An annual workflow
Pick a day each year and the clients it covers. The workflow creates every request from your template at 08:00, as drafts to check or sent, which asks you to confirm first.
Set up recurring document collectionUse case
Self Assessment records, before January.
P60s, interest statements, dividend vouchers and rental records from every individual client. Send one checklist in the autumn and let reminders chase it in, well before the January rush.
Last updated · Facts checked
How it works
One season, four steps.
The same way of working for every individual client, from employees to landlords.
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1
In the autumn
Send every client one list.
Create each client's request from your Self Assessment template, or let a workflow on an annual schedule create them all on the day you choose.
Set up recurring document collection -
2
From their phone
Clients upload as papers arrive.
Each client gets a private link. They upload a PDF or take a photo, with no account or app, and come back to the same link for the rest.
Copy or share the client link -
3
Through the season
Reminders, then a final one.
By default, reminders go out 3 and 7 days after sending, then a final reminder 3 days before the due date. Each lists only what's outstanding.
How automatic reminders work -
4
As files arrive
Approve, or ask again.
Approve each file, or ask for a replacement with a note, such as the full year's pension statement. Approving the last one completes the request.
Review and approve uploads
Create each client's request from your Self Assessment template, or let a workflow on an annual schedule create them all on the day you choose.
for Sarah L. · Due 30 Nov
Private upload link · what Sarah L. seesNo account needed
N
Northstar Accounting
Documents requested for
Due 30 Nov
Upload a few, leave some missing, then see what the reminders do.
Default schedule
Features
What gets the returns in on time.
A template for each kind of client
Keep a list for employees, landlords and the self-employed. Each request gets its own copy to tailor.
Create a templateA final reminder
The last step of the default schedule goes out 3 days before the due date and names it. On Growth and Pro, change the days or add steps.
Change your reminder scheduleSee who hasn't started
The Overview's Needs your attention list flags overdue requests and clients with nothing uploaded a week after you sent the link, with whether they opened it.
A link, not an account
Clients upload through a private link in any browser, on any device, wherever they are.
How client links are protectedA season, start to finish
In the autumn, send every individual client their request from one Self Assessment template, with the due date set to your own deadline. Or set up a workflow on an annual schedule: on the day you choose, it creates a request for each client you pick, as drafts to check or sent straight away.
As papers arrive, clients upload from their phones: a P60 as a PDF, a photo of a dividend voucher. Progress is saved, so they come back to the same link when the next statement turns up.
Through the season, reminders do the chasing. Each one lists only what's still missing and they stop once it's in. The last step of the default schedule is a final reminder, 3 days before the due date, which names the date.
In the busy weeks, the Overview's Needs your attention list shows who hasn't started: clients with nothing uploaded a week after you sent the link, and whether they've opened it. Send any of them a reminder now, with your own message.
Example checklist
Most clients need only a few of these, so remove what doesn't apply before you send. The Self Assessment checklist covers each item in more detail.
Employment
- P60, and P45 if they changed jobs
- P11D for benefits and expenses
Savings and investments
- Bank and building society interest
- Dividend vouchers
- Capital gains disposals
Pensions and gifts
- Pension contributions
- Gift Aid donations
Property and self-employment
- Rental income and costs
- Self-employment records
About the deadlines
For the 2025 to 2026 tax year, GOV.UK gives 31 October 2026 for paper returns and 31 January 2027 for online returns. Check the Self Assessment deadlines on GOV.UK for the full rules (checked on 19 October 2026). This page isn't tax advice, and GarnerDocs doesn't know anyone's deadlines: every due date on a request is one you set.
What GarnerDocs doesn't do
GarnerDocs collects the records. You prepare the return. It doesn't connect to HMRC or your tax software, read figures from documents or file anything. When a client's documents are in, download them as a ZIP. Files are kept for the retention period you choose, then deleted.
Questions
Can I use different lists for landlords and employees?
Yes. Make a template for each kind of client, such as employees, landlords and the self-employed, and pick the right one when you create a request. You can still add, remove or rename documents for one client without changing the template.
Some of my clients live abroad. Can they still upload?
Yes. The link works in any up-to-date browser, wherever they are. There's no account to create, no password and no app to install.
What if a client only has a phone?
That's enough. They open the link from the email on their phone and upload each document, or take a photo of it. If they stop halfway, the same link takes them back to where they were.
Can I send one request to a couple?
Each request goes to one client, so add each partner as their own client, with their own email address, and send each one their own request. A statement for a joint account can go on both lists.
Related
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For tax preparers and advisors
Individual returns, business returns and one-off advice work: send each client one checklist and a private link, and let reminders chase their forms up to your own deadline.
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Checklist
Self Assessment checklist for 2025–26
The documents to ask for on a 2025–26 tax return, by income type, with a plain-words version for clients.
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Workflows
Set up recurring document collection
Monthly, quarterly or annual requests from a template, sent or saved as drafts.
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