Meter Max

Videos

Watch how to use Meter Max

40 short videos show every part of the app on a phone, one tap at a time. Never used an accounts app before? Start with video 1 and work down.

No sound needed Every step is written on the screen, and a red ring shows exactly where to tap. Tap a video to play it, and tap it again to pause while you try the step yourself. You can also read what each video says, underneath it.

Part 1: Getting started

1

What Meter Max does for you

The app in 90 seconds: what you add, what it works out, and where everything is.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Meter Max keeps the accounts for your driving on your phone, and works out the tax for you.
  2. After a shift, you add what you earned, what you spent, and the miles you drove.
  3. Meter Max then shows how much of your money to keep back for your tax bill.
  4. The buttons along the bottom take you to everything else.
  5. Income has your takings from each app, your cash jobs and your invoices.
  6. Expenses has what the driving costs you, with photos of your receipts.
  7. Miles has the miles you drive for work, and your vehicle.
  8. Tax has your profit, your tax for the year, VAT and Making Tax Digital.
  9. The gear at the top opens Settings: your details, backups and security.
  10. And Help, at the top of every screen, has step-by-step guides with pictures.
  11. These videos show you every part of Meter Max, one step at a time.
2

Using your phone with Meter Max

Tapping, sliding, typing amounts, choosing from lists and dates, closing a form, and going back.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. To press a button, touch it lightly with one finger and let go straight away. That is a tap.
  2. A form slides up. Tap a white box to type in it. A keyboard appears at the bottom of your phone.
  3. Type money with a dot before the pence, like 120.50. You don’t need the £ sign.
  4. A box with a small arrow opens a list. Tap it, then tap your choice.
  5. Tap a date to change it. A calendar appears: tap the day, then tap OK.
  6. To close a form without saving it, use your phone’s Back button, or tap the dark part above the form.
  7. The first time you open a screen, a tip at the top explains it. Tap Income at the bottom to see one.
  8. Read the tip, then tap Got it to put it away.
  9. The buttons along the bottom take you to each part of the app. The one you are on is green.
  10. A screen is often longer than your phone. Put your finger on the screen and slide it up to see more.
  11. To go back to where you were, tap the arrow at the top left, or use your phone’s Back button.
  12. You can’t break anything by trying. And Help, at the top, is always there.
3

Setting up Meter Max for the first time

The welcome pages and the setup questions, answered one by one. You only do this once.

About 4 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. The first time you open Meter Max, three welcome pages tell you what it does. Tap Next.
  2. Tap Next again.
  3. Your “books” are simply your records of money in and out. Tap Set up my books.
  4. Now a few questions about you and your driving. Tap the Name box and type your full name.
  5. If you trade under a business name, type it here. If not, leave it empty.
  6. Leave this as it is, unless you live in Scotland, which has its own income tax rates.
  7. Tap the kind of driving you do.
  8. Leave this on Cash basis: money counts when it is paid. Only change it if an accountant tells you to.
  9. The books start on 6 April, the start of the tax year. Leave the date as it is.
  10. Most drivers are not registered for VAT. Only tick this if HMRC has given you a VAT number.
  11. Now your vehicle. Type a name for it, such as the make and model.
  12. Then its number plate.
  13. Only tick this if HMRC has told you to send it updates every three months. If you’re not sure, leave it empty.
  14. If you know your National Insurance number, type it here. You can add it later.
  15. Last, tap Start my books. By doing so you agree to the terms, which you can read first.
  16. A short tour shows you round the Home screen. Read each box, then tap Next.
  17. Then Meter Max offers you a free trial. The next video shows how to start it.
  18. Your books are set up. Everything you entered can be changed later in Settings.
4

Your free trial and subscription

Starting the 14-day free trial through Google Play, what it costs after, and how to cancel.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. Meter Max is free for 14 days. After that it is £17.99 a year, including VAT.
  2. On Home, tap Start free trial.
  3. This shows the one plan: free for 14 days, then £17.99 a year. There are no other charges.
  4. Tap Start your 14-day free trial. Google Play opens and shows the price.
  5. In Google Play, check your payment card and tap Subscribe. You pay nothing today.
  6. Google Play reminds you before the trial ends. Cancel before then and you pay nothing at all.
  7. If you stop paying, your records stay on your phone, to look at, back up and send to an accountant.
  8. Video 40 shows where to manage or cancel the subscription later, in Settings.
5

