Making Tax Digital quarterly deadlines for 2026/27

By The Money Sheets · Last checked 22 October 2026

If you're a sole trader or landlord using Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax, you send HMRC four quarterly updates a year from your compatible software, then a tax return after the year ends. Here are the dates for the 2026/27 tax year (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027).

2026/27 deadlines at a glance (standard update periods)

Each update covers the tax year so far, not just the latest three months. HMRC says your software adds up your digital records from 6 April to the end of the update period, so a mistake you spot later can be corrected in the next update.

Calendar update periods

If your accounting period runs from 1 April to 31 March, HMRC says you should use calendar update periods instead: 1 April to 30 June, 30 September, 31 December and 31 March. The deadlines are the same: 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May. You have to choose calendar periods in your software before you send your first update, and you can't change for the rest of that tax year.

When you can send an update

• Any time after the update period ends, up to and including the deadline day.
• Up to 10 days before the period ends, if you don't expect any more transactions (for example, you're on holiday).
• More often than quarterly if you like, as long as each update still covers the full period from 6 April.
• Even if you had no income or expenses in a period: HMRC says you must still send the update.

What happens if you miss a deadline

From 2027/28, each late quarterly update earns a penalty point, and reaching 4 points means a £200 penalty. If you're volunteering for MTD, late quarterly updates don't get penalties, but late returns still do (2 points means £200 for volunteers).

Who has to do this

You must use MTD for Income Tax if your qualifying income (gross self-employment plus property income) was over £50,000 in 2024/25 (from April 2026), over £30,000 in 2025/26 (from April 2027), or over £20,000 in 2026/27 (from April 2028). See who needs Making Tax Digital for the detail.

Keeping your records ready for each deadline

HMRC needs the quarterly updates to be sent from compatible software. A spreadsheet on its own is not compatible software. If you keep records in a spreadsheet, HMRC says you need bridging software that is digitally linked to it: copying, retyping or copy-pasting figures into other software doesn't meet the digital-link rules. Our Sole Trader Bookkeeping Workbook and Landlord tracker keep your records by SA category, work out each quarter's year-to-date totals and show your next deadline. They are not HMRC-recognised software and can't send anything to HMRC on their own; use them with bridging software that can read them via a digital link.

Last checked against GOV.UK on 22 October 2026. The Autumn Budget on 28 October 2026 may change some rules for later tax years; we re-check this page after each Budget and every April.

Sources

• GOV.UK: Send quarterly updates (Making Tax Digital for Income Tax) (checked 22 October 2026)
• GOV.UK: Use Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (introduction) (checked 22 October 2026)
• GOV.UK: Create digital records (digital links) (checked 22 October 2026)

This guide is general information, not tax, legal or financial advice.