Your Guide to HMRC-Approved Taxonomies
Taxonomies are an important part of financial reporting. By acting as a blueprint for organising and sharing information electronically, they help ensure consistency and accuracy. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) of the UK has specific taxonomies for electronic report submissions. This blog discusses these taxonomies and explains why they are important.
What are Taxonomies?
Taxonomies are the dictionaries of financial reporting. They include terms and elements that help classify and define data. By using these taxonomies, businesses can tag their financial information consistently and make automatic analysis easier. This uniformity helps regulators, investors, and other stakeholders to compare and understand financial reports easily. Taxonomies are regularly updated to reflect changes in the accounting standards.
HMRC and UK Taxonomies
HMRC, the UK’s tax authority, requires businesses to use certain taxonomies when submitting financial statements electronically. These taxonomies are part of the Inline eXtensible Business Reporting Language (iXBRL) framework.
Since 1 April 2011, companies in the UK have been mandated to submit their company tax returns using the iXBRL format. The list of XBRL taxonomy accepted by HMRC is as follows:
Corporation Tax Computational Taxonomies
These taxonomies help businesses tag and report their financial data specifically for corporation tax calculations.
| Taxonomy Version | Accounting Period Start Date | Accounting Period End Date |
| Corporation Tax Computational 2014 | 1 April 2012 | 31 March 2016 |
| Corporation Tax Computational 2015 | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2017 |
| Corporation Tax Computational 2016 | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2018 |
| Corporation Tax Computational 2017 | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2019 |
| Corporation Tax Computational 2018 | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2020 |
| Corporation Tax Computational 2019 | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2021 |
| Corporation Tax Computational 2020 | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2022 |
| Corporation Tax Computational 2021 | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2024 |
| Corporation Tax Computational 2023 | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2025 |
| Corporation Tax Computational 2024 | 1 April 2015 | To be advised |
Financial Reporting Council (FRC) Accounts Taxonomies
The FRC accounts taxonomies assist businesses in preparing and submitting financial statements.
| Taxonomy Version | Accounting Period Start Date | Accounting Period End Date |
| FRC 2014 Taxonomy | 1 April 2008 | 31 March 2021 |
| FRC 2018 Taxonomy | 1 April 2008 | 31 March 2021 |
| FRC 2019 Taxonomy | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2022 |
| FRC 2019 SECR Taxonomy | 1 April 2019 | 31 March 2022 |
| FRC 2021 Taxonomy | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2024 |
| FRC 2021 SECR Taxonomy | 1 April 2019 | 31 March 2024 |
| FRC 2022 Taxonomy | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2025 |
| FRC 2023 Taxonomy | 1 April 2015 | To be advised |
| FRC 2024 Taxonomy | 1 April 2015 | To be advised |
Detailed Profit and Loss Section Taxonomies
These taxonomies focus on the details of profit and loss statements. They provide a clear way to tag items like revenue, expenses, and net profit.
| Taxonomy Version | Accounting Period Start Date | Accounting Period End Date |
| FRC DPL | 1 April 2008 | 31 March 2021 |
| FRC 2018 DPL | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2021 |
| FRC 2019 DPL | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2022 |
| FRC 2021 DPL | 1 April 2015 | 31 March 2024 |
Non-UK Taxonomies Accepted by HMRC
Currently, HMRC only accepts accounts tagged with a non-UK taxonomy if it is US GAAP. However, they may add more taxonomies in the future. If there is no matching taxonomy for the accounting standard used, or if HMRC’s online service does not accept the taxonomy, companies must submit the accounts as a PDF file.
The taxonomy versions accepted for all sectors include the following:
- US GAAP 2015
- US GAAP 2016
- US GAAP 2017
- US GAAP 2018
- US GAAP 2021
- US GAAP 2022
- US GAAP 2023
Bottom Line
iXBRL makes financial reporting easier and more accurate by combining human-readable and machine-readable data into one document. It streamlines the submission process, improves data accuracy, and boosts transparency.
Looking for a trusted partner to navigate this process seamlessly? DataTracks can be your right choice! With expertise in iXBRL tagging, we ensure your financial reports comply with HMRC standards. Our team has 19+ years of experience in preparing over 400,000 error-free reports for more than 28,000 clients. So what are you waiting for? Contact us enquiry@datatracks.co.uk or +44 (20) 3608 8035.