Your Home screen explained

The quick buttons, what to keep back for tax, messages that need you, and your year so far.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Home is the first screen you see. At the top are the quick buttons for adding things.
  2. A yellow box means something needs you. This one asks how the car should be claimed. Video 21 explains.
  3. Keep back is how much to save for your tax bill on your profit so far this tax year.
  4. If you can, move this amount into a savings account, so the money is there when HMRC asks for it.
  5. Below it: your profit so far, the income tax and National Insurance on it, and when it is due.
  6. HMRC may also ask for payments in advance towards next year. This says how much and when.
  7. Further down: everything since 6 April. Your takings, what the apps kept, your expenses and your miles.
  8. Then your vehicle, and the last things you added. Tap one to open it.
  9. At the bottom, Need a hand? opens the step-by-step guides.
6

Getting help inside the app

The Help button, the step-by-step guides, searching them, Words explained, tips and the tour.

About 3 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Help is at the top of every screen. Tap it.
  2. Guides for the screen you were on come first. Below are guides for everything in the app.
  3. Looking for something? Type a word in the search box.
  4. Tap a guide to open it.
  5. Each step has a picture of the screen. The red ring shows where to tap.
  6. Tap a picture to make it bigger.
  7. Tap the arrow at the top left to go back to the list.
  8. Words explained has the tax words used in the app, in plain English.
  9. Tap Close to go back to the app.
  10. Settings has more help. Tap the gear at the top.
  11. Under Help and feedback you can see the tour of Home again, and bring back the tips.
  12. Video 40 shows the rest of Help and feedback: rating the app, sharing it, and asking us for help.

Part 2: Money coming in

7

Adding a day’s takings from Uber or Bolt

Copy a few numbers from the app’s earnings page: the fares, tips, bonuses and the fee the app kept.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. After a shift, open the earnings page in your driver app. You need the fares, tips, any bonuses, and the fee the app kept.
  2. In Meter Max, tap Takings on the Home screen.
  3. For one day’s takings, leave A day selected.
  4. Tap From, and choose the app the work came through.
  5. The date is today. If the takings are for another day, tap the date to change it.
  6. Type the total fares BEFORE the app took its cut. In the app this may be called Fares or Gross fares.
  7. This matters: HMRC counts the full fares as your income, and the app’s cut as a cost.
  8. Type any tips, and any bonuses or promotions. Leave a box empty if you had none.
  9. Type what the app kept as its fee or commission. No minus sign.
  10. If any passengers paid you in cash, type the cash here. If not, leave it empty.
  11. The grey box adds it up. “Into the bank” should match what the app paid you for the day.
  12. Tap Record takings.
  13. Saved. The takings are now in your list, and Home has updated what to keep back for tax.
8

Adding a whole week in one go

Use the app’s weekly statement to add a week’s takings at once.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. Many drivers find it easier to add a whole week at once, from the app’s weekly statement.
  2. Tap A week.
  3. The date box now says Week ending. Choose the last day of the week, here Sunday.
  4. Choose the app, then type the week’s totals from the statement.
  5. Check the totals against what the app paid into your bank for the week.
  6. The entry says “Week to” and the date. Add each app’s week as its own entry.
  7. Meter Max remembers you add weeks, and from which app, until you close it.
9

Cash fares, the rank and card payments

Money passengers paid you directly: cash jobs, rank and street hails, and card payments on the meter.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. For money passengers paid you directly, not through an app, tap Takings.
  2. Tap From, and choose Cash jobs.
  3. Type the total fares. Meter Max fills in Paid in cash with the same amount, because it was all cash.
  4. There is no app fee, so Into the bank is nothing. That is right for cash.
  5. Taxi drivers: choose Rank and street hails for cash fares, and Card payments for fares paid on the card machine.
  6. Card payments go into your bank, so Paid in cash stays empty. Add the card machine’s fees as an expense.
10

Other apps and companies

Takings from an app or operator not in the list, and the delivery apps for couriers and van drivers.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. The list in From shows the apps for your kind of driving. If yours isn’t there, choose Another app or company.
  2. A box appears for its name. Type it.
  3. Couriers and van drivers see Amazon Flex, Deliveroo, DPD and the rest. That comes from what you drive for, in Settings.
  4. Now the takings list offers the delivery apps first.
  5. Some delivery apps don’t take a fee from your pay, so there is no fee box for them.
11

