Stuart 
I asked HMRC what open source software there was for "Making Tax Digital". Their answer: use their software-finding tool. I'd asked them the question because their tool doesn't make that information available.
Does such a thing exist?
It seems the whole push behind "MTD" is towards real-time awareness of everything. And the plan is for that to be done by us all renting* software from random companies. Companies who'll probably sell/use your financial information (or leak it or be hacked).
*Sure they claim there are "free" options although many of those listed in their tool can't actually do all the things HMRC already require and HMRC are careful to tell you it is your fault for which software you pick (you have to pick).
No doubt there are plenty of people who'll insist that HMRC shouldn't be making software. But if they legally mandate you have to use software I think they should make something open source themselves. That does the minimum they require.
Parsingphase
Robin Stephenson
Hubert Figuière@slowe Like in Canada, or the USA.
Gero Stein@slowe I can’t help with your specific issue, but why shouldn’t the state provide the necessary software if it mandates its use? Obligations imposed on citizens must be fulfillable directly, without reliance on private intermediaries, the citizen is the sovereign. In Germany, this principle is reflected in systems like ELSTER, which offer free official tools, alongside APIs for optional third-party solutions.
@tdr I don't really understand why you are asking me the same thing as I'm asking. Sorry.
@slowe I wasn’t questioning you, I was actually agreeing with your point.
I meant it more as a general argument in support of what you said: if the state mandates software use, it should also provide a basic, preferably open-source option itself, so citizens can comply without relying on private providers; even if some always argue that the free market should handle it.
@tdr OK. Thanks. That definitely wasn't clear. It may have helped to say something that explicitly sounds like agreement first before sending back the question and restating my views. Unfortunately, especially as a stranger, that comes across as either misunderstanding or patronising or something else. It's quite confusing.
@slowe Got it.
Might also be a bit of a language thing on my side, English isn’t my native language, and on Mastodon short replies can come across differently than intended.
In any case, have a great day!
Paul@slowe I have not been able to find one after a lot of searching, and I think it would be difficult anyway because you would need a set of API keys for every user, which you can only get by going through the HMRC testing and sign off process, and accepting liability for penalties if anything goes wrong
éric 🚲 🇪🇺 
@slowe
Failing this, is there an approved package that runs on Linux? Or will I end up not just having to pay for some software but also a computer that runs Windows?
Maybe time to close down my small business. 🤬
@ericsfraga Frustratingly their tool https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/find-making-tax-digital-income-tax-software/ doesn't let you filter by OS (or desktop vs web). I've sent feedback to suggest they add that.
Simon Hobeck@slowe @ericsfraga I also left feedback for this. Use the link at the top of the page where it says the service is in beta.
I have been product manager for many gov services and always read this feedback (there may be bigger issues being reported but we can all raise it).
I have been product manager for many gov services and always read this feedback (there may be bigger issues being reported but we can all raise it).
Tom@ericsfraga @slowe TaxCalc has a Linux version. I used it when I had my own practice. I then moved to Iris Taxfiler, which was cloud based.
Mx "Vote Green" Fraud@slowe do you know of https://github.com/ac000/itsa ?
@mxfraud I didn't.
https://github.com/ac000/libmtdac/discussions/18 reinforces, to me, that HMRC really designed this whole thing (through their choices) for commercial software.
GovUK should be providing their own basic, open source, free, implementation.
@slowe I know for a fact that they did.
The people that made the rules do not understand software, let alone open source.
I also dont believe they would care if they understood.
Oliver Blanthorn
Doug Belshaw@slowe According to my Little Robot Friend, this is the current list.
None are Open Source, primarily because of how HMRC's API system deals with credential management. To interact with the Making Tax Digital production API, a software application must obtain production credentialsvia the HMRC Developer Hub.
These credentials are, by HMRC's policy, meant to be kept secret and are not intended to be shared publicly - which is a bit of a problem for an OSS project.
Right now, AFAIK, each person using OSS would have to obtain their own credentials...
Derick Rethans
TheZorseSimilar problem in Canada, as someone else mentioned.
The government provides a list of software that is approved based on whether it has the right functionality, but makes sure to note that it is up to the user to check the privacy policies. No mention of the fact that having a policy and honouring it are two different things.
Only one program works with Linux. None is open source. Many, I worry, only exist to gather data.
It's a mess, and for the relatively simplistic nature of tax software, the government could easily provide its own, fillable forms on the same website used for all other tax stuff.
Jess Robinson@slowe there is one, though you would need to get your install separately verified by hmrc
DigitalStefan@slowe likely closing down my tiny Ltd due to this. The software I’ve been using since forever is not MTD and their support are ignoring questions about it.
All of which means of course that instead of paying 21% basic corp tax rate, if I do any future freelance I’m going to pay 40% and still have to complete a tax return.
So I’m probably going to scale back the freelance to £1k / year total simply to avoid the hassle.
Saxicola ✅ 🏴🇪🇺@slowe
Developer sign up at https://developer.service.hmrc.gov.uk/api-documentation
I made a start on a Python plugin for GnuCash but life happened and I abandoned it.
Developer sign up at https://developer.service.hmrc.gov.uk/api-documentation
I made a start on a Python plugin for GnuCash but life happened and I abandoned it.
Stevie West@slowe UK Govt does provide free tax/payroll software for small businesses operating PAYE with under 10 employees. It’s called Basic PAYE Tools, available for Linux, MacOS and Windows. I’ve used it for many years and it does the job nicely. Baffles me that they couldn’t roll out something similar for the self-employed.