If you're self-employed or a landlord with turnover over £50,000, Making Tax Digital started in April and your first quarterly update — covering 6 April to 5 July — is due on 7 August 2026. There's no template for it, because it has never happened before. Here's what's actually required, what happens if you're late (less than you fear), and the bit that really trips people up.
The first quarterly update — covering 6 April to 5 July — is due on 7 August 2026. It's the first one there has ever been.
Each update runs from the START of the tax year to the end of that quarter — not just the last three months. Get one wrong and the next one corrects it.
Records must be kept digitally in MTD-compatible software — spreadsheets and paper alone won't cut it.
Want the deadline itself unpacked — including the cumulative rule and what actually happens if you're late? Read our guide: your first Making Tax Digital quarterly update.
A quick guide, not formal advice — book a call and we'll confirm your exact position.
Coming off spreadsheets or an old desktop package? That move has its own pitfalls — opening balances, a split VAT quarter, duplicated bank data. See how we handle accounting system migration.
7 August 2026. It covers the period from 6 April to 5 July 2026 — the first quarter of the new tax year. This is the first quarterly update that has ever been required, which is exactly why it is catching people out.
Less than most people fear, and we'd rather tell you the truth than scare you. HMRC has confirmed it will NOT apply penalty points for late quarterly updates during the 2026 to 2027 tax year — this first year is a soft landing. But that is not a reason to ignore it: you still have to send every quarterly update before you can file your tax return, and the late-filing penalties on the tax return itself very much do still apply. Use the grace, don't rely on it.
No — and this is the bit that surprises everyone. Each quarterly update runs from the start of the tax year up to the end of that quarter, cumulatively. That is genuinely good news: if you get something wrong in quarter one, the next update simply restates the year to date and corrects it. You don't have to resend the earlier one.
It's phased in by qualifying income: from 6 April 2026 for self-employed people and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000, from 6 April 2027 for those over £30,000, and from 6 April 2028 for those over £20,000. The band you fall in is set by your previous year's tax return — so April 2026 is based on your 2024/25 figures. If you're over £50,000, you are in it now — the 7 August update is yours.
Turnover, not profit — this trips up more people than anything else. Qualifying income is your GROSS income before expenses: your self-employment takings and any rental income added together. So a landlord with £30,000 of rent and a small side trade turning over £25,000 is at £55,000 of qualifying income and in the first wave from April 2026, even though their profit is far lower. If you're anywhere near a threshold, check the turnover figure, not what you actually took home.
Only if it's linked to HMRC through bridging software — records have to be kept and submitted digitally. We'll recommend the simplest compliant setup for how you actually work.
Honestly, it matters less than you think — Xero, QuickBooks and FreeAgent all do the job. The thing that actually derails people isn't the software, it's the records: receipts spread across three inboxes, a card nobody reconciles, and a quarter that closed two weeks ago. Fix the records and the software is the easy part.
Book a free, no-pressure call and we'll get you MTD-ready, well ahead of time.
Book a free call →We checked these rather than relying on memory. Every figure and deadline above comes from HMRC directly — go and read them yourself if you'd like to.
Last reviewed 17-07-2026. Tax rules change — if you're reading this long after that date, check the source.