The extras on the takings form

Tolls a passenger paid you back, trips, notes, and a workplace pension the app takes from your pay.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. Tolls recharged is for a toll a passenger paid you back. If you paid the toll, add it as an expense.
  2. If Uber takes money for a workplace pension, two more boxes appear. Copy them from the earnings page.
  3. Trips and Note are optional. A note helps you find an entry later.
  4. The totals show what went to your pension, and what reached your bank.
  5. Video 30 shows how pensions lower your tax.
12

Fixing a mistake in your takings

Changing an entry, and voiding one added twice.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. Made a mistake? Tap Income at the bottom, then find the entry in Every entry.
  2. These two cash jobs are the same. One was added twice. Tap the first one.
  3. Its details open. To change a number, tap Edit.
  4. It was all paid in cash, so change Paid in cash to match. Otherwise the app thinks the rest went into the bank.
  5. Now remove the copy. Tap it, then tap Void.
  6. Say why, in a few words, and tap Void.
  7. It stays in the list, marked Void, so your records show what happened. It no longer counts.
13

Invoices for account work

Making an invoice for a hotel, school or company, sending it, and marking it paid.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. If you do regular work for a business and bill them, Meter Max makes the invoice. Tap Income.
  2. Tap New invoice.
  3. Type who it is for, their address, and what the work was.
  4. The invoice is dated today, and due in 30 days. Type the amount.
  5. Leave Payment as Not paid yet, and tap Save. Meter Max gives it a number.
  6. Tap the invoice to open it.
  7. Share invoice makes it into a document. Your phone asks how to send it, such as email or WhatsApp.
  8. Add your address and bank details in Settings, under Your details, so they are printed on the invoice.
  9. When you are paid, open the invoice and tap Mark paid.
  10. Check the date the money arrived, then tap Mark paid.
  11. On the cash basis, an invoice counts as income when it is paid.
14

Other business income

Money your driving business received that isn’t fares, such as an insurance payout.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. Some money isn’t fares: for example, an insurance payout for time off the road after an accident.
  2. Tap Other income.
  3. Type who paid you, what it was for, and the amount.
  4. It is already marked as paid today. Tap Save.
  5. If you are not sure whether something is business income, ask an accountant.

Part 3: Money going out

15

Adding an expense with a receipt photo

Recording a cost of your driving, and keeping a photo of the receipt with it.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. An expense is money you spend to do your driving work. Each one lowers your tax. Tap Expense on Home.
  2. Tap Category and choose what you paid for.
  3. Type where you bought it, so you can find it later.
  4. Check the date, and type the total you paid, as on the receipt.
  5. Read the coloured box. Here: fuel is covered by the mileage rate for now, so it is kept but not claimed twice.
  6. Tap Add receipt photo. Your camera opens: take the picture, then tap the tick.
  7. A copy of the photo is kept with the expense. HMRC can ask to see receipts.
  8. Tap Save expense.
  9. It is in your list, marked Receipt.
16

Which costs you can claim

The expense categories, private use, fines, things bought to keep, and licence fees.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. The categories are grouped: vehicle costs first, then working costs, office costs and others.
  2. For something you also use privately, like your phone, a box asks how much is personal. Type a percentage.
  3. Only the business part counts. Here, 80% of the phone bill.
  4. Licences, your badge, plating, DBS checks and medicals can always be claimed.
  5. Things bought to keep, such as a laptop, are claimed at the end of the tax year.
  6. Parking fines and speeding tickets are never allowed. Meter Max keeps them, but they never lower your tax.
  7. Not sure which category? Choose Other business expense, and ask an accountant later.
  8. The Expenses screen shows what is allowable, and what isn’t, for the quarter or the year.
17

Working from home: the flat rate

HMRC’s simple monthly amount for the admin you do at home.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. If you do your bookkeeping and admin at home, HMRC lets you claim a flat amount each month.
  2. The box shows the amounts: £10 a month for 25 to 50 hours, £18 for 51 to 100, £26 for 101 or more.
  3. Only time working at home counts. Time spent driving does not. Under 25 hours, there is nothing to claim.
  4. Say which month and how many hours, then the amount.
  5. Add one each month. Your phone and internet are claimed separately, under Phone and mobile data.
18

Bills not paid yet (traditional accounting only)

On traditional accounting, a cost counts when you owe it: marking it unpaid, then paid.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. This is only for drivers on traditional accounting. On the cash basis, add a cost when you pay it.
  2. If you haven’t paid it yet, tick Not paid yet.
  3. It is marked Unpaid. When you pay it, tap it.
  4. Tap Mark paid, check the date, and tap Mark paid again.
19

Changing or removing an expense

Seeing an expense and its receipt, changing it, and voiding one added by mistake.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. Tap Expenses at the bottom.
  2. Tap the expense you want.
  3. Its details open, with its receipt photo if it has one. Tap Edit to change it.
  4. To remove one added by mistake, tap it, then tap Void.
  5. It stays in the list, marked Void, and no longer counts.

