Getting started

Vedas works like a junior on your team. It prepares VAT returns, year-end accounts, MTD quarterly updates and Self Assessment tax computations from your clients' documents.

You upload bank statements, invoices and receipts. Vedas sorts and reads them, suggests a code for each line, matches bank lines to invoices and asks you about anything unclear. Code works out every figure, and each figure traces back to a line in a document. You check the result and mark the job final.

• It doesn't file anything or send anything to HMRC. You file through your own software.
• It doesn't email your clients. The only emails Vedas sends are sign-in links and invitations that someone asked for on screen.
• It doesn't connect to banks, Xero, QuickBooks or Sage. You upload files.
• It isn't MTD software. It prepares the quarterly figures for you to submit through your own MTD software.

UK accounting firms. Each firm has its own account. A Partner sets it up and invites colleagues.

1. On the home page, press "Run your first job", or "Sign in" at the top.
2. Type your work email and press "Continue with email".
3. Open the email from Vedas and press the link. It works once, for an hour.
4. Press "Sign in" on the page that opens.

There's no password. Vedas emails you a link each time you sign in.

With a link we email to you. Type your email on the sign-in page and open the newest email. The link works once, for an hour. You stay signed in on that browser until you sign out, or for 30 days after your last visit.

• Look in your spam folder.
• Wait for the "Resend link" button. It counts down for 30 seconds. Then press it once.
• Check you typed the address correctly. Press "Use a different email" if not.

Vedas shows "Check your inbox" for every address, so it never tells anyone whether an account exists.

1. After you sign in, choose "I work at an accounting firm" if asked, then "Set up a new firm".
2. Type the firm name.
3. Choose how long to keep client documents: 7, 30 or 90 days.
4. Press "Create firm".

You're now the firm's Partner. You can change the retention period later in Settings, Firm.

Before your firm's first job, the Partner accepts the Terms and the Data Processing Agreement on the firm's behalf.

No. After you create the firm, you can upload your own chart as a CSV or Excel (.xlsx) file, or use the standard chart. You can change this later in Settings, Chart of accounts. Tax jobs use no chart.

Your file needs a header row with a code column and a name column, up to 1,000 accounts and under 2 MB.

1. Press "Clients". Fill in the name and type under "Add a client".
2. Under "What work do you do for this client?", tick each one: VAT, Accounts, MTD for Income Tax or Self Assessment.
3. Press "Add client".
4. The settings for each ticked one follow, one after another. For example, where the client lives and their income types. Press "Save", or "Fill in later".

Every job of that kind for the client then uses these settings. You can change them on the client page. Settings you leave for later are asked when you create the first job, or on its Client info step.

1. Add a client: press "Clients", then fill in "Add a client". Tick the work you do for it and fill in its settings.
2. Press "New job". Pick the agent and the client.
3. Enter the period start and end dates. MTD offers the standard quarters and accounts the usual year ends as shortcuts. For tax, pick the tax year.
4. If the client has no settings for this agent yet, the next step asks for them. Press "Save and create job", or "Fill in later and create job".
5. Otherwise press "Create job and add documents".
6. Add every file in the one box. Vedas sorts them.
7. Press "Start job". The job page shows what unlocking the result will take and your firm's credit balance first.

Vedas keeps the client's settings for later jobs. Settings left for later are asked on the job's Client info step, before the upload. If they weren't filled in before the start, the job asks for them as a question.

A job page takes you through seven steps, in order: Client info, Documents, Queries, Unlock, Judgement calls, Review and Output. Press "Next" and "Previous" to move, or press a step's name at the top. When something holds "Next", a line above it says what. After you start the job, answer the last question, unlock, confirm the judgement calls or mark the job final, the page moves you to the next step. The agent time on the job shows above the steps on every step.

A recent Chrome, Edge, Safari or Firefox, on a computer or a phone.