Published: Aug 2026

The biggest change to Self Assessment in almost 30 years is finally here.

From 6 April 2026, sole traders and landlords with qualifying income above £50,000 must follow the new Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax rules.

What’s changing?

Instead of keeping paper records and submitting one tax return each year, you’ll need to:

• Keep digital records
• Use MTD-compatible software
• Send quarterly updates to HMRC
• Submit an end-of-year declaration

Who is affected?

Currently, the rules apply to:

• Sole traders
• Self-employed individuals
• Landlords

with qualifying income over £50,000.

Good news

You are not paying tax quarterly.

The quarterly submissions are simply updates to HMRC. Your tax payment dates remain broadly the same.

The Bkeepers – Top Tip

Don’t wait until HMRC sends a letter. Moving to cloud bookkeeping now will make the transition much easier.