Part 4: Miles and your vehicle

20

Logging your business miles

Adding a day’s or a week’s business miles, what counts, and the 10,000-mile line.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Business miles are the miles you drive for work: to pick-ups, between jobs and deliveries. Each one lowers your tax.
  2. Tap Miles on Home, or at the bottom of the screen.
  3. Choose a day or a whole week.
  4. Type the business miles. Leave out driving for yourself, like the school run or shopping.
  5. A note is optional, but a log of where you went helps if HMRC ever asks.
  6. The bar fills up through the tax year. The first 10,000 business miles are worth 55p each, then 25p after that.
  7. Your entries are listed further down. If one is wrong, tap it to remove it.
  8. Say why, and tap Remove. Or tap Cancel to keep it.
21

Mileage rate or actual costs: choosing

HMRC’s two ways to claim for your vehicle, comparing them, choosing once, and what the mileage rate covers.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. HMRC lets you claim for your vehicle in one of two ways. Meter Max works out both, so you can compare.
  2. The mileage rate: a set amount for each business mile. It covers fuel, insurance, repairs and the rest. The simplest.
  3. Actual costs: what the vehicle really costs to run, plus part of what you paid for it.
  4. Tap Compare in the yellow box on Home.
  5. The table shows what each way would claim so far this tax year, and which is ahead.
  6. Once chosen, the choice stays for as long as you own the vehicle. Wait until you have a few weeks of miles and costs.
  7. Here the mileage rate is ahead. Tap Claim at mileage rates.
  8. Read the message, and tap Choose.
  9. Done. This explains what the mileage rate covers, and what you can still claim.
  10. Now, when you add an expense, the costs the mileage rate covers are greyed out. There’s nothing more to claim for them.
  11. Parking, tolls, congestion and clean air charges, and licence and plating fees are still claimed.
  12. Fuel you added before choosing is marked Covered by mileage rate.
22

Your vehicle’s details

What you paid, when, emissions, private use, and the two ticks that matter for the mileage rate.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Tap Miles at the bottom, then Compare and choose next to your vehicle.
  2. Tap Edit to add the vehicle’s details.
  3. If you bought it, add when, and the price. It matters if you claim actual costs, through capital allowances.
  4. For a car, choose its emissions from the logbook. They decide the capital allowances.
  5. Private use is the share of all its miles that are personal. Type a percentage.
  6. Tick this only for a purpose-built black cab. A saloon licensed for hire is still a car.
  7. Tick this if capital allowances were ever claimed on this vehicle, even on an old tax return. The mileage rate can then never be used for it.
  8. Tap Save changes.
  9. The comparison now includes capital allowances on what you paid.
23

Changing or selling your vehicle

Adding a new vehicle, and recording when the old one was sold or scrapped.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. Got a new vehicle? Slide down and tap Add another vehicle.
  2. A new vehicle can be claimed either way, whatever you chose for the old one.
  3. Then record the old one leaving. Tap Edit on it.
  4. Fill in the date it was sold or scrapped, and what you got for it.
  5. It is marked sold. From now on, choose which vehicle when you add miles or a vehicle cost.

Part 5: Tax

24

How much to keep back for tax

What Keep back means, how it is worked out, when the tax is due, and payments on account.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Self-employed people pay their own tax, in one go after the tax year. Meter Max tells you how much to save as you go.
  2. It is the income tax and Class 4 National Insurance on your profit so far since 6 April.
  3. For the tax year 2026-27, the bill is due by 31 January 2028.
  4. HMRC may also ask for two payments towards the next year’s bill, on 31 January and 31 July. This says roughly how much.
  5. Tip: each week, move the extra Keep back amount into a separate savings account.
  6. The Tax screen shows the full working. Tap Tax, then Tax year.
  7. It is an estimate on your records. HMRC sends the real bill.
25

