MTD for Income Tax guides
Plain-English guides to Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, for sole traders, landlords and the accountants who help them.
Not sure MTD applies to you? Check in five questions
Free MTD app for sole traders and landlords Create account
How we write these guidesWritten and reviewed by the AATAX Editorial Team. Tax facts come from GOV.UK and HMRC, and each guide shows when it was last checked.
Featured guide
Featured · Deadlines
MTD for Income Tax deadlines 2026-27
Quarterly updates are due on 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May, and your 2026-27 tax return by 31 January 2028.
Next deadline7February 2027SundayThird quarterly update, covering 6 April to 5 January. Aim to send it by Friday 5 February.
All guides
Deadlines
The 7 November deadline
Your second quarterly update covers 6 April to 5 October 2026. You can send it up to and including 7 November 2026.
Getting started
Do I need MTD?
MTD applies to sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000 from April 2026, £30,000 from April 2027 and £20,000 from April 2028.
Getting started
MTD qualifying income: what counts
Qualifying income is your self-employment and property income before expenses, so wages, pensions and dividends don't count.
Landlords
MTD for landlords
How rent counts towards the threshold, and how MTD works for jointly owned property, letting agents and foreign lets.
Sole traders
MTD for sole traders
How turnover counts towards the threshold, what to record, what to send each quarter, and how MTD works with a job or CIS.
Sole traders
MTD for CIS and construction
Gross pay, CIS deductions and the bank deposit trap for subcontractors, what contractors record, and the year-end check.
Penalties
MTD for Income Tax penalties explained
There are no penalties for late quarterly updates in 2026-27, but from 2027-28 four points means a £200 penalty.
Software
Free MTD software compared
On 17 October 2026, HMRC's finder listed 37 products with a free version out of 159. We compare nine, from each provider's site and HMRC's listing.
Software
MTD spreadsheet templates
Free Excel templates for self-employed people and landlords. Fill in each quarter, upload the file to AATAX and send your quarterly update to HMRC.
Software
Kane, the AI tax assistant
Kane reads your receipts, fixes mistakes, sends your quarterly updates and takes you through year end, all in a chat on your phone.
For accountants
MTD for accountants and agents
To act for clients you need an agent services account, an MTD authorisation for each client as main or supporting agent, and each client signed up, with a dated checklist to 31 January 2028.