No more hand-checking trial balances
Import from Sage, Xero or QuickBooks, or work directly from BrightBooks data, ready to go.
Hours of iXBRL tagging, gone
Tagged in one click, with no manual tagging or third-party service.
Accounts signed and filed without the chase
Directors sign online, passcode-verified, and filing triggers on the final signature.
MTD VAT without a second system
Returns filed inside BrightAccounts
Every adjustment traceable
Each sits in a lead schedule with draft and final columns, and named sign-off.
Trial Balance to iXBRL in one workflow
Import the trial balance from Xero, Sage or QuickBooks, or work directly from BrightBooks data, tag automatically, and produce compliant accounts without leaving the system. No manual iXBRL tagging, no third-party tagging service.
E-signing that clients actually use
A branded client portal, a digital signature verified by a one-time mobile passcode, and an automatic filing trigger once signatures are complete. No printing, no chasing by email.
MTD VAT built in
Submit VAT returns via Making Tax Digital without leaving the system, with no bridging software. A BrightBooks bookkeeping licence gives you the sales and purchase ledgers inside BrightAccounts
Automated checks and AI-assisted capabilities built into the accounts production workflow, so your team spends less time on repetitive verification and more on client relationships.
Business Performance Report (beta, Early Adopter Programme)
The Business Performance Report analyses up to six years of your client’s nominal ledger data and produces a report of up to ten financial metrics, with charts, trend analysis and AI-written commentary, in under a minute. It turns statutory accounts into a ready-made advisory conversation, and it’s read-only, so nothing in the client’s accounts is changed.
Accounts production sits at the centre of the year-end workflow. These companion products complete the picture, before the accounts are prepared and after they are filed.
BrightWorkpapers (companion product, sold separately): if your firm provides audit or assurance alongside accounts preparation, pull the trial balance straight into BrightWorkpapers. Your team works the engagement file, materiality, workpapers, review points and journal adjustments, then pushes the adjusted figures back into BrightAccounts
BrightAccounts
BrightWorkpapers
BrightAccounts
BrightTax (companion product, sold separately): once accounts are signed and the iXBRL package is complete, send the accounts to BrightTax. It creates the corporation tax return and populates it from the accounts, ready for the tax computation and iXBRL filing to HMRC, and the final tax figures come back to BrightAccounts
BrightAccounts
BrightTax
HMRC
Everything you need to know about BrightAccounts
Built for the entities and standards UK and Irish practices work with most.
FRS 105, micro-entity accounts: simplified disclosure for companies that qualify under the micro-entity regime; a reduced balance sheet with no notes beyond the minimum. Company and LLP.
FRS 102 Section 1A, small company accounts: the reduced disclosure regime for small companies, with profit and loss and full notes, plus an abridged accounts option for eligible entities. Company and LLP.
FRS 102, full and group accounts: complete FRS 102 disclosure for larger entities, including consolidated group financial statements, with full iXBRL for HMRC CT submission.
FRS 101, reduced disclosure framework (early access): now available to early adopters, for qualifying subsidiaries and parent companies.
Charity accounts with SOFA: a Statement of Financial Activities, balance sheet and full disclosure notes, with separate templates for UK/Northern Ireland and Ireland.
Sole traders, partnerships and farmers: accounts for unincorporated businesses, including sole traders, partnerships, farmer businesses and farmer partnerships, for both UK and Irish practices.
Credit unions, clubs and schools: specialist templates covering credit unions, clubs, schools (Ireland) and company-limited-by-guarantee entities, each with the appropriate disclosure framework.
One-click iXBRL, mandatory, automated and accurate: iXBRL tagging is mandatory for all CT600 submissions to HMRC. BrightAccounts
Six clear stages. Nothing lost in the middle.
1. Not Started: period opened, trial balance not yet imported.
2. In Progress: trial balance imported, accounts being prepared.
3. Final Adjustment: lead schedules reviewed, adjustments being made.
4. Ready for Signing: draft watermark removed, sent to directors for e-signing.
5. Accounts Filed: submitted to Companies House and HMRC.
6. Closedown: period locked and archived.
Lead Schedules
Lead schedules sit between the trial balance and the financial statements, giving your team a structured working paper for every balance sheet and profit-and-loss line.
Prepared by and reviewed by: track staff assignments and sign-off on each lead schedule separately.
