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Guide · Signing up

How to sign up for Making Tax Digital

The short answer

You sign up for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax on GOV.UK with your Self Assessment login, or your accountant signs you up as your agent. You must be registered for Self Assessment and have filed a return in the last 2 years. You can join early, for the current or the next tax year.

Compare accountantsAbout Making Tax Digital →

Prefer to talk? Call 0330 057 7175

A restaurant owner standing in his dining room

2 years

you must have filed a Self Assessment return within

Sep 2026
HMRC began signing up people who should already be in
6 Apr 2027
start date for qualifying income over £30,000
2 routes
sign up yourself, or through an accountant
£0
to sign up; software and help may cost

Before you start

What you need to sign up

  • Your Self Assessment user ID and password, the same ones you use to file your return
  • Your business start date, or when your property income started, if it was in the last 2 tax years
  • The tax year you will start using the service
  • For sole traders: your business name, address and trade
  • Details of each business, as HMRC asks you to check every self-employment and property business

Check you need to join first: our MTD checker shows your start date from your income.

Two routes

Signing up yourself or through an accountant

  • YourselfUse the online sign-up service on GOV.UK with your Self Assessment login, then choose your software.
  • Through an accountantAuthorise them as your agent and they sign you up through their own route, then send your updates.

If you plan to use an accountant, it is easier to choose one first and let them sign you up, so the software and permissions are set up together.

A cafe owner with her arms folded behind the counter

Let an accountant sign you up

They sign you up, set up the software and send each update, so nothing is missed. We will match you with up to 4 local Making Tax Digital accountants.

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Timing

When to sign up

If your qualifying income was over £50,000 on your 2024 to 2025 return, you should already be signed up. Since September 2026, HMRC has been signing up people in that group who had not done it, using the information it holds. If that happens to you, HMRC will tell you what to do next, including any updates you have missed.

If you join on 6 April 2027, you can sign up now as a volunteer. That gives you time to get used to the software before the deadlines count. If you sign up part-way through a year, you need to send any missed updates for the year so far.

After signing up

What happens next

You keep digital records from your start date, send the quarterly updates by 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May, and file your tax return through your software by 31 January. Sole traders and landlords each have their own guide.

A sole trader reading a tax letter at his kitchen table

The dates that matter

  1. 6 Apr 2026Started for qualifying income over £50,000 (2024-25 return)
  2. 7 Nov 2026Second quarterly update due for the April 2026 group
  3. 6 Apr 2027Starts for qualifying income over £30,000 (2025-26 return). Penalty points for late quarterly updates begin
  4. 7 Aug 2027First quarterly update due for the April 2027 group
  5. 31 Jan 2028First MTD tax return and payment due for 2026-27
  6. 6 Apr 2028Starts for qualifying income over £20,000 (2026-27 return)

Questions people ask

Signing up for MTD: your questions

How do I sign up for Making Tax Digital?

Use the sign-up service on GOV.UK with your Self Assessment user ID and password, or ask your accountant to sign you up as your agent. Source

Who can sign up?

Sole traders and landlords who are registered for Self Assessment and have submitted a tax return in the last 2 years. Source

Can I sign up early?

Yes. You can volunteer for the current tax year or the next one. If you join part-way through a year, you send any missed updates for the year so far. Source

Will HMRC sign me up automatically?

From September 2026, HMRC began signing up people who needed to use the service for 2026 to 2027 and had not signed up. It uses the information it already holds and tells you what to do next. Source

Is there a deadline to sign up?

GOV.UK gives no fixed sign-up deadline, but you must be signed up in time to keep records and send updates from your start date. Source

Does it cost anything to sign up?

Signing up is free. You will need compatible software, and free products exist for simple tax affairs. An accountant charges for their time. Source

Guides

MTD for Income Tax explainedWho is in, the dates, quarterly updates and what it costs.Making Tax Digital for the self-employedWhat changes for sole traders from April 2027.Making Tax Digital for landlordsRental income, joint ownership and overseas property.Self-employed tax calculatorHow much tax and NI to set aside each quarter.Self-employed mileage calculatorThe 55p rate or actual costs: which claims more.MTD deadline calendarEvery update and payment date, added to your calendar.Do I need to use Making Tax Digital?Check your qualifying income and start date.MTD software or an accountant?Software, spreadsheets and bridging tools compared.MTD penalties and exemptionsPenalty points, late payment and who is exempt.Accountants for small businessWhat they do, what to ask and what they cost.MTD for builders and CIS subcontractorsHomeowner and contractor work, CIS and the reverse charge.MTD for plumbers and electriciansDeposits, van stock, scheme fees and card payments.MTD for taxi and delivery driversSeveral apps, platform reports and car costs.MTD for hair and beautyRent-a-chair, tips, products and mobile work.MTD for cleaners and carersMany small clients and travel between them.

Sources

Written by the Compare Advantage team, Chorley. Facts checked against GOV.UK on 3 November 2026.

Compare Advantage is an introduction service. We are not an accountancy firm and do not give tax advice. We will contact you to introduce a local accountant who handles Making Tax Digital, and we tell you which firm before we pass on your details. Firms may pay us for the introduction. Guidance on this page is general and based on the GOV.UK sources linked on each page.