Getting help with Making Tax Digital and FAQs

No, not everyone will have to use Making Tax Digital. It will depend on:

• what type of income you have – only self-employed income and/or property income are in Making Tax Digital
• the amount of gross income (also called qualifying income) you earn from your self-employment and/or property income
• whether or not you have an exemption from Making Tax Digital.

If you have gross self-employed and/or property income below £20,000 then you will not be required to use Making Tax Digital under current rules. 

If you do not need to report your income using Making Tax Digital then you will continue using the self assessment tax system.

Making Tax Digital is being phased in over three tax years from April 2026 (the 2026/27 tax year) onwards. When you must start to use Making Tax Digital will depend on your gross self-employed and/or property income. There is more information on this in our guidance on When does Making Tax Digital start for me? You can also sign up voluntarily for Making Tax Digital before your mandatory start date. sign up voluntarily for Making Tax Digital before your mandatory start date. 

No, you have to choose commercial software  to file your quarterly updates and annual tax return under Making Tax Digital. 

No. Under Making Tax Digital you will need to:

• Keep digital records of your self-employment and property income and related expenses.
• Submit quarterly updates of your digital records, usually for each income source. So if you have property income and a self-employment trade then you would have to submit four quarterly updates for the property income and four quarterly updates for the self-employment, so eight quarterly updates in total.
• At the end of the tax year, you will submit an annual tax return using information from your submitted quarterly updates and tax information which isn’t included in your quarterly updates such as employment income. 

No, you do not need to use a tax adviser or an accountant. If you think you may need help with Making Tax Digital then see our page, Getting help with Making Tax Digital and FAQs. 

For some people it is a legal requirement to report tax information using Making Tax Digital. Our guides on Who does Making Tax Digital apply to? and Making Tax Digital Exemptions explain if you should be using Making Tax Digital and our When does Making Tax Digital start for me? page explains when that will happen. 

If you know you should be using Making Tax Digital and you do not have an exemption then you may be subject to penalties and fines if you do not file the quarterly updates or comply with the Making Tax Digital tax return process, see our penalties guidance for more information. Please note there are no penalties for the late filing of quarterly updates during the first year of Making Tax Digital, which is the 2026/27 tax year.

Our Making Tax Digital guidance has detailed information on lots of different areas – see our main Making Tax Digital for income tax hub page for our complete selection of guidance pages. 

You can also find links to further guidance and other frequently asked questions in our Getting help with Making Tax Digital and FAQs page.

No, you don’t. You only need to consider your gross income from self-employment and being a landlord.

No, you don’t. You only need to consider your gross income from self-employment and being a landlord.

No, they aren’t. You only need to consider your gross income from self-employment and being a landlord. Even if you are the only director of your own limited company, dividends are not included as qualifying income for Making Tax Digital. 

Yes, but only if your gross rental income exceeds the relevant Making Tax Digital threshold. You do not need to look at your employment income when working out if you need to use Making Tax Digital. We have further guidance on our page Making Tax Digital for landlords. 

Maybe. You need to look at your gross income (sales or turnover before deducting expenses) and not profits or losses when considering if you need to join Making Tax Digital. We have further guidance on Making Tax Digital for the self-employed.  

Yes, if your gross income from your property lettings is more than one of the Making Tax Digital thresholds. If you must use Making Tax Digital before selling your property, then you will still need to follow the Making Tax Digital requirements unless you are exempt. There is detailed information on our When does Making Tax Digital start for me? and Making Tax Digital for landlords pages. We also have information on when you can stop using Making Tax Digital when you do sell your rental property. 

You should also consider whether capital gains tax is relevant, including any reporting requirements. 

Yes, if your gross income from your property lettings is more than the relevant Making Tax Digital threshold. If you must use Making Tax Digital before stopping renting out your property, then you will still need to follow the Making Tax Digital requirements unless you are exempt. There is detailed information on our When does Making Tax Digital start for me? and Making Tax Digital for landlords pages. We also have information on when you can stop using Making Tax Digital when you cease renting out your property. 

Yes, if your gross income is above the relevant Making Tax Digital threshold, unless HMRC agree you are exempt - this is explained in more detail in our page, When does Making Tax Digital start for me? We also have information on when you can stop using Making Tax Digital when you do cease your self-employment.

