How Do I Change My VAT Quarters?

To change your VAT quarters, sign in to your VAT online account (your Government Gateway / business tax account) and update your return dates. Since 5 August 2024 this is the standard way to do it, so you no longer send the old paper VAT484 form. You can make the change yourself, or your accountant can do it for you as your tax agent. HMRC reviews the request and confirms the new dates, usually within a few weeks.

There are really two routes, and both use the same online system:

1. Do it yourself online. Sign in to your VAT online account, go to the section that manages your VAT registration details, and update your return dates.
2. Ask your accountant or agent to do it. If they’re set up as your authorised tax agent, they can request the change on your behalf, which saves you the admin.

HMRC’s move to digital means changing your VAT stagger is quicker and more secure than the old print-and-post method.

1. Sign in to your VAT online account at gov.uk using your Government Gateway user ID and password.
2. Find the option to change your VAT registration details.
3. Select your return dates and enter the new quarter-end months you want (your VAT stagger).
4. Review the details, then submit the request to HMRC.
5. Wait for HMRC to review the business case and confirm the change.

One thing to know: you can update your return dates online unless you have a non-standard tax period. If your periods are non-standard, or you’re an overseas business, HMRC may ask you to contact them directly instead.

The VAT484 used to be the form for telling HMRC about changes to your VAT details, including your return dates. From 5 August 2024, HMRC asks you to make these changes through your online account rather than the VAT484. The print-and-post version is no longer generally available, and paper requests that don’t meet HMRC’s limited criteria are rejected and redirected online. In short: for most UK businesses, changing your VAT quarters is now an online job.

Changing your quarters usually creates one transitional return that covers a different length of time, so you may need to submit a return for two months or four months to bridge the gap to your new stagger. That means tweaking the periods in your accounting software and manually entering the combined box figures into your VAT return. It’s fiddly, and it’s exactly the kind of thing worth handing to your accountant so nothing slips.

If you’re weighing up how often to file rather than just when, our sister guide on choosing between quarterly and monthly VAT periods walks through which frequency suits your cash flow.

If you’d rather not wrestle with staggers and transitional returns, our outsourced finance and advisory team can handle the change and the paperwork for you. Call us on 01454 300 999 or email [email protected].