Your accounts and profit

Income, expenses and profit for a quarter or the year, set out the way HMRC does.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. Tap Tax at the bottom. It opens on Accounts.
  2. Choose a three-month quarter, or the whole tax year.
  3. Income is everything you earned. Expenses is what you can claim. Profit for tax is the difference.
  4. Below is the profit and loss, under the same headings HMRC uses.
  5. The Not allowable column shows costs kept in your records that don’t lower your tax, such as private use.
  6. And your takings from each app, with the fees they kept and your trips.
26

Sending your figures to an accountant

Sharing your accounts, every entry as a spreadsheet, and the tax computation.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. If an accountant helps you, you can send them everything from your phone. Tap Tax.
  2. Slide to the bottom. Share accounts sends a tidy summary of the profit and loss.
  3. Entries as CSV sends every entry as a spreadsheet the accountant can open.
  4. Your phone then asks how to send it: email, WhatsApp, Google Drive and so on.
  5. The tax working is on the Tax year screen. Slide down to Share computation.
  6. Your receipts stay in the app. For a full copy of everything, make a backup: see video 39.
27

Your tax bill for the year

From profit to tax, income from a job, savings and dividends, and student loan repayments.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Tap Tax, then Tax year.
  2. At the top: your tax so far, and when it is due.
  3. From profit to tax shows each step, from your income to the profit that is taxed.
  4. Then the tax itself: your tax-free allowance, then each rate.
  5. If you also have a job, or savings interest, type it under Other income. It changes the tax on your driving.
  6. Your P60 from the job shows both. Tap Save.
  7. The tax so far goes up: the job used some of your tax-free allowance.
  8. Have a student loan? Choose your plan in Settings, under Your details, and repayments are added too.
28

“Anything else?”: income the app can’t handle

The yearly question about other income, and what to do if one applies to you.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. Each year, Meter Max asks about other kinds of income. Slide down to Anything else.
  2. Meter Max covers your driving, pay from a job, savings, dividends and pensions. Read the list below.
  3. If none apply to you, tap the green button. That is the answer for most drivers.
  4. If one does apply, such as rent from a room, tick it and tap the button.
  5. Then your yearly return goes through other software that can include it. The Final Declaration says where to find it.
  6. Your quarterly updates from Meter Max still count. Ask an accountant if you are not sure.
29

When you make a loss

When costs are more than takings: carrying the loss forward, against other income, or back a year.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Some years your costs are more than your takings. That is a loss, and it can lower your tax.
  2. Meter Max asks how you want to use it. If you do nothing, it carries forward and comes off your next profits.
  3. Or set it against this year’s other income, such as pay from a job, to get tax back sooner.
  4. Or carry it back against last year’s income, including your driving profit then.
  5. Tap Save claim. Your tax estimate updates.
  6. Had losses from before you used Meter Max? Add them in Settings, under Accounting.
  7. Loss rules can be complicated. If you have a big loss, it is worth asking an accountant.
30

Pensions

Workplace pensions through an app, private pensions, recording payments, and the tax relief.

About 3 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Paying into a pension lowers your tax. It is not a business expense: the relief comes on top.
  2. On Home, under What to set aside, tap Pensions.
  3. Some apps, such as Uber, run a workplace pension and add money of their own. Tap Add workplace pension.
  4. What Uber takes from your pay then goes in with your takings. Video 11 shows how.
  5. A private pension is one you open yourself. Tap Add private pension.
  6. If your provider has a payment page, add its link: Pay now opens it. Meter Max never takes money itself.
  7. Each time you pay in, tap Record a payment.
  8. The top shows what went in this year, and the tax relief it earned you.
  9. Thinking about a pension? The planner shows what paying in each month would really cost you.
  10. This is general information, not financial advice.

Part 6: VAT

31

Do I need to register for VAT?

The £90,000 threshold, how Meter Max keeps count, and the warning on Home.

