Deadline guide

MTD quarterly update due 7 November 2026

The second Making Tax Digital quarterly update of the 2026–27 tax year, for the quarter 6 July to 5 October. What it is, who sends it, and what to have ready. Not tax advice.

Who this applies to

Landlords and sole traders whose qualifying income (gross rent plus self-employment turnover, before expenses) was over £50,000 in 2024–25 are in Making Tax Digital for Income Tax from 6 April 2026. If that is you, you keep digital records and send HMRC a quarterly update for each source of income, including property, through MTD-compatible software. HMRC has published lower thresholds for later years; the gov.uk MTD pages carry the current timetable.

The 2026–27 dates HMRC lists

Source: “Quarterly updates with Making Tax Digital”, HMRC campaign site (makingtaxdigital.campaign.gov.uk/quarterly-updates), read 15 October 2026. If you chose calendar quarters in your software, the quarter is 1 July to 30 September and the deadline is the same.

What a quarterly update actually is

It is not a tax return. It is the running totals of your property income and expenses, by HMRC’s categories, from 6 April to the end of the quarter. Your software adds up your digital records and sends the totals. No allowances, no adjustments, no tax calculation: those come in the final declaration after the year ends. Cumulative means a mistake in the first quarter is simply corrected in the second; you do not resubmit the first.

What to have ready before 7 November

1. Every rent received 6 July to 5 October, per property, with the date it landed, not the date it was due.
2. Every bill paid in the quarter, in HMRC’s property expense categories: rates and insurance; repairs and maintenance; non-residential finance costs; legal, management and professional fees; costs of services including wages; residential finance costs (recorded separately, relieved at the basic rate); travel; other allowable expenses.
3. Anything private or capital kept out: your own time, improvements (a new extension is capital, a like-for-like boiler is a repair), and the mortgage capital repayments.
4. The split for jointly owned property (usually 50/50 for spouses unless you have told HMRC otherwise).
5. MTD-compatible software signed in and linked to your HMRC account, with the property source showing. HMRC publishes the list of compatible software on gov.uk; several products read a spreadsheet as a “bridge”.

If you miss it

HMRC runs a points-based penalty system for late quarterly updates: a point per late update, and a fixed penalty once you reach the points threshold. Points expire after a period of compliance. Sending something on time and correcting it later is treated far better than sending nothing. The gov.uk penalty pages carry the current figures.

A sheet that gets the totals ready

The MTD Landlord Sheet is a spreadsheet for exactly this: log each rent and bill as it happens, pick the quarter, and read off the totals in HMRC’s property categories, ready to type or import into your MTD software. Excel and Google Sheets. £29, once. It does not file anything with HMRC and it is not tax advice.

Buy the sheet, £29   See the sample

Questions

When is the next MTD quarterly update due?

7 November 2026, for the quarter 6 July to 5 October 2026 (or 1 July to 30 September if you chose calendar quarters). HMRC's timeline lists 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May as the four quarterly deadlines each year.

Who has to send quarterly updates from 2026?

Sole traders and landlords with qualifying income (gross self-employment plus property income) over £50,000 in the 2024-25 tax year are in Making Tax Digital for Income Tax from 6 April 2026. HMRC has announced lower thresholds in later years; check gov.uk for the current timetable.

Do I need to work out my tax in a quarterly update?

No. A quarterly update is the running totals of your income and expenses by category for the year so far. Allowances, adjustments and the tax calculation happen in the final declaration after the tax year ends.

Can a spreadsheet be used for Making Tax Digital?

Records can be kept in a spreadsheet, but the update must be sent to HMRC through MTD-compatible software; some bridging products read a spreadsheet. The MTD Landlord Sheet prepares the totals; it does not file anything with HMRC.