Sage MTD Errors /Error 403 – The Client and/or Agent is not Authorized.”

While Sage continues to rule as the perfect accounting platform for businesses of all sizes; big or small, it still suffers from certain errors. One of these recurring errors is the Sage MTD Errors /Error 403 – The client and/or agent is not authorized.” This error code generally belongs to the 4XX range of HTTP response codes: Client Errors. This means that either the user or the bowser might be responsible for the error. It essentially means that the server has understood the error but is not granting the access to the user. One of the main reasons for this can be because the user has provided the wrong authentication credentials or that the server does not consider them to be sufficient enough. Let us dive further into the issue and how to resolve it.

Causes of Sage MTD Errors /Error 403

Most likely reasons are:

Business:

• The business has not been signed up for Making Tax Digital for VAT (MTD VAT)
• HMRC has not completed the sign up process, in this case the user will need to wait up to 72 hours for HMRC to confirm

Agents:

• The agent has not created any Agent Services Account. This is quite different to HMRC online services for agents’ accounts.
• The agent has not linked clients over to Agent Services Account
• The client has not signed up to MTD
• The client has not authorized the agent to act on their behalf
• HMRC has not completed the sign up process, in this case the user is required to wait up to 72 hours for HMRC to confirm

Read More : How to Fix Sage 50 Error Code 1046

How to Fix Sage MTD Errors /Error 403

Here we are providing some methods to resolve this issue:

Try logging in again

In order to try and submit again with the correct Government Gateway ID:

• Go to the error window
• Now click OK, 
• Next click Cancel.

Click Submit Online and retry the submission, while checking that your Government Gateway login details are correct.

Things to Check for Customers and Agents

• You need to ensure that you, or if applicable your client, have registered for MTD and actioned the emails received during the registration process. Also Processing your registration can take up to 72 hours, so you need to make sure that enough time has passed
• Next you need to Check that you have enabled MTD in your software. 
• Click Settings, next click Company Preferences and click VAT then makes sure to click on Enable Making Tax Digital is ticked, then finally click OK
• You need to Make sure that you, or your client, have entered the correct VAT number with no spaces in Sage 50 Accounts. To do so , you need to click Settings, then click Company Preferences. Once done, click OK
• When completing the MTD VAT submission window, you need to make sure that the Used stored credentials is not ticked
• You need to Check that your Sage 50 Accounts software is MTD ready, check this now >
• This error is usually displayed during busy times especially near MTD deadlines, so if possible you can try again later

Additional Checks to make if you are Submitting for your own Company

• When the user is making their own submission, they need to make sure that they have entered the correct credentials. You can confirm by Referring back to any emails from HMRC.
• In case the user owns more than one Government Gateway ID, they need to retry their submission using an alternative credentials

The user needs to Check that their systems regional settings have been set to English (United Kingdom). In order to check this, hold down the Windows key and press R, then type intl.cpl and finally click OK.

Additional Checks to Make if you’re an Agent Acting on behalf of a Client

In case you are an accountant using Sage 50 Accounts Client Manager, follow these steps first:

• Start by Clicking on Settings, next click MTD for VAT Settings.
• Now Click Delete Stored credentials.
• Next Submit again and when completing the MTD How to Fix Sage 50 Error Code 1046 window, while making sure that the Used stored credentials is not ticked.

Also Read : How to Reconcile VAT on Sage

Conclusion

When this error persists , then the user needs to Check that they have entered the correct credentials and re-attempt the submission once again. Likewise, the user also should use their Agent Services Account credentials

• Make sure that you have created an Agent Services Accounts and assigned your clients
• Make sure that you have linked your client over to your account. 
• When you are making the required submission, make sure that you have entered the correct credentials. In this case you need to Refer back to any emails from HMRC to confirm
• In case the user owns more than one Government Gateway ID,then you need to retry the submission using an alternative credentials
• Now Check that your regional settings of your system have been set to English (United Kingdom). To do so, you need to hold down the Windows key and press R, then type intl.cpl and finally click OK

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