Yes, you still need to use Making Tax Digital if your gross income is more than one of the Making Tax Digital thresholds. We explain when you will need to do so in our page When does Making Tax Digital start for me? It is HMRC’s intention that your CIS tax deductions should be pre-populated when you do your end of year tax return under Making Tax Digital. 

Yes, if your rental property income is high enough that you need to use Making Tax Digital then you will need to do so unless you are exempt, see our guidance on When does Making Tax Digital start for me? for more information. Some people will be automatically exempt from Making Tax Digital because of their individual circumstances.  If you complete a paper tax return because you are digitally excluded, you can apply for an exemption. There is more information on applying for an exemption on our page Making Tax Digital Exemptions. 

Yes, if your self-employed gross income is high enough that you need to use Making Tax Digital then you will need to do so unless you are exempt, see our guidance on When does Making Tax Digital start for me? for more information. Some people will be automatically exempt from Making Tax Digital because of their individual circumstances.  If you complete a paper tax return because you are digitally excluded, you can apply for an exemption. There is more information on applying for an exemption on our page Making Tax Digital Exemptions.

If you fall under one of the automatic exemptions and HMRC are aware of this based on the information in your 2024/25 tax return, the exemption will apply automatically and there is no need to apply. 

However, if there has been a change in your circumstances that means you now come within one of the automatically exempt groups for the first time, you would need to tell HMRC.

If you think you are digitally excluded, you will need to apply for an exemption to HMRC. 

There is no automatic age-related exemption. If you believe that your age impacts on your ability to comply with Making Tax Digital, you can apply for a digital exclusion exemption. However, you will need to explain why it is not reasonably practicable for you to use Making Tax Digital compatible software – in other words how your age would make it difficult for you to comply with the requirements of Making Tax Digital. See our checklist for tips on how to apply. 

You should provide information to support your claim when you apply for an exemption. If you do not provide sufficient information, HMRC may reject your application for exemption or come back and request further evidence. HMRC may also seek to verify the information you have provided to confirm it is accurate. 

You should not need to make a formal application, but you must contact HMRC either by phone or in writing to confirm why you are exempt for VAT and to confirm that your circumstances have not changed. You should include your National Insurance number and VAT registration number. HMRC should then confirm that you are exempt from Making Tax Digital for Income Tax.

The first tranche of taxpayers required to follow the new rules must do so from 6 April 2026 (the 2026/27 tax year), unless you are self-employed and make your accounts up to 31 March each year, in which case you must follow the new rules from 1 April 2026. This applies to those who reported qualifying income of more than £50,000 on their 2024/25 tax return. Making Tax Digital is being phased in over three years – the qualifying income threshold will reduce to £30,000 from April 2027 and £20,000 from April 2028. You can sign up to use Making Tax Digital voluntarily at any time, provided you are not automatically exempt. 

You must file one tax return under the current self-assessment system before joining Making Tax Digital. If you started trading in 2025/26, then you will not have to join Making Tax Digital until 6 April 2027 at the earliest, depending on what your qualifying income is on your 2025/26 self assessment tax return. You can sign up to use Making Tax Digital voluntarily at any time, provided you are not automatically exempt. 

If you start trading or renting out a property part way through the tax year, your income will need to be ’annualised’ so that a full 12 months of income can be compared against the Making Tax Digital threshold. See our section Having a new source of self-employment or rental income on this page.

if your annual gross income (qualifying income) is less than £20,000, under current rules you are not legally required to use Making Tax Digital. We will update this guidance if this changes. However you can choose to use Making Tax Digital voluntarily if you wish, provided you are not automatically exempt. 

HMRC have sent letters to those who they think are legally required to follow the new Making Tax Digital rules from April 2026, based on the data in the 2024/25 tax returns they received by 31 January 2026. However, it is still the taxpayer’s responsibility to check if they meet the criteria. Therefore if you haven’t received a letter but you know your gross income exceeded the relevant threshold, and you do not qualify for an exemption, you still need to sign up for Making Tax Digital. See our section What do I need to do for Making Tax Digital above.

You must sign up online at GOV.UK. You will need your government gateway login details. 

Digital records are records which are kept in a digital way, rather than on paper. In the context of Making Tax Digital, this means using approved software (or a combination of spreadsheets and approved bridging software) to keep track of and store details of your business or property income and expenditure. 

