# Making Tax Digital for Income Tax

> Who Making Tax Digital for Income Tax applies to, the income thresholds from April 2026 to 2028, and what it means for a practice.

- Web page: https://www.alesanalytics.com/docs/making-tax-digital-income-tax
- Markdown: https://www.alesanalytics.com/docs/making-tax-digital-income-tax.md
- Last updated: 2026-11-08
- Publisher: Ales Analytics

Industry guide. Quarterly updates from April 2026. Published 2026-11-08. Last reviewed 2026-11-08. Reviewed by Ales Analytics engineering.

## Who it applies to

In the UK, sole traders and landlords whose qualifying income (gross income from self-employment and property combined) is above a threshold, and the accountants and agents who act for them. The threshold falls in stages, so more clients come into scope each year.

## What it requires, in plain terms

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax replaces part of the annual Self Assessment routine with digital records and more frequent reporting.

- **Digital records.** Income and expenses kept in compatible software, or in spreadsheets connected to it by bridging software.
- **Quarterly updates.** A summary of income and expenses sent to HMRC every quarter through that software.
- **A final declaration.** After the tax year, a final declaration confirming the figures, replacing the Self Assessment return for that income.

## Key dates

As of November 2026:

| Qualifying income above | Required from |
| ----------------------- | ------------- |
| £50,000                 | 6 April 2026  |
| £30,000                 | 6 April 2027  |
| £20,000                 | 6 April 2028  |

Thresholds are based on the qualifying income reported in an earlier tax year; check HMRC's guidance for the year that applies to each client.

## What it means for your systems

- For a practice, the work moves from one return a year to four updates plus a declaration for every client in scope. The volume of records that arrive as receipts, bank exports and spreadsheets grows with it.
- Client records have to be gathered, read, categorised and entered on a quarterly rhythm, with queries back to the client when something is missing.
- Each submission still needs review by a qualified person, so the useful system is the one that prepares the records and flags what needs attention, not one that submits on its own.

## Official sources

- [GOV.UK: Making Tax Digital for Income Tax](https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/making-tax-digital-for-income-tax)
- [GOV.UK: check if you need to use Making Tax Digital for Income Tax](https://www.gov.uk/guidance/check-if-youre-eligible-for-making-tax-digital-for-income-tax)
- [IRIS: what you need to know before the next tax year](https://www.iris.co.uk/blog/accountancy/mtd-for-itsa-everything-you-need-to-know-before-the-next-tax-year/)

## How this connects to our work

[Document intelligence](https://www.alesanalytics.com/capabilities/document-intelligence) can read receipts, statements and invoices into categorised records in the practice's own software, with low-confidence items sent to a person and every submission approved by the accountant. See also [Legal and professional](https://www.alesanalytics.com/industries/legal-and-professional).

## Contact

solutions@alesanalytics.com, or https://www.alesanalytics.com/contact.

- Every page as Markdown: https://www.alesanalytics.com/llms.txt