About 1 minute

Read what the video says
  1. You must register for VAT if your takings for any 12 months in a row go over £90,000. Most drivers are well under.
  2. Meter Max keeps count for you. Tap Tax, then VAT.
  3. Last 12 months is your takings over the past year. The bar shows how close you are.
  4. It counts the full fares, before the apps took their cut, as HMRC does. Tips are left out.
  5. Month by month, below.
  6. If you get close, a yellow box warns you on Home. If you go over, it turns red and says what to do.
  7. Once registered, tap VAT settings to add your VAT number. The next video shows how.
32

Setting up VAT

Your VAT number, return periods and scheme: Standard, Cash Accounting or the Flat Rate Scheme.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Registered for VAT? You need your VAT registration letter from HMRC. Tap the gear for Settings.
  2. Slide to VAT and tick Registered for VAT.
  3. Type your nine-digit VAT number, and the date you were registered from.
  4. Choose your return periods: the months your VAT quarters end, as on your letter.
  5. Choose your scheme. Most drivers choose the Flat Rate Scheme: a set 10% of your takings for transport.
  6. In your first year of VAT registration, the flat rate is 1% lower. Tick this if that is you.
  7. Standard VAT accounting and Cash Accounting are also there, if HMRC has you on them.
  8. Tap Save VAT settings.
  9. The VAT screen now lists your returns, one for each quarter. The next video shows doing one.
33

Doing your VAT return

Checking the nine boxes, adjustments, finalising, and sending the return to HMRC.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Every three months you send HMRC a VAT return. Meter Max fills it in from your records. Tap Tax, then VAT.
  2. Under Periods, tap a quarter that has ended. It shows when it is due.
  3. These are the nine boxes of your VAT return. Box 5 is the VAT to pay HMRC.
  4. On the Flat Rate Scheme, this shows the turnover and the rate used, and checks the limited cost trader rule.
  5. Adjustments are for corrections, or the fuel scale charge. Most returns need none.
  6. When it looks right, slide to the bottom and tap Finalise return.
  7. Finalising locks the entries in the return, so it can’t change by accident. Tap Finalise.
  8. Now tap Submit to HMRC.
  9. Read HMRC’s declaration. If the return is right, tap I agree and submit.
  10. HMRC has it. The green box shows the date and HMRC’s reference.
  11. Then pay HMRC the Box 5 amount by the due date. Meter Max doesn’t take payments.
  12. If an accountant files it for you, tap Record as filed another way instead. Found a mistake before sending? Tap Reopen.
34

Changing VAT scheme or deregistering

Moving to a different VAT scheme from a date, the limited cost trader rate, and deregistering.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. If you change VAT scheme, tell Meter Max the date. Tap the gear for Settings, and slide to VAT.
  2. Tap Change scheme from a date.
  3. Changes usually start on the first day of a VAT quarter. Meter Max suggests the next one.
  4. Tap Save change. Entries before the date stay on the old scheme, and after it on the new one.
  5. Stopped being VAT registered? Fill in Deregistered on, then Save VAT settings.
  6. A note on the Flat Rate Scheme: if you spend very little on goods, a higher 16.5% rate applies. Meter Max checks each return for you.

Part 7: Making Tax Digital and HMRC

35

Do I need Making Tax Digital?

Who must send quarterly updates, and from when; turning MTD on; tax-year or calendar quarters.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Making Tax Digital means sending HMRC a summary of your income and expenses every three months, from an app like this.
  2. It depends on your income. Tap Tax, then MTD.
  3. This table shows your income each year, the limit, and when MTD starts for you.
  4. From April 2026 it applies above £50,000, from April 2027 above £30,000, and from April 2028 above £20,000.
  5. HMRC writes to tell you. When it applies, turn it on in Settings.
  6. Most drivers use tax-year quarters, starting 6 April. Calendar quarters start on the 1st of the month.
  7. You also need your National Insurance number, in Your details, and to connect to HMRC: the next video.
36

Connecting Meter Max to HMRC

Giving Meter Max permission at HMRC, for VAT and for Income Tax, with your Government Gateway details.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. To send returns straight from the app, you give Meter Max permission at HMRC. You do this once.
  2. You need your Government Gateway user ID and password: the ones for your HMRC online account.
  3. There is a connection for VAT, and one for Income Tax. Tap Connect to HMRC for VAT.
  4. HMRC’s own website opens. Sign in with your Government Gateway details, and type the code HMRC texts you.
  5. HMRC asks if Meter Max may deal with your VAT. Tap Grant authority. You come back to Meter Max.
  6. Now VAT says Connected. Meter Max never sees your password.
  7. Do the same for Income Tax, with Connect to HMRC for Income Tax.
  8. For MTD, Meter Max also needs HMRC’s ID for your self-employment. In MTD for Income Tax, tap Read from HMRC.
  9. It fills in. Tap Save.
  10. For extra safety, set up an authenticator app under Security: then a code is needed before anything is sent. Video 40 shows how.
  11. A connection lasts 18 months. Meter Max tells you when to connect again.
37

