MTD is Coming This April Here's What You Actually Need to Know

If you read our last blog on Making Tax Digital, you know it's been on the horizon. For some of you, it just became real.

From 6th April 2026, if your combined self-employment and rental income is over £50,000, you need to start using MTD for Income Tax Self Assessment (MTDITSA).

We know that sentence alone might have made your stomach flip. So let's talk about what this actually means for you, and why it's genuinely more manageable than it sounds.

First: Are you even affected?

HMRC will look at your 2024/25 tax return (the one you submitted by 31 January 2026) to work out your qualifying income.

If your combined gross income from self-employment and property is over £50,000, then yes, you need to use MTDITSA from April 2026.

(Gross means before expenses – we know that can feel unfair when your actual profit is much lower, but that's how HMRC counts it.)

Under £50,000? You can breathe out. This doesn't apply to you yet.

What actually changes?

You'll need to keep digital records and send quarterly updates to HMRC through compatible software for your self-employment and property income only. (not other income like employment, pensions, dividends, or interest.)

You'll still submit your final Self Assessment tax return (yes that’s 5 returns now) using the same compatable software by the normal due date, 31st January.

So it's quarterly updates for your business and rental income throughout the year, plus your full final return - all through the software. (the first one is due in August)

It sounds like more work. But it will actually help you (I promise).

As you send each quarterly update, you'll see your tax liability building up. No more shock in January when you suddenly owe thousands. You'll know what's coming.

The idea is that by staying on top of things throughout the year, you avoid the annual scramble and the mountain of receipts in January.

The software bit (this is the part that worries people)

You need compatible software.

We use Xero with our clients because we think it is the best software available. Xero has worked extensively with HMRC to design packages for all levels of need and it works seamlessly with HMRC (we have tested it). Some banks are also rolling out services that help you complete the process from your banking app. Not so scary after all?

If your income and expenses are all squared away in the software each quarter then when a quarterly deadline arrives, it's more like a quick check-in than a massive admin job.

We can set you up, walk you through it at your pace, and make sure you actually feel comfortable, not just "sort of understand it." And if you'd rather not touch the bookkeeping at all, we can handle that too.

What about penalties?

Eventually, HMRC will introduce a points system for missed quarterly deadlines. But there's a introduction period built in during which no penalties will be issued in the first year in the scheme, which means the focus right now is genuinely about getting set up, not about catching you out.

Our job is to make sure that by the time any of that matters, staying on top of deadlines feels completely routine.

Feeling overwhelmed?

Most people do at first. The technical language, the deadlines, the worry about getting it wrong.

That's exactly why our Advice Hours with me exist.

Book an hour with Niki. Bring your specific questions. We'll work through what applies to you, what your next steps actually are, and you'll leave feeling clear instead of stressed.

No jargon. No judgment. Just the answers you need. because you don’t know what you don’t know!

The honest advice?

Don't leave it until your first return is due in August. Give yourself time to settle in before deadlines started.

Here when you need us.