Your quarterly updates should only include total amounts, not full details of every transaction (although, for most people, the transaction details are likely to be recorded within your digital records). For each self-employment or property business that you have, you will have to provide the total amount of income and of expenses for each category of expenses. If your gross income is below the VAT registration threshold (currently £90,000) you do not need to break your expenses down into categories and can just report your total income and expenditure for the relevant period. Note that mortgage interest for residential property should always be categorised separately, as the tax relief is given in a different way. 

There is also an easement for joint property. See our page Making Tax Digital for landlords for more information. 

You need to keep accurate records so that you can complete your annual tax return properly, therefore if your business records are accurate, your quarterly updates should be accurate too. As quarterly updates are cumulative, it is fairly straightforward to correct any mistakes that you discover in a previous quarterly update (see the section ‘correcting a mistake in your digital records’ above).

You are not required to create digital records in real time, although some software will be able to do this by linking to your bank account. Your software provider may also offer an app which can allow you to photograph and upload receipts in real time. However, you can record expenses at a time which suits you, as long as the digital records are created and complete for the relevant period, before submitting your quarterly update. 

Yes, you can use a spreadsheet, but this on its own will not be enough. The spreadsheets must be linked to compatible software so you can send your quarterly updates. This is called a digital link and allows you to send the figures on your spreadsheet to HMRC without you having to type them again. You will need a special type of software called bridging software to be able to do this. See our page Choosing Making Tax Digital software for more information. 

Quarterly updates will need to be submitted every three months. The filing deadlines are 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May. 

No, you don’t complete five full tax returns each year. You need to file four quarterly updates for the relevant self-employment or property income sources during the tax year. The quarterly updates are not tax returns, just summaries of your income and expenditure for any qualifying income sources. 

You will also have to complete a Making Tax Digital tax return, which includes the necessary adjustments to arrive at your taxable profit for your business and/or property income, as well as details of any other taxable income and gains, and claims for allowances and reliefs. This year-end tax return replaces the current self assessment tax return and cannot be completed using HMRC’s online service for filing self assessment returns. 

A new points-based penalty regime applies to those who use Making Tax Digital for income tax. You may receive a penalty point if you miss a filing deadline. Once a certain threshold is reached, a financial penalty of £200 is issued by HMRC. However HMRC have recently announced that penalty points will not be issued if quarterly updates are filed late during the 2026/27 tax year. See our Making Tax Digital penalties page for more information. 

No, you don’t need to be VAT registered to be in scope of Making Tax Digital for income tax. We cover VAT registration on our page VAT when running a business and when you must use Making Tax Digital on our page When does Making Tax Digital start for me?.

No, you don’t need a separate business bank account for keeping  digital records and your quarterly updates. However, depending on what Making Tax Digital software you choose it may make the process easier to have a separate bank account for your business, see our guidance on Choosing Making Tax Digital software for more information.

You will have to decide whether to use the cash basis or traditional (accruals) accounting when keeping your digital records and for your quarterly updates. However, if you change your mind, you can make an adjustment to your tax return at the end of the tax year. 

Yes, you may need to use Making Tax Digital – you need to look at your gross income (sales or turnover) and not profits or losses when deciding if you need to use Making Tax Digital. If your gross income is above the Making Tax Digital threshold then you will need to follow the Making Tax Digital rules from the relevant tax year unless you are exempt.

Yes, you may still need to use Making Tax Digital. We explain when you may need to do so in our page, When does Making Tax Digital start for me?. However, we understand it is HMRC’s intention that your CIS information should be prepopulated as part of your year-end tax return.

Yes, you may still need to use Making Tax Digital. We explain when you may need to do so on our page, When does Making Tax Digital start for me?. The statements that online platforms provide to HMRC about some sellers’ activities do not contain sufficient information to act as a tax return. They are also for a calendar year and not a tax year. You can read more about these statements on our page, Seller information statements. 

You need to use Making Tax Digital as a sole trader when your total gross income from self-employment and property reaches a certain threshold. We explain how this is worked out when you start a new business in more detail on our page, When does Making Tax Digital start for me?. 

If you are already in Making Tax Digital, then you must also keep  digital records and quarterly updates for your new business. 

Yes, if your gross income is above the relevant threshold, unless HMRC have agreed you are exempt from Making Tax Digital. This is explained in more detail in our page When does Making Tax Digital start for me?. We also have information on when you can stop using Making Tax Digital.

You will need to include any transitional profits being spread as part of Basis Period Reform as part of your end of year adjustments to your tax return.