Sending your quarterly update

Checking the figures for the quarter, sending them to HMRC, and what to do if they change.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Every three months, HMRC wants a summary of your income and expenses. Meter Max builds it from what you added.
  2. These three lines say whether everything is ready: your National Insurance number, HMRC’s ID, and the connection.
  3. Under Quarterly updates, tap the quarter that has ended. Each shows when it is due.
  4. These are your income, expenses and profit from the start of the tax year to the end of this quarter.
  5. If anything is missing, add it first. Meter Max checks too: for example, it asks you to choose how your vehicle is claimed before sending.
  6. When it is ready, slide down and tap Send to HMRC.
  7. Check the amounts, and tap Send.
  8. Done. The green box shows when it was sent.
  9. Changed something afterwards? It goes with the next update, or tap Send again to HMRC.
  10. If an accountant sends it for you, use Record as sent another way, so Meter Max knows it’s done.
38

The Final Declaration at the end of the year

After 5 April: confirming the year to HMRC, seeing HMRC’s tax figure, and declaring.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. After the tax year ends on 5 April, you confirm the year to HMRC. It is due by 31 January.
  2. Choose the year that has ended.
  3. Slide down to Final Declaration. Your four quarterly updates are sent, so it is ready. Tap Send to HMRC.
  4. Meter Max lists what it sends HMRC for the year. Nothing is declared until you agree. Tap the green button.
  5. HMRC works out your tax for the year. This takes a few seconds.
  6. Here is HMRC’s figure, beside Meter Max’s estimate. Check it. If they differ a lot, ask an accountant why.
  7. Read HMRC’s declaration. If everything is right, tap I agree and declare.
  8. Your year is declared. Its entries are now locked.
  9. Found a mistake later? You can amend the return here until 31 January the year after.
  10. Then pay HMRC by 31 January. The Tax year screen shows how much.

Part 8: Keeping your records safe

39

Backing up and moving to a new phone

Making a backup, keeping it safe, the reminders, and putting your records on a new phone.

About 2 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Your records are kept only on this phone. If it is lost or broken, they’re gone, unless you have a backup.
  2. Home reminds you. Tap Back up now.
  3. Your phone asks where to keep the backup file. Tap Drive to save it in Google Drive, or Gmail to email it to yourself.
  4. Make one at least once a month. Home reminds you a month after each backup.
  5. You can also back up from Settings. Tap the gear.
  6. New phone? Install Meter Max from Google Play, set it up quickly, then come here and tap Restore.
  7. Choose your backup file in Drive or Downloads. Meter Max says which date it is from.
  8. Tap Restore, and everything on the phone is replaced by the backup. Here we tap Cancel.
  9. After restoring, set up the app lock and the authenticator again: they belong to the phone.
40

Settings: lock, details and your account

Your details, the app lock, an authenticator code, your subscription, help and feedback, and deleting data.

About 3 minutes

Read what the video says
  1. Tap the gear at the top right for Settings.
  2. Your details: your name, what you drive for, and your National Insurance number and UTR, from HMRC’s letters.
  3. Your address, phone and bank details are printed on your invoices.
  4. Have a student loan? Choose your plan, and repayments are added to your tax estimate.
  5. Accounting: the cash basis or traditional accounting, when your books start, and losses from before.
  6. Security. Tick this to lock Meter Max with your fingerprint, face or phone PIN.
  7. Choose how long you can be away before it locks again, then tap Save app lock. Your phone checks it is you.
  8. An authenticator app adds a code before anything is sent to HMRC. Tap Set up authenticator.
  9. Install Google Authenticator from Google Play first. Then tap Open authenticator app: it adds Meter Max.
  10. Go back to Meter Max and type the six-digit code the authenticator shows. Then tap Confirm.
  11. Subscription: Manage or cancel opens Google Play. Restore purchase is for a new phone.
  12. Help and feedback: the guides, the tour, rating Meter Max, sharing it, and emailing us about a problem.
  13. Report a problem opens an email with the app version filled in. None of your records are sent.
  14. At the bottom: the privacy policy and terms.
  15. Delete all my data, under Backup, removes everything for good. Make a backup first. HMRC expects records kept five years.
Prefer pictures? The guides show the same steps as pictures, and the app has them too: tap Help at the top of any screen.