Do I need to use Making Tax Digital?

Answer up to five quick questions to find out whether Making Tax Digital for Income Tax applies to you, when it starts, and what to do next.

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How the MTD thresholds work

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax is coming in over three years. Whether it applies to you depends on your qualifying income two tax years before:

From 6 April 2026: qualifying income over £50,000 in 2024/25
From 6 April 2027: qualifying income over £30,000 in 2025/26
From 6 April 2028: qualifying income over £20,000 in 2026/27

HMRC checks the figure from your tax return and writes to you if you’re over, but it’s your responsibility to check, so don’t wait for the letter.

What counts as qualifying income?

It’s your total income from self-employment and property before expenses. That means your turnover and rent, not your profit. Wages from a job, pensions, savings interest and partnership income don’t count. If you own a property jointly, count your share.

So if you invoiced £34,000 in 2025/26 and had £12,000 of expenses, your profit is £22,000, but your qualifying income is £34,000. MTD applies to you from April 2027.

What changes when MTD applies?

You keep your income and expense records digitally, in software or in a spreadsheet with bridging software
You send HMRC a quarterly update by 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May
You file your tax return through your software, by 31 January as now

What doesn’t change: how much tax you pay, and when you pay it.

Can I be exempt?

You can apply to HMRC for an exemption if it isn’t practical for you to use digital tools, for example because of your age, a disability or where you live. If HMRC agrees, you carry on filing a Self Assessment return as normal.