I’m getting a ‘Client not authorised’ message when attempting to file a VAT return. I’ve checked through the reasons given - none of which apply - and I’ve disconnected and relinked the tax account, but I still get the same ‘client not authorised’ message. Any suggestions? Thanks.
Nick
Are you sure you’re definitely connecting the correct tax account, or if you have multiple connections listed on Reports → HMRC is it definitely the right one that has the green tick in the VAT column?
Sometimes people end up with different IDs on the government gateway for different purposes, e.g. one for the company’s VAT and a separate one for their personal Self Assessment. If you’ve logged in to the SA one recently and then attempt to make the connection from QuickFile it may just go straight in to connecting the SA account rather than giving you the opportunity to sign in to the correct one for VAT. If you want to be 100% sure you’re connecting the right one then I recommend logging into QuickFile using a “private browsing” or “incognito” window (whatever it’s called on your preferred browser) and then disconnect all the accounts that are listed in Reports → HMRC and attempt a fresh HMRC connection from there, so you’re definitely starting without any persistent login cookies etc.
I have a similar problem. I received an email to renew by connection with HMRC, which I did but receive the same message as @ian_roberts I’ve disconnected accounts and tried again. When I click on the CONNECT button there are two options - personal and organisation - when I click on personal a message comes up saying “Personal tax accounts are not supported at this time”. But I registered 18 months ago as a personal account and have been using QuickFile to send my VAT returns to HMRC for that period. Why is now showing that its not supported?
Even if you’re a sole trader, you need to select “organisation” to make a connection that will work for MTD VAT.
I believe the “personal” option will be for MTD self assessment, if/when that ever goes live.
I’ve tried setting it to organisation but i get the client not authorised message even though I have the approved message ion the hmrc site as follows:
Authorised software applications
You have granted authority to the following software applications. You can remove this authority below.
- QuickFile Tax Link
This application has been authorised by you to do the following:
- View your VAT information
- Change your VAT information
Authority granted on: 04 March 2024
Remove authorityfor QuickFile Tax Link to read and submit tax information to HMRC
This is the message I’m getting on the QF when I try to connect although on the HMRC site it says I have been approved.
| Type | Name | Connected | Status | VAT Link | Disconnect | View |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MARK HAMBLIN |
Client not Authorised
The account you have linked to QuickFile is not authorised to access or file VAT information for the VAT registration 370801709. This error usually occurs due to one of the following reasons:
- The wrong account has been linked (e.g. a personal tax account rather than the organisation’s tax account)
- The VAT registration number has not been correctly entered.
- The organisation is not fully enrolled for Making Tax Digital (MTD)
Good morning @markhamblin
What “Client not authorised” means, is that the HMRC account you’ve linked isn’t authorised to view the information for that VAT number.
The three suggestions listed fix the vast majority of issues, and most users suffer from the first one - the wrong HMRC account has been linked.
In some cases users will have multiple HMRC accounts - one for Self Assessment, one for VAT, one for Corporation Tax, one for PAYE, etc.
I would, at this point, suggest checking your HMRC account (instructions can be found here), and if QuickFile isn’t listed there, it’s likely the wrong account has been linked.
If everything checks out, it may be worth giving HMRC a call as the “client not authorised” error is sent by them to us.
Did you remove the “personal” connection or is that one still there as well on reports → HMRC? If they’re both showing on that page which one has the green tick in the VAT column?
The ‘personal’ connection was never made - I just clicked on that option to see if that was the problem but I couldn’t proceed. There is only 1 connection showing which is in my name MARK HAMBLIN with a green tick under VAT LINK but ‘Failed’ under STATUS. It was all working fine until I renewed my connection
@markhamblin - Did you manage to check things on the HMRC site (see my post above)? I would expect to see the connection listed on their site at a minimum.
Yes the connection is listed on the HMRC site and its showing as ‘approved’.
It says:
This application has been authorised by you to do the following:
- View your VAT information
- Change your VAT information
Authority granted on: 04 March 2024
I am seeing this or the equivalent of this on my HMRC web page
If the “Authority granted” date is 20th December 2021, this would have expired as they only last 18 months (so it would have expired around May 2023).
If this is showing December 2021, where does this come from?
No. That’s not mine its the one printed on your help page which i copied to show you as an example of the message I am referring to. I have the same message but dated 4th March 2024.
This comes from my HMRC web page
This application has been authorised by you to do the following:
- View your VAT information
- Change your VAT information
Authority granted on: 04 March 2024
All I can think is if maybe there’s some sort of ad blocker or other browser extension that’s somehow blocked the final stage of the three-legged authorization process: the way it works is
- QuickFile redirects your browser to the government gateway, with a code identifying the request as originating from QuickFile
- You log in to the government gateway and grant the right permissions
- The gateway page redirects your browser back to QuickFile, and that redirection URL includes an “authorization code” that QuickFile’s server side can exchange for the actual token that it uses to communicate with HMRC
The process looks complicated but the point is that your Government Gateway credentials only ever pass directly from you to the gateway, they’re never exposed to a third party like QuickFile.
If step 2 succeeds but step 3 fails (e.g. your ad blocker disrupts that final redirection) then HMRC will think that the link is successful but QuickFile never received the authorization code and so will not have been able to acquire a valid access token.
I’d disconnect everything again from the QuickFile end and then try again in a different web browser - if you normally use Chrome then try Firefox or vice versa.
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Tried using Chrome instead of Safari. Same problem. Tried Chrome on my phone rather than my desktop - same problem! Still getting the Client Not Authorised message. What else can I do? HMRC say they cannot deal with software trouble shooting.
I am having exactly the same issue. Green tick appears but no authorisation message given.
Hello @NMB
On your account there are 3 entries in Reports > HMRC
The green tick represents the one in use (at present the failed link)
Open the page and click on the tick for one of the other links to select it (it will turn green).
You should then be ok
Oh my goodness, thank you so much. I’ve been sweating for 2 days over this :). Just submitted successfully.
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