When changing accountant under the Tour Operators' Margin Scheme (TOMS), ask for last year's complete calculation and this year's return workings. Your next VAT return depends on the provisional percentage derived from that earlier calculation.
A software login and a folder of invoices are useful beginnings. You also need the workings that explain how your bookings became return figures. Otherwise, your new accountant inherits numbers without their instructions.
We would request the records below before preparing your next return. A file called "final" is encouraging. It is not an explanation.
Why does your new accountant need last year's TOMS calculation?
Under the full calculation, this year's provisional percentage comes from specified figures in last year's workings (709/5 section 10, steps 1 and 2). A final tax total cannot show all those ingredients. Our guide explains how the TOMS calculation works, including the link between the annual calculation and quarterly figures.
Ask for every step of the calculation used, including supporting schedules. HMRC requires revised provisional percentages at each year end (709/5 para 5.11). If your business uses the simplified calculation, its percentage also comes from the preceding year's figures (709/5 section 12, step 1).
The annual calculation also needs the provisional output VAT, meaning tax on sales, already accounted for during the year. Step 31 totals that amount, and step 32 deducts it from the annual result (709/5 section 9, steps 31 and 32). Your business's accounting financial year defines the period, whoever prepared its quarterly returns (709/5 section 13, TL5 paragraph 1(f)).
Illustrative example, not a real business. A tour operator with a 31 December year end changes accountant in August. Its next return, for the quarter to 30 September, needs the provisional percentage from last year's calculation. Without it, the new accountant has nothing reliable to apply. Its year-end calculation in January covers January to December, including the quarters the previous accountant filed (709/5 section 10, steps 1 and 2; section 13, TL5 paragraph 1(f)).
What should you ask your previous accountant to hand over?
Ask for the calculation files, their supporting records and the correspondence explaining agreed methods. The following table gives you a practical request list.
| What to ask for | Why it matters | Where the rule is |
|---|---|---|
| Last year's complete annual calculation, with every step and supporting schedule. | Its figures produce this year's provisional percentage. A new percentage is required each year, so the final tax total alone is insufficient. | 709/5 section 10, steps 1 and 2; para 5.11 |
| The provisional output VAT workings for every return so far this financial year. | The annual calculation totals and deducts tax already accounted for. Earlier quarters remain part of your business's accounting financial year. | 709/5 section 9, steps 31 and 32; section 13, TL5 paragraph 1(f) |
| The tax point method in use and any HMRC letters about it. | This determines when supplies become taxable. Changing methods requires written permission, is exceptional and is not normally allowed mid-year. | 709/5 para 4.13 |
| The foreign currency method, exchange rates used, supporting evidence and any change notification. | There are five permitted methods. Changes are restricted to the start of a financial year, with written notification to HMRC by the first return's due date. | 709/5 para 6.6; section 13, TL2 paragraphs 3 and 5 |
| Any permission for separate United Kingdom (UK) and non-UK calculations. | Switching between separate and single calculations requires HMRC permission. The notice requires an advance written request and a change at the financial year's start. | 709/5 para 5.10; section 13, TL1 |
| Market values for in-house supplies, their calculations and supporting assumptions, or the reason for using costs. | You must explain how market values were established. For the cost-based method, retain why market values cannot be established or why costs accurately reflect the package structure. | 709/5 paras 5.6, 6.2 and 6.12 |
| Direct cost records split by type and VAT treatment. | The calculation needs separate records for UK and non-UK Margin Scheme supplies, in-house supplies and relevant agency amounts. One combined purchases total loses those distinctions. | 709/5 para 5.6; section 9, steps 2 and 3 |
| The sales analysis identifying principal and disclosed-agent arrangements, with contracts and booking terms. | Your contractual role determines the treatment. Disclosed agency requires evidence of agreement, disclosure of the principal and no significant commercial risk in the services arranged. | 709/6 paras 1.4 and 2.1 |
In-house supplies include services made using your own resources, or purchases you materially alter (709/5 para 2.12). Ask for a plain description beside each category, so your new accountant can understand what the figures represent.
For market values, keep the comparisons, weighting and treatment of discounted packages. Market values must reflect your business, and any averages must be properly weighted and reviewed regularly (709/5 paras 5.6 and 6.2).
Request editable workings where available, alongside a readable copy of the completed calculation. Ask which version supported the returns.
Are accounting software totals enough for a TOMS handover?
Summarised reports are not enough on their own. The annual calculation starts with selling prices for supplies whose tax points fall within the financial year. The bought-in costs must relate to those same supplies (709/5 paras 6.1 and 6.3).
Ask for a booking-level export showing references, selling prices and the dates used for tax points. Then request the supplier records supporting the related costs. We would also ask for a short explanation of how those exports feed into the calculation.
Keep that explanation alongside the software reports. You should be able to select a booking, find its supporting costs and follow it into the annual workings.
What if last year's TOMS workings cannot be found?
Ask the previous accountant for the workbook, supporting schedules and any archived copy.
If the workings cannot be found, we would rebuild last year's calculation before preparing the next return. Start with booking and supplier records, matching the relevant selling prices to their costs. That gives the new accountant a basis for deriving the percentage.
Our explanation of the provisional percentage and the annual adjustment gives more detail on the figures your handover needs to support.
What should you do this quarter?
We suggest these checks before your next return is prepared:
- Send the records table to your previous accountant and request a delivery date.
- Confirm that the annual calculation file opens and includes its supporting schedules.
- Collect the workings behind every return already filed this financial year.
- Put method notes, permission letters and currency evidence in one folder.
- Check that booking references connect sales records to supplier records.
- Agree a timetable for rebuilding any missing annual workings.
If you want us to review the handover, our accountants for travel agencies and tour operators can help organise the records and identify gaps.
Frequently asked questions
Does a new accountant start a new TOMS year?
No. The Tour Operators' Margin Scheme (TOMS) uses your business's financial year for accounting purposes. Changing accountant does not restart that year. Your new accountant needs the earlier quarterly workings for the annual calculation. It brings together the whole year's figures, including provisional VAT already accounted for.
Can I change my tax point method when I change accountant?
Changing accountant does not give you permission to change your tax point method. You need written permission from HMRC. Changes are allowed only in exceptional circumstances and are not normally allowed during a financial year. Give your new accountant the existing method and any permission letters.
What if my previous accountant can't find last year's TOMS workings?
We would rebuild last year's TOMS calculation from your booking and supplier records before preparing the next return, so the provisional percentage has a proper basis. That means selling prices by tax point and the purchase costs relating to those same sales.
Are my accounting software reports enough for TOMS?
Summary reports alone are not enough for the Tour Operators' Margin Scheme (TOMS). The calculation needs selling prices for supplies with tax points in the financial year. It also needs the purchase costs relating to those supplies. Your reports can help if they preserve that detail and connect it to the booking and supplier records.
Sources
Every rule in this article was checked against these pages on 22 October 2026.
