More than 800,000 sole traders and landlords were required to meet their first Making Tax Digital (MTD) deadline on Friday 7 August. Official HMRC figures reveal that 436,000 people submitted their first update by the deadline, out of 864,000 taxpayers expected to comply with the new rules, suggesting nearly half may have missed it.
Since April 2026, sole traders and landlords with a qualifying income exceeding £50,000 have been mandated to follow new digital reporting rules for income tax. This involves maintaining digital records and sending quarterly updates to HMRC using compatible software. The 7 August deadline covered income and expenses recorded during the first three months of the 2026-27 tax year.
HMRC has confirmed that it will not issue penalty points for late quarterly updates during the 2026-27 tax year. However, taxpayers are still required to submit if mandated. Before the deadline, HMRC reported that 570,000 taxpayers had registered, which was below the total number expected to fall within the scheme's scope. HMRC will begin automatically signing up eligible taxpayers from September 2026, with new guidance on auto-enrolment expected in late August.
Quarterly deadlines are fixed, with subsequent dates including 7 November 2026, 7 February 2027, and 7 May 2027. Alongside these, an 'End of Period Statement (EOPS)' and a 'Final Declaration' must be submitted by the self-assessment deadline of 31 January following the tax year.