UK Agency Chart of Accounts for QuickBooks with VAT Codes (Free)

A consulting or creative agency on QuickBooks Online has a cost base built from subscriptions and people, with much of the software invoiced from abroad. The default chart treats every cost the same and misses the two things that define agency VAT: the reverse charge on overseas services and the off-payroll status of contractors. This is a UK agency chart of accounts for QuickBooks Online, in QuickBooks’ own VAT code names, as a readable CSV mapping plus an import CSV for the structure.

Import the structure, then assign the codes

QuickBooks Online’s chart-of-accounts import carries Account Number, Account Name, Type, and Detail Type, and nothing for tax. So you import the structure first and bulk-assign the default VAT codes afterwards from the readable mapping. For an agency the codes that earn their keep are on the software, contractor, and media accounts, which is where the reverse charge and the status question live.

Overseas software and 20.0% RC SG

Most agency tools, hosting, and analytics are billed from outside the UK. For a VAT-registered agency those B2B services fall under the reverse charge, which QuickBooks codes as 20.0% RC SG: the overseas invoice shows no UK VAT, and you account for both sides on your return so a fully taxable agency nets to nil. The software subscriptions account maps to 20.0% S by default for UK-billed tools, with 20.0% RC SG listed as the allowed code for the overseas ones. Treating a no-VAT overseas invoice as reclaimable, or skipping the reverse-charge entry, are the mistakes this mapping is there to stop.

Contractors and off-payroll working

Freelancers are central to agency delivery, and a contractor invoice can carry more than a cost. The off-payroll rules can make a contractor working through their own company taxable like an employee, and for large or medium clients an agency in the chain can carry the deduction. The chart gives freelancer and contractor costs a dedicated account so those payments are simple to review for status, with the reverse charge mapped for overseas freelancers. QuickBooks holds the cost; the determination is a separate judgement using HMRC’s status tool.

Pass-through media kept apart from your fee

Paid media bought for clients is the other large overseas line. The chart separates pass-through media and ad spend from the agency commission you charge, because the media is mostly reverse-charge while the commission is your own standard-rated supply. Keep them in one account and the margin on every campaign goes fuzzy, so QuickBooks gets them split, the media defaulting to standard with the reverse charge available. QuickBooks reads the direction of a standard code from the transaction, so you use 20.0% S on either side and let it route the figure.

How to use it

1. Open the CSV and adapt the account names to the agency, noting the code mapped to each.
2. In QuickBooks Online go to Settings, then Import data, then Chart of Accounts, and upload the CSV for the structure.
3. On the import wizard confirm the Type and Detail Type for each account.
4. After import, bulk-assign the VAT codes from the mapping, applying 20.0% RC SG to overseas subscriptions and media.

Keeping a busy subscription-and-contractor ledger coded right is the recurring job:

• Dext extracts VAT and supplier from emailed SaaS receipts.
• ExpenseFlow reads each receipt and supplier invoice, flags an overseas supplier that has charged no UK VAT so it lands on the reverse charge rather than a wrong reclaim, flags contractor payments so the IR35 question surfaces at capture, and posts each into QuickBooks Online against the right account.
• Hubdoc pulls recurring tool invoices into the file.

For the reverse charge, IR35, and home-office rules, see the UK agency expenses guide. On Xero instead? See the UK agency chart of accounts for Xero, where the import sets the codes directly. For the codes, see the UK VAT codes in QuickBooks reference.