Why you can trust TechRadar
We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.
TaxScouts is a UK-focused tax filing platform made up of 100 UK accredited accountant partners (and more than 40 internal employees).
Rather than sorting out your bookkeeping – you’ll need to do this yourself – TaxScouts is all about simplifying the submission process. People who know exactly what they’re doing will file your self assessment or other similar returns in just days for a fixed fee, so there’s no monthly charges when you’re not using the services.
Although TaxScouts’ operations are pretty limited, keeping it simple has allowed the company to process more than 100,000 tax returns already.
TaxScout, which was acquired by Berlin’s Taxfix in 2024, operates in the UK, Spain and Estonia.
The German branch was founded in 2016 and 2017, before it expanded to Spain and Italy in 2020. Taxfix has recovered €3.5 billion euros in tax refunds for its customers, and the UK TaxScouts arm has already raised £9.2 million in funding.
TaxScouts: Pricing
Tax returns can be a hugely stressful time of year for self-employed workers and contractors – knowing how to fill in the endless segments accurately without unwillingly making a mistake that could cost thousands is a genuine fear.
TaxScouts is a platform designed to address just that, so you’ll only pay for the submission and not for anything else throughout the year.
A tax return will cost you £169, and that’s it. No VAT on top, no monthly charges and no hidden fees.
You can also choose to get 1:1 tax advice by phone or video for £139 (for a 30-minute session), or combine the two for £249, which makes it an all-in-one solution for that important time of year.
All you’ll need to do is keep legitimate, accurate records of your incomings and expenses over the 12-month period, and preferable using MTD-compliant software so you’re not caught out in the future.
Larger business may also want to consider a separate service, if they fit into the limited company, limited liability partnership (LLP), dormant company, non-trading company, non-VAT registered company or VAT-registered company boxes.
For £89+VAT, they’ll get matched to an accountant who can prepare year-end accounts, file corporate tax returns and help with expense claiming and tax reliefs, or for £39+VAT per month you’ll get the same plus ongoing support throughout the year.
TaxScouts: Features
For the most parts, TaxScouts is great for first-time filers, tax relief/refund claims, self-employed workers, freelancers, contractors, investors (property, forex, crypto etc), construction workers (CIS), high earners (£150K+), landlords (includign Airbnb hosts), expats, couriers, riders and drivers.
The service centers around the provision of a UK-based accredited accountant who can help highlight eligible expenses and tax reliefs. They’ll calculate how much tax you owe, run it by you to prepare you, and then file that return to HMRC.
Because the service is as simple as that, there’s no bookkeeping software, so you’ll need to keep your finances in order somewhere else.
On that note, document everything because TaxScouts’ accountants might be able to help you make some savings by highlighting allowable expenses, quickly paying for the service by making savings on your tax bill.
TaxScouts: Performance
The leading figure is that TaxScouts’ accountants can turn around your self assessment within 48 hours, though times may vary and more complex scenarios may arise where they need to spend some more time discussing matters with you or analyzing figures in more depth.
So far, customers have been pretty vocal online about how supportive the accountants have been, with many claiming ignorance to the great world of tax by having limited to no knowledge – TaxScouts has been able to get them through the process pretty painlessly, it seems.
TaxScouts: Ease of Use
We signed up for TaxScouts and appreciated the simple onboarding process, which is just a few quick questions to provide enough context to initiative the work. There’s no steep learning curve involved – that’s that the accredited accountants are for.
The online portal has a simple and clean interface where users can upload documents and approve draft returns all within the platform, so no time-consuming emails or phone calls are required.
You can also install the mobile app and keep an eye on progress there. It’s a great addition because most of us conduct a lot of business from our phones, and having updates wherever you are makes sure you don’t miss a deadline, but the process is so simple you’ll rarely need to use the app unless you’re responding to an update like approving a change.
TaxScouts: Support
In terms of technical support and product questions, you’ll likely be relayed through the Intercom customer service chat. We tried to get in touch and we got a message to say customers typically hear back within 15 minutes.
After a short period, we were prompted to give our email address due to the longer-than-anticipated delay, but AI could have easily tried to answer our question for a quicker response time.
TaxScouts also accepts email correspondence, but there’s no phone support, so you’ll be limited to waiting for a response between 9am and 6pm on weekdays.
There is, of course, human support if you need it with regards to financial questions, but this comes in the form of paid advice. You’ll need to pre-book a 30-minute slot for this, so get your questions lined up to make the most of your limited time.
TaxScouts: Final Verdict
TaxScouts offers a well-priced, fixed-fee service for UK self assessment returns, which is a welcome breathe of fresh air in a world dominated by subscriptions and regular fees. It pairs individuals or companies with qualified, accredited accountants to get returns done in just a few days.
However, it lacks any bookkeeping software and doesn’t have direct integration to existing platforms, which means you’ll ultimately end up running two different solutions side-by-side.
Although TaxScouts by itself looks extremely attractive with its clean interface, simplicity and affordable costs, users might end up opting for return submission from a platform they already use, such as Crunch.
Nevertheless, if you’re just getting started as a freelancer, contractor or self-employed worker and could do with some guidance – especially if you’re still keeping manual or basic records of your finances in a spreadsheet – then TaxScouts’ accountants will give you a worthwhile boost.
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/cJHxnbz23x3WF7z5N6oqxD.png
Source link
