When customer is attempting to submit or retrieve Making Tax Digital MTD VAT data to and from HMRC, customer may get error messages returned by HMRC. Andica MTD VAT software will read and display the messages.
According to HMRC, there are several reasons for HTTP status 401 (Unauthorised). A full list of HMRC's MTD VAT error messages is provided in a separate FAQ.
The INVALID_CREDENTIALS message most likely relates to expiry for HMRC access token.
According to HMRC, if the user's access_token has expired, when the software calls an API it receives a response with an HTTP status code of 401 (Unauthorised) and an error code of INVALID_CREDENTIALS.
Start the software
If you get a message to update the software, run that. If not then, from the software menu at the top, select Help - Check for Updates...
The software may update itself or you will get a message 'Your software is up to date.'
Try to 'Retrieve VAT Periods'
Follow on screen message and you may be asked if you want to run 'VAT Digital Authorisation', run this routine to authorise the software.
VAT Digital Re-Authorisation can also be processed using the Re-Authorisation feature of the software.
HMRC have a process that must be followed to get MTD VAT submissions started.
If the issue persists, you will need to contact HMRC's Online Services helpdesk on 0300 200 3701 and speak with their MTD VAT team to confirm the registration process. We cannot access HMRC systems to check what is wrong with your digital account and the clients MTD VAT registration.
The following below error messages might occur when you are connecting to HMRC and also when you are submitting a VAT Return.
| Software Message (Symptoms) | HMRC Error scenario | HMRC Error code | Cause | Solution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
HMRC server has returned an error message: HTTP status: 401 (Unauthorized), Code: INVALID_CREDENTIALS Invalid OAuth token supplied for user-restricted or application-restricted endpoint (including expired token) | Invalid OAuth token supplied for user-restricted or application-restricted endpoint (including expired token) | INVALID_CREDENTIALS | Invalid OAuth token supplied for user-restricted or application-restricted endpoint (including expired token) with the request made to the HMRC server. | Please run the Re-Authorisationther process provided in the Software. |
HMRC server has returned an error message: HTTP status: 401 (Unauthorized), Code: MISSING_CREDENTIALS No OAuth token supplied for user-restricted or application-restricted endpoint. | No OAuth token supplied for user-restricted or application-restricted endpoint | MISSING_CREDENTIALS | No OAuth token supplied for user-restricted or application-restricted endpoint with the request made to the HMRC server. | Please contact your software provider for further help. |
HMRC server has returned an error message: HTTP status: 401 (Unauthorized), Code: UNAUTHORIZED Other issue with authentication of the supplied OAuth token. | Other issue with authentication of the supplied OAuth token | UNAUTHORIZED | Issue with authentication of the supplied OAuth token. | Please contact your software provider for further help. |
HMRC server has returned an error message: HTTP status: 401 (Unauthorized), Code:INCORRECT_ACCESS_TOKEN_TYPE User-restricted API is being accessed with a server token. | User-restricted API is being accessed with a server token | INCORRECT_ACCESS_TOKEN_TYPE | User-restricted API is being accessed with a server token. | Please contact your software provider for further help. |