Yes. You will firstly need to make a calendar quarters election for your quarterly updates and then you can change your VAT quarters to become the same as the quarterly update periods. Once the change is made, your VAT returns will be due for the three months ended 31 March, 30 June, 30 September and 31 December each year. You should be able to change your VAT quarters via your VAT online account or by calling the VAT helpline.

Yes, there are some Making Tax Digital software products which are specifically for landlords and also some products that can be used by either landlords or the self-employed. It is important to understand what software is available (including free software) and how to choose the right option. See our page Choosing Making Tax Digital software for more information, including our checklist of things to consider when choosing a product.

If you sell your rental property or stop renting it out and you have no other sources of qualifying income, you will be able to leave Making Tax Digital. You will need to notify HMRC that your rental business has ceased. 

If you have sold your property there may be capital gains tax implications, including reporting requirements, to also consider.

You are required to submit quarterly updates under Making Tax Digital, so it is unlikely to be sufficient to receive your rental information from the letting agent annually. You may have to ask your letting agent to provide this information more frequently or keep some basic records separately. 

No, if your rental properties are both situated in the UK, these will form one rental business. Only one set of quarterly updates will be required for the combined rental business. However, if you have any foreign rental properties, these are considered to be a separate rental business and will require separate quarterly updates. See our guidance above under the heading More than one property.  

If each of your shares of the qualifying income exceeds the relevant threshold for Making Tax Digital, you will both need to sign up and use Making Tax Digital. Your digital records and quarterly updates should contain only your share of the income and expenditure relating to the joint property. However there is an easement relating to joint property which is explained under the heading Jointly owned property above. 

If you know before the start of the tax year that you will be claiming the property allowance, you don’t need to keep digital records of your expenses or include these expenses in quarterly updates. However, if you are unsure whether you will be better off claiming the property allowance, you should continue to keep digital records of all of your rental expenses. Your software should allow you to claim the property allowance when preparing your year-end tax return. Whether you will be required to keep digital records if claiming the property allowance depends on the level of your property income. See the heading The property allowance above. 

No, HMRC will not be providing any Making Tax Digital software at all. You will have to source third-party software which has been approved for Making Tax Digital. You can use HMRC’s software choices tool to help you find compatible software. HMRC will not be able to recommend a specific software product. 

You will not be able to use HMRC’s online filing service to prepare and submit your end of year tax return for any tax years where you are within Making Tax Digital, so from 2026/27 onwards for those joining from April 2026. If you are mandated to join Making Tax Digital from April 2026, you will still need to submit your 2025/26 tax return – which is due by 31 January 2027 – under the self assessment system. You can read more about this on our page How do I do my end of year tax return under Making Tax Digital?.

Yes, some software providers offer a free version of their product, however, these may only be suitable if you have straightforward tax affairs. HMRC’s software choices tool outlines the various products available and includes details of their functionality. You can filter for free software products. Watch out for “free” software products that come with conditions. For example, time-limited free trials that may result in charges when the trial ends, or offers that are only free for customers of certain banks. It’s important to check the terms and conditions carefully before signing up to any software product. 

Yes, you can use a spreadsheet, but this on its own will not be enough. The spreadsheets must be linked to compatible software so you can send your quarterly updates. This is called a digital link and allows you to send the figures on your spreadsheet to HMRC without you having to type them again. You will need a special type of software called bridging software to be able to do this.

If you have income from self-employment and from property, you have to submit quarterly updates for each source of income. There may be software products available that can deal with both sources, but you will potentially need to pay for more than one license. This is because there may be a limit on the number of businesses that one licence to use the software may cover. 

Some products only allow one software licence to cover one business, in which case you would need one licence for the self-employment record-keeping, quarterly updates etc and another separate licence for the property income record-keeping, quarterly updates etc. Therefore you have to pay an additional amount for the extra licence. HMRC’s software choices tool outlines the various products available and you can filter for your sources of income to help you find a suitable product. 

You will need a reliable broadband connection to be able to run most software products and to submit your quarterly updates to HMRC. If you do not have a reliable internet connection at home and are not able to access the internet elsewhere, you can consider applying for an exemption on the basis of being digitally excluded. 

Many software providers offer, or plan to offer, software with accessibility features, for example, if you are blind or have impaired vision (although you may be exempt if you claim blind person’s allowance). HMRC’s software choices tool allows you to filter for accessibility features. You should also confirm with any potential software provider before committing to a software product for Making Tax Digital. 

