Reporting property income to HMRC
If you rent out property, then you will usually have to report this to HMRC and pay tax on it. Here we explain how you can do this – which might vary depending on your level of rental income and your wider situation.
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Reporting criteria
You only pay income tax on any taxable profits you make, that is, the excess of your rental property income when compared with deductible rental expenses. See our page Working out property income.
If you let furnished rooms in your own home, this income might qualify for the rent-a-room scheme. If the gross income is below the rent-a-room allowance it will be completely exempt from income tax. If it is not exempt (because it is more than the rent-a-room allowance), it will be subject to the reporting criteria set out below.
How you report rental income to HMRC depends on level of rental income and your wider circumstances. We summarise the reporting criteria for rental income in the table below:
| Gross rental income | Net rental income (profit) | Do I need to complete a tax return? | |
| Less than £1,000 | No, as the rental income is exempt under the property allowance. However, you might need to complete a tax return if you do not want the property allowance to apply and to claim a loss to carry forward. | ||
| More than £1,000 but less than £10,000 | and | Less than £2,500 | You should contact HMRC to let them know about the income. HMRC may be able to collect the tax on the rental profit via an adjustment to your PAYE tax code, if you have one, or by simple assessment. |
| More than £10,000 | or | More than £2,500 | You should complete a self assessment tax return. |
Please note, the above table sets out the self assessment reporting limits for rental income only. If you fall within HMRC’s self assessment criteria for another reason, then you will need to complete a tax return, and include any taxable rental income on your tax return. More information on needing to complete a tax return can be found in our separate guidance on this topic.
If you start getting rental income which is taxable, you should tell HMRC about it. Contact them by 5 October following the end of the tax year concerned, either so:
- HMRC can adjust your PAYE tax code/ issue a simple assessment calculation (in which case you should phone or write to them to provide the information), or
- HMRC can issue you with a self assessment tax return (in which case you will need to register for self assessment).
For example, if you started getting taxable rental income in the year to 5 April 2025, you should tell HMRC/register for self assessment by 5 October 2025.
If you miss the 5 October deadline, you should still tell HMRC as soon as possible. As long as any tax due is paid on time (normally by the tax return deadline of the following 31 January), there will be no penalty to pay for having missed the 5 October deadline. You can read more about penalties generally on our page Tax penalties and interest.
Making Tax Digital (MTD) for income tax
MTD for income tax is a new system for recording and reporting business income and expenses if you are self-employed and/or receive property income. It is due to be rolled out in phases from 6 April 2026.
Initially, this will only affect those with gross rental and/or self-employed income of £50,000 or more. From 6 April 2027, those with gross rental and/or self-employed income of £30,000 or more will be required to report under MTD for income tax, unless they are exempt. In due course, this limit will further reduce to include those with gross property and/or self-employment income of £20,000.
The information on your 2024/25 self assessment tax return will be used by HMRC to assess whether you have annual gross income of more than £50,000. If so, you will be required to follow the MTD rules from 6 April 2026 unless you are exempt. See our page Making Tax Digital for income tax to find out more about the scope of MTD, how your annual gross income is calculated and your start date. It also explains the digital requirements that you will have to comply with when you reach the MTD threshold and also the exemption rules.
Reporting property income under MTD for income tax
The main requirements of the Making Tax Digital (MTD) rules are explained on our page Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. They include the need to keep digital records and to submit quarterly updates through software summarising the property income and expenses for the period.
If you have more than one rental property, the total income and expenses under each category will need to be added together for all properties for the quarterly updates. But if you have UK property and foreign property, total foreign property income and expenses must be reported separately from total UK property income and expenses. Also see our jointly owned property section below for special rules which can apply where a property is jointly owned.
Jointly owned property
Separate quarterly updates must be submitted where property is jointly owned.
In addition, HMRC have agreed certain easements to the reporting requirements for people who let property jointly. If you let out jointly owned property, the MTD digital requirements could be more difficult, as the record of rental income and expenses will often be maintained by only one joint owner. Landlords with jointly owned property will be able to choose to use these easements if they wish to reduce the administrative burden in these circumstances.
One easement will allow landlords with jointly owned property to report their share of the gross rental income only from the jointly owned property in the quarterly updates. This means they will not need to report details of the expenses in the quarterly updates during the tax year (but will need to do so as part of the annual finalisation process for each tax year).
For landlords who own property on their own as well as owning property jointly, the easement only applies to the jointly owned property. So, income and expenses relating to the solely owned property must still be included in quarterly updates.
There is also a further easement in relation to the digital records that will be required for landlords with jointly owned property in respect of that jointly owned property only. You can read about the digital record-keeping easement for jointly let property on GOV.UK.
Undisclosed property income
If you have failed to disclose your property income to HMRC, we recommend that you seek advice as soon as possible to understand the likely exposure to tax, interest and penalties as a result of the non-disclosure.
You should aim to bring your tax affairs up to date as soon as possible. Note that HMRC may receive information from third parties about the property income which you have received, and you may be exposed to higher penalties if HMRC approach you before you approach them.
HMRC provide an opportunity for individuals to report undisclosed property income through the Let Property Campaign. For further information, please see GOV.UK.
