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Unfortunately for Xero I can see a loss in clients due to tax returns being digital from April 2026.
It appears illogical that a small business is prohibited from completing their own tax return using Xero, while being compelled to pay an accountant or bookkeeper (via the xero partner program) to undertake a task that most businesses are capable or performing independently.
From a cost-effective view, it would make more sense for my business to change software that facilitates the completion of yearly tax returns rather than incurring the expense of paying an accountant to complete a task that I am already capable of doing.

Very small business here and I chose Xero because the government website stated that you could file tax returns automatically using it, now it turns out you can't... very disappointing and I will be cancelling the subscription.

Totally agree with all the comments. i've recommended Xero for every company i'm involved with but will now have to move all of them to other providers who offer this functionality

I find it difficult to understand how Xero can provide the ability to file for MTD for IT but not for Limited companies to meet their statutory filing requirements.

My husband has a Limited company and I have a job elsewhere, but I am a qualified accountant, I have previously filed the accounts using HMRC Gateway and been ok with this, but HMRC now has a notification saying that this will not be available from 31 March 2026.

I really like how Xero works for record keeping, reports & payments, etc, but it should be more than this for a Limited company, many of which employ qualified accountants. I find it difficult to understand why it does not have the ability to file statutory accounts, ixbrl and a corporation tax return to the company paying for the software. As an up to date qualified accountant I cannot see why I would be expected by my software provider to engage and pay for a Xero Partner to do this for when when they are not asking MTD income tax cases to do the same. I thought that from going to Xerocon in the past, Xero tax came about via an acquisition of a company that provided the software for Limited companies to file their statutory accounts and corporation tax return but now Xero have acquired that company the facility is only open to Xero Partners.

If legislation does not require that the accounts and corporation tax are submitted by a practicing accountant (just like IT MTD), why is this a requirement for companies. I have previously used the HMRC facility to file, but with this being no longer available from 31 March 2026 I am going to have to look for software that will file the accounts and CT600, or look at alternative software but I really like Xero for every other aspect .

Bye Bye Xero!

It has taken me a few hours to find out that if I do not engage a Xero "partner", I cannot report directly to HMRC for MDT, as I will be required to do from April 2026, particularly as I am not VAT registered, and have no need to be. I understand that Xero is promoting the business of their "partners", but that is no good to me. I do not need to pay for accountancy services. If Xero will not change their policy on this then I will find another platform that will meet my requirements. It is bad enough that HMRC require me to pay for the software for MDT, let alone that that platform then try and make me pay for accountancy/book keeping!

Same comments as the below - I will be looking for an alternative to Xero when filing for small entities is closed down by HMRC March 2026 because I don't want to pay the absolutely ridiculous fees for someone else to press a few buttons on my behalf. It's annoying as it is using the micro entity service to simply copy and past from Xero, but being directed to hiring one of the Xero partners by their support for what essentially would be a simple MTD interface setup that they already have with other services makes me want to quit the service as it suggests they get a better margin from promoting Xero Tax to their partners plus pushing their regular clients to hire those firms.

Xero is leaving a substantial subscription revenue opportunity on the table here - a critical oversight that on which competitors will certainly capitalise.

I do not need a 'Partner' to press a button for me. I need the functionality in Xero available for me in Xero to do this myself as I do with VAT, PAYE, CIS.

This means that I, and many others, will go directly to Xero's competitors for this service - crazy.

Xero's competitors will gain Xero's revenue and market share as customers move over to a SAAS that offers this simple functionality. Xero is missing out on a clear upsell and retention opportunity with their customers.

From a marketing perspective - word of mouth, influencers, creators - would all be making it clear that Xero does not offer this simple functionality and this could lead to reputational damage and further revenue leakage.

Some help is required in the CRO domain here to make it clear to Product Management as to the extent of the potential losses in terms of revenue and reputation from not having this functionality available.

I certainly echo what everyone else is saying. It is a huge inconvenience as a small business owner not being able to complete a corporation tax return in Xero once the HMRC online filing closes in March 2026. We are a 2 person business who don't require a Xero Partner as I'm also an accountant. Incurring the expense of paying another accountant to do something that I'm perfectly capable of doing myself is ludicrous. Even if it was an additional cost to our Xero subscription as Payroll and Projects I'd be happy.

