The finalized Value Added Tax Regulations for 2018 (herein "VAT Regulations") have been published by the United Kingdom's Parliament. The VAT Regulations clarify the digital record-keeping requirements that have been announced under the Making Tax Digital (MTD) initiative, starting April 1, 2019. Included in the VAT Regulations are definitions for "functionally compatible software" and "API", as well as detailed lists of the information that will be required to be stored electronically by VAT-registered businesses after April 1, 2019. VAT-registered businesses will be found non-compliant with VAT reporting obligations in the United Kingdom after April 1, 2019, if their electronic VAT records are not maintained on functionally compatible software that is capable of communicating with the HMRC API, or if these electronic VAT records do not contain the specific information required under the VAT Regulations.
For further information on these new VAT Regulations, please find the Parliament's published version here.