The problem
• From April 2019, VAT registered businesses with a turnover above £85,000 must use software to submit their VAT Returns.
• Sitting within the business tax account - which has 3 million users - Making Tax Digital (MTD) VAT is one of the highest profile products within HMRC digital delivery.
• A design and information architecture challenge.
OVERARCHING USER NEEDS
As a VAT registered business I need to understand how to Making Tax Digital works so that I am compliant
As a VAT registered business I need to understand when and how I need to file my VAT return so that I don't get fined
As a VAT registered business I need to understand when and how to pay my VAT so that I don't get fined
THE SERVICE
An overview
1. INTEGRATING WITH A COMPLEX LIVE SERVICE
We challenged the Business Tax Accounts’ complicated information structure which we knew confused and overwhelmed users. We used the MTD section purely for navigation, with a quick summary of the service and a single link CTA to get users into the service as quick and simply as possible.
2. SURFACE THE RIGHT LEVEL OF INFORMATION
Once in our service, we give the user the most important information - anything ‘due’. Enough to entice the user into the each section for more detail, rather than piling on the detail at this level and overwhelming them.
3. DETAIL WHEN NEEDED
After clicking into each section users can get more in-depth information. Providing the user what they need, when they need it - no information overload.
DESIGN ITERATIONS
The VAT homepage
1. WHEN I PICKED UP THE DESIGN
The homepage was very busy, surfacing the majority of the information available to a user. Icons and various visual elements were used.
2. ALIGNING
My first job was to bring the design in-line with GDS patterns, as well as aligning it to the look and feel the business tax account. I also stripped any unnecessary or post-MVP features out.
3. SIMPLIFYING
I was then able to take a step back and look at what information the user actually needed at this level. I brainstormed 5/6 versions of this screen and got other designers to critique them.
4. LATEST ITERATION
The final iteration before I left the project. Passed a HMRC assessment with a 1 for design (the highest score), up from a 3 when I took over the design.