The ironic twist here, and a real kick in the wotsits for Xero, is when I called a 'Xero Partner' he told me that, for what he would charge me, it would be cheaper to find better software that handles Corporation Tax!

Think about it, if a company doesn't owe tax, but still has to lodge, why would we want, or be able to afford, to pay for an accountant? I would happily pay a bit more for my subscription to be able to do everything myself. And shouldn't Xero be happier to keep customers over losing them?

I'm sure it's a simple bit of extra code, that's all. Or is Xero making more from partners to care about a small business' bottom line?

I think that Xero should revisit this situation, as HMRC's current online filing service ceases on 31st March 2026.

Xero caters well for other taxes, so it seems ridiculous that Corporation Tax isn't included in the plans. This could well lose Xero business in the future, especially if your competitors do offer this service.

Or simply, just remove from your Xero Partners programme.

I would appreciate being able to use xero to file my corporation tax and statutory accounts.

I have a basic small business and have no need to find a 'partner' to do this for me as I am a chartered accountant myself and more than capable of doing this.

As HMRC are moving toward a software only interface xero will need to provide this before that deadline or will surely loose customers who will find software that does enable them to do this?

Totally agree that it's frustrating (and a waste of money) to not be able to log corporation tax through Xero as a business owner.

This feature is critical for a solo business like mine with basic accounts. It would save me a lot in accountant fees. I actually only signed up to Xero as I thought this was possible, so I'm very disappointed to find out that it's not.

Also, it's even more important now that HMRC are planning to shift to software only accounts filing over the next few years, as per their email below.

It would be great if you can implement this sooner rather than later.

In the meantime, I think I might have to cancel my subscription and switch to somewhere like Freeagent which seems to offer this service.

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Changes to accounts
The online accounts and Company Tax Return service is closing on 31 March 2026.
If you use this service to file your accounts with Companies House and Company Tax Return with HMRC, you’ll need to find alternative filing methods once it closes.
Over the next 2 to 3 years, we’ll be transitioning towards filing accounts by software only. 
We’re preparing a detailed timetable and we aim to give companies 21 months’ notice ahead of the change. Most companies can make the change now as software is already available. We’ve published an updated version of our Find software for filing company accounts tool to help companies to choose a suitable software product.
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What is the point of being able to use Xero for VAT, MTD, and many other features but not Corporation Tax? I pay a subscription to manage my own company, but I must pay for an accountant just to lodge my Corporation Tax. It's even more frustrating when I have to pay extra to lodge a loss.

Come on, MTD in the 21st Century, Xero should be an all-in-one solution.

What is the status of this request? I am able to file my tax returns directly with Companies House but not via Xero - this seems counter intuitive and unproductive. With Companies House moving to software only submission of tax returns this is becoming critical.

Hey Xero, just make it happen for us small businesses that YOU SUPPORT. Because you support us, right? Right!?

Looking into the following that may be the answer to my Xero disgust

https://www.freeagent.com/features/competitors/

Can you confirm it is only Xero who want to make us pay your partners for the pleasure of filing accounts whether it is something we need or not?
I remember when Xero was marketed as the ideal software for smaller businesses who wanted more control over their accounts as they didn't need nor could afford expensive Accountants, but those days are gone and Xero is in it 'for' their partners who just happen to be Accountants
Be careful Xero your customers will only take so much before they move on to the next beautiful software provider

It makes no sense - all the numbers are in Xero, but we're blocked from sending them to HMRC and have to copy/paste them to another software to be able to submit a partnership return. I wouldn't even mind if Xero charged a fee, just like the other tax submission sites do, I would just like to do it directly and do it myself.

I believe Sage is making it possible for clients to submit their own MTD ITSA quarterly returns, i.e. not having to join an accountancy firm for Partner access. Is Xero still adamant that the submission is only available to Partners? Surely they should see that people will move to software that helps them do the job (even if it isn't their first choice of software)?