting the bank, Sam finds that the first imported transaction is in May, although the reporting year began in April.
Sam imports the missing April period through a supported method, checks for overlap and reviews the two business records separately. That coverage check is more valuable than completing the first login a minute faster.
Choose software by the work it needs to do
Start with your actual income sources and records. A sole trade, a UK property business and foreign property can involve different requirements. A product suitable for one set of circumstances is not automatically suitable for every annual-return item you might have.
HMRC's software guidance allows different approaches, including software connected to existing spreadsheets. Check the complete workflow: importing or recording transactions, reviewing the quarterly summary, submitting it, making corrections and completing the annual return.
Try a representative sample that includes a refund, a private transaction, a cash item and an awkward bank description. Ask how the system handles a missing period and how you export records if you leave. These questions are more informative than a long feature list.
Software support and professional tax advice are different services. Confirm who answers each kind of question, when help is available and what the quoted fee covers. Avona.app's entry-level self-service price is £15/month; professional services and additional product capabilities should be checked against the current scope rather than assumed to be included.
Share the information needed for the task
Tax records need to be useful without containing unnecessary personal detail. Keep payment references sufficient to reconcile the accounts, and hold sensitive client notes in the appropriate restricted system. Financial software should not become a second, informal store for clinical notes or identity documents.
Use individual accounts and the access controls available for the service. Remove access when a working relationship ends. A secure product can still be misused through shared sign-ins, forwarded access links or files sent to the wrong person.
For Open Banking, distinguish account-information access from payment initiation. Read the consent screen and check the authorised provider. Account-information permission does not itself authorise moving money, but Open Banking as a whole also includes separately authorised payment services. The FCA explains these different services.
If you need an assurance about encryption, hosting, retention or security testing, ask for the current documented answer. Terms such as “bank-grade” do not tell you which controls apply to a particular service. Choose a workflow whose permissions and responsibilities you understand, and protect the email or phone account used to recover access.
A review that checks more than the total
Start with coverage: the correct person, business and period, plus all relevant accounts and cash records. Then look at completeness. A feed can be connected today while still missing an earlier week. Confirm the earliest and latest transactions against the source.
Next, inspect unusual items. Large transfers, loan receipts, refunds, net settlements and private purchases often need more context than a bank description provides. Check for duplicate imports where a statement overlaps a live feed. An automatic warning is useful evidence to investigate, not proof that the entry must be removed.
Finally, review category totals. A category unexpectedly showing zero, a large increase or a negative amount deserves an explanation. You do not have to make every annual tax adjustment at this stage, but you should understand the records behind the summary you approve.
HMRC explains what quarterly updates contain. Keep the approved version and the resulting acknowledgement together. If something later changes, correct the source record and use the software's supported update process so you can explain which figures are current.
Your setup checklist
- Confirm the correct taxpayer and every relevant business.
- Check MTD registration separately from software registration.
- Compare imported dates with the reporting period.
- Record who will review, submit and complete the annual return.
- Keep the recovery method for your account up to date.
A good setup ends with records you understand, not merely a successful welcome screen.
Take the next step
Avona.app offers a self-service route from £15/month. Bring your records together, review the figures and choose a workflow that fits your business. For professional help, discuss the scope and total price of Avona Concierge, managed by chartered accountants, before choosing a service.