XBRL Developments

New rules for online filing for businesses operating in the UK.

From 1, April 2011 it is compulsory for businesses who are required to file UK corporate tax returns to file their company tax returns online and to make corporation tax payments electronically. All online filing will have to be done using inline Extensible Business Reporting Language (iXBRL).

To prepare for the new rules company management will need to consider:

• Who, within the company, will be responsible for addressing the change management aspects of responding to the new regulation?
• How many tax returns and company financial statements are affected by the change?
• To what extent is existing tax software iXBRL enabled and what are existing providers of tax software doing to meet the new standard?
• To what extent is existing software used in the production of company financial statements iXBRL enabled?
• Who will conduct the work to tag financial information in the tax return and the financial statements?
• How will any judgments necessary in the tagging of the financial information be identified, considered and resolved?
• What processes and controls over the use of iXBRL should be introduced?
• What level of testing of the iXBRL tagging will be appropriate?
• How might the iXBRL tagging of tax returns and company financial statements be harnessed to deliver benefits in the quality of information provided to management?

The electronic filing and use of iXBRL is now mandatory for any UK corporation tax returns. Unless companies take action to implement iXBRL they will not be in a position to file corporation tax returns when they fall due.