Ask a random sample of accountants what they think of iXBRL a year on and the messages are mixed.

‘Absolutely brilliant!’ says one outrider, but it is more likely to be met with groans. ‘I don’t like handing my tax affairs over to somebody less well-qualified than I am because they have access to iXBRL tagging software and I do not’, says one, while others complain, ‘I can’t use the free HMRC tool because it doesn’t include the ability to offset against brought forward Schedule D3 deficits’.

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