Draft and final columns: see unadjusted trial-balance figures alongside final adjusted amounts, with debit and credit adjustment columns in between.
Comparative year data: prior-year figures shown alongside current year for every line item.
Suppressed item visibility: see lines that have been excluded from the financial statements, and the reason why.
All entity types except School templates: lead schedules are available across the range.
Fixed Asset Register
A full fixed asset register built into the accounts production workflow, with no separate spreadsheet required.
Straight-line and reducing balance depreciation: configure the method per asset type, with a depreciation rate from 0.00 to 100.00%, on a full-year or pro-rata basis.
Asset events: record purchases, disposals and revaluations, including disposal amounts and residual values.
User-defined asset types: add your own asset categories alongside the predefined types.
Automatic depreciation journals: monthly depreciation posts directly as journals to the nominal ledger, with no manual entries.
Batch posting: post depreciation journals for all assets in a single action at period end.
Import from wherever the numbers live.
Six years of comparison: the current year alongside five previous years (six financial years in total) in the same view, switching between years instantly from the period selector.
Manual adjustment capability: add journals and adjustments directly in BrightAccounts
Multi-currency trial balances: import and handle trial balances containing foreign-currency transactions. Consolidations need datasets in the same currency.
User-defined nominal codes: add your own nominal codes alongside the standard chart of accounts, and drill into any code to see individual transactions in the general ledger.
Budget management per nominal code: allocate budgets and compare actuals against budget within the same view.
Import from Relate AP and Sage AP: if migrating from another accounts production system, import full backup data directly into BrightAccounts
Accounts signed without printing a single page.
Mobile-verified signing: each signatory receives an email with the documentation pack attached, and a one-time passcode is sent to their mobile for identity verification before signing.
Multiple signatories: configure signing order and manage multiple directors and company secretaries, tracking who has signed, who is pending, and who has not yet been sent the pack.
Status tracking: see the signing status of every document in the pack (signed, pending or unsent) without leaving BrightAccounts
Resend reminders: send reminder requests to signatories who have not yet acted, or reset the signing process if a signatory needs to restart.
Signed documents stored securely: completed packs are available to download from the secure server.
Documentation Pack, letters included
Included letters: Engagement Letter, Representation Letter, Letter to Solicitors re Balance Sheet, Letter to Solicitors re Documents of Title, and Bank Confirmation Letter.
MTD VAT returns filed digitally. MTD IT quarterly returns built in.
MTD for VAT, digital submission to HMRC: generate and submit VAT returns digitally to HMRC via the Making Tax Digital API. Authenticate your HMRC credentials in BrightAccounts
MTD for ITSA, quarterly returns for self-employed clients: simplified three-line accounting and full reporting for self-employed MTD ITSA quarterly submissions, plus UK property and foreign property quarterly return support. BrightAccounts
Every disclosure captured in one structured place.
Client details and registered information: company number, registered address, directors and company secretaries, all stored and referenced automatically in the accounts templates.
Accounting standard configuration: select the applicable FRS standard per client, and the disclosure requirements and note structures adjust automatically.
Director and signatory management: record multiple directors with appointment and removal dates, and configure signing order for the documentation pack.
Share classes and structure: record multiple share classes and their characteristics for use in the accounts notes.
Specialist disclosures: related party transactions, operating leases with financial-commitment validation, principal activity description, controlling party and parent company notes, and share-based payments.
Signature date entry: required for iXBRL validation; the compliance database captures this alongside the other statutory information so the iXBRL output meets HMRC requirements.
BrightAccounts
BrightBooks
One shared dataset for bookkeeping and accounts production, with adjustments flowing both ways.
BrightAccounts
New and updated client details sync automatically into BrightAccounts
BrightTax
Accounts figures populate the corporation tax return, and final tax figures come back to BrightAccounts
BrightBooks
BrightAccounts
BrightTax
CT600 + iXBRL filed to HMRC
Who should use BrightAccounts
Is BrightAccounts
Does BrightAccounts
Can my team collaborate on the same accounts?
Which bookkeeping software does BrightAccounts
Which accounting standards and entity types are supported?
How much does BrightAccounts
BrightAccounts
Book a 30-minute demo and we’ll walk the full workflow, from trial balance import to iXBRL filing, for the entity types your practice handles. Or request a free trial and our team will get you set up.
