MTD Income Tax Deadlines: What Self-Employed People and Landlords Need to Know

This update explains the key MTD Income Tax deadlines for self-employed individuals and landlords who need to understand when Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax applies and what HMRC expects them to do.

The first mandatory phase started on 6 April 2026 for qualifying individuals with gross self-employment and property income over £50,000. Understanding your MTD deadline is important because joining MTD changes how you keep records and report income and expenses to HMRC throughout the tax year.

If you are already within the first phase, the focus is no longer simply preparing for MTD. You need to maintain digital records, use compatible software and meet the relevant reporting deadlines. Those entering MTD in later phases should use the remaining time to prepare their bookkeeping and reporting systems.

What Is MTD for Income Tax?

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax changes how affected sole traders and landlords report their self-employment and property income to HMRC. Instead of relying only on an annual Self Assessment process, taxpayers within MTD must keep digital records and use compatible software to send required information to HMRC.

For a full end-to-end overview of how MTD for Income Tax works, our complete guide to MTD for Income Tax 2025-26 covers eligibility, software, quarterly submissions and compliance requirements in detail.

What Are the Main MTD Income Tax Deadlines?

The MTD Income Tax deadlines begin with the date on which you are required to enter the system. Mandatory MTD for Income Tax is being introduced in phases according to qualifying income.

• From 6 April 2026: individuals with qualifying self-employment and property income over £50,000 must use MTD for Income Tax.
• From 6 April 2027: the regime extends to individuals with qualifying income over £30,000.
• From 6 April 2028: the government has announced a further extension to individuals with qualifying income over £20,000.

The relevant deadline for MTD Income Tax therefore depends on your qualifying income. Importantly, the threshold is based on qualifying gross income from self-employment and property rather than taxable profit after expenses.

For a clear breakdown of what MTD requires once you enter the regime, our guide on what MTD for Income Tax requires from April 2026 explains the digital record-keeping, software and reporting obligations.

MTD Income Tax Deadlines for Quarterly Updates

Entering MTD also introduces reporting deadlines during the tax year. Taxpayers must use compatible software to provide HMRC with quarterly updates containing summary information about their self-employment and property income and expenses.

For taxpayers using the standard tax-year quarters, the quarterly periods and submission deadlines are:

• 6 April to 5 July: update due by 7 August
• 6 July to 5 October: update due by 7 November
• 6 October to 5 January: update due by 7 February
• 6 January to 5 April: update due by 7 May

These MTD Income Tax deadlines are important because digital reporting becomes an ongoing responsibility rather than something dealt with only after the end of the tax year. Businesses should therefore have bookkeeping processes that keep income and expense records sufficiently up to date to meet each reporting date.

Who Must Meet the MTD Income Tax Deadlines?

The rules apply principally to individuals receiving qualifying income from:

• self-employment as a sole trader; and
• UK or overseas property businesses.

Different income sources can be combined when determining whether you exceed the applicable threshold. This means a landlord or sole trader should not look at each source separately when deciding whether an Income Tax MTD deadline applies.

Whether you fall within the rules depends on your qualifying income and the nature of the income you receive. Our guide on MTD qualifying income explains what counts towards the threshold and how qualifying income from different sources is assessed.

What You Need to Do After Your MTD Deadline

Once your mandatory MTD deadline has arrived, compliance involves more than submitting information four times a year. You must maintain the required digital records and use software that can communicate with HMRC.

For taxpayers who entered MTD from 6 April 2026, appropriate systems should therefore already be operating. Those due to enter from April 2027 or April 2028 should review their existing bookkeeping processes before their respective start dates.

For taxpayers moving away from traditional Self Assessment processes, our guide on Making Tax Digital for Self Assessment explains how digital reporting changes the way income and expenses are reported to HMRC.

Why MTD Income Tax Deadlines Matter

Missing MTD Income Tax deadlines can create compliance problems even where the underlying income and expenses are ultimately reported correctly. The regime places greater emphasis on maintaining records and meeting reporting obligations throughout the year.

This makes it important to know both your mandatory entry date and the reporting timetable that follows. Waiting until a quarterly deadline is close before updating several months of bookkeeping can increase the risk of incomplete records, incorrect categorisation and late submissions.

Our guide on whether you are ready for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax can help you review your current record-keeping, software and reporting processes.

MTD Income Tax Deadlines, Penalties and Compliance Risks

Taxpayers within MTD are expected to comply with the applicable digital record-keeping and submission requirements. Missing an Income Tax MTD deadline can therefore have consequences under HMRC’s late-submission regime.

The important practical point is that compliance needs to be managed throughout the year. A taxpayer who maintains accurate digital records as transactions occur is generally better placed to meet each MTD reporting deadline than someone attempting to reconstruct records immediately before a submission is due.

HMRC’s official guidance on Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, including eligibility and the reporting requirements, is available on GOV.UK.

Taxpayers who believe they may qualify for an exemption should not simply ignore their MTD obligations. Our guide on MTD taxpayer exemptions explains the qualifying criteria and formal application process.

Case Study: Getting a Landlord Ready for the First MTD Quarterly Deadline

Michael approached our Farringdon office after entering Making Tax Digital for Income Tax from 6 April 2026. His combined gross income from several rental properties and a small sole-trader business exceeded £50,000, placing him within the first mandatory phase.

Although Michael understood that MTD applied to him, he had continued maintaining parts of his records through spreadsheets, bank statements and receipts that were only reconciled periodically. As the first quarterly reporting period progressed, he became concerned that his records would not be sufficiently organised for the 7 August MTD deadline.

Cigma Accounting reviewed his property and self-employment records and helped establish which income and expenses needed to be maintained digitally. We then worked with Michael to improve his bookkeeping process and ensure his compatible accounting software contained sufficiently up-to-date information for the required quarterly reporting.

Rather than treating the first submission as a one-off exercise, we established a recurring process around the MTD Income Tax deadlines of 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May. This reduced the need to reconstruct several months of transactions immediately before each deadline.

Our wider support covered MTD bookkeeping, Self Assessment, rental property accounting and personal tax, helping ensure that Michael’s digital reporting formed part of his overall tax compliance rather than operating as a separate administrative exercise.

Michael was left with more reliable digital records, a clear quarterly timetable and a bookkeeping process capable of supporting his ongoing MTD responsibilities throughout the tax year.