Yes, HMRC have confirmed that the cost of purchasing software will be tax deductible as a business expense on the basis that it is ‘wholly and exclusively’ used for business purposes. 

The level of customer support available will depend on the software provider you choose. Many providers will have their own customer support teams, but how the support is offered (for instance telephone support and support by email) may vary between providers. This is something that you should take into consideration when choosing a provider. HMRC will not be able to help with software specific queries. However, HMRC can answer general queries about Making Tax Digital via the self assessment helpline. 

There are many potential benefits of using software. HMRC say that digital record keeping may reduce the potential for errors in your return. You might find that using software will allow you to streamline your record keeping – rather than having invoices and receipts in different places – which should reduce the risk of you losing any important documents. If your software has the ability to do so, linking to your bank can also save you time when collating information. Some software will be able to send reminders, meaning you are less likely to miss filing deadlines. Certain software products may also be able to provide helpful prompts or nudges to flag up possible errors or highlight where reliefs or allowances might be available. 

However, we recognise that using software will also place an administrative burden on some individuals and might feel overwhelming. See our getting help page for more information. 

You will have to complete a year end tax return under Making Tax Digital, which replaces the current traditional self assessment tax return. The return will be similar, as you will still have to include all your taxable sources of income and gains and claim relevant allowances and reliefs. However, some information will be pre-populated – this will come from your quarterly updates and from information that HMRC already hold. 

Yes. Under Making Tax Digital, the due date for your end of year tax return is the same as it currently is under self assessment. Your return will usually be due by 31 January following the end of the relevant tax year. 

Yes. You should be able to make an amendment to your tax return using your software. The process for doing so will be dependent on the software that you choose, and you should check how to do this with your software provider. 

It depends on why you have been filing your self assessment tax returns on paper. If it is because you consider yourself to be digitally excluded you can apply for an exemption from Making Tax Digital. If you are not exempt from Making Tax Digital then you won’t be able to file your end of year tax return on paper. The tax return must be submitted using compatible software. See our page on Choosing Making Tax Digital software for more information. 

HMRC have confirmed that you will no longer be able to do this on the end of year tax return, under Making Tax Digital. This will have to be done separately via your personal tax account. 

HMRC have published guidance on the year end process which can be found at GOV.UK.

You cannot choose to stop using Making Tax Digital because you can no longer afford to pay for the software. Assuming your self-employment or property income is ongoing, you can only stop using Making Tax Digital if your gross income from self-employment and/or property has been below the relevant Making Tax Digital threshold for three consecutive tax years, or you are (or become) exempt. 

You could consider applying for an exemption, particularly if there is a specific reason why you can no longer afford the software, such as you have become ill and are having to reduce your workload. If you do not qualify for exemption, or HMRC do not grant you an exemption, then you run the risk of incurring penalties for not following the Making Tax Digital rules. You may consider switching to alternative software, such as free software, to enable you to meet the Making Tax Digital requirements. 

You cannot choose to stop using Making Tax Digital because you can’t afford to replace computer hardware.  Assuming your self-employment or property income is ongoing, you can only stop using Making Tax Digital if your gross income from self-employment and/or property has been below the relevant Making Tax Digital threshold for three consecutive tax years, or you are (or become) exempt. 

You could consider applying for an exemption, particularly if there is a specific reason why you can’t afford to replace the hardware, such as you have become ill and are having to reduce your workload. If you do not qualify for exemption, or HMRC do not grant you an exemption, then you run the risk of incurring penalties for not following the Making Tax Digital rules. You may need to look at switching to another method of enabling you to meet the Making Tax Digital requirements, such as using an app on your mobile phone. 

You cannot choose to stop using Making Tax Digital, even temporarily.  Assuming your self-employment or property income is ongoing, you can only stop using Making Tax Digital if your gross income from self-employment and/or property has been below the relevant Making Tax Digital threshold for three consecutive tax years, or you are (or become) exempt. 

You could consider applying for an exemption if your ill health means you will be unable to deal with your tax affairs digitally. HMRC may grant you a temporary exemption, depending on how long the period is that you expect to be unable to work. However, if it is relatively short-term, it is more likely that you will need to continue following the Making Tax Digital rules, even if this means that you need to file quarterly updates with nil income and expenses amounts until you are working again.