Act now if you earn more than £30,000 as a sole trader or landlord as Making Tax Digital extends

Oct 6

2 min read

Six months to go Making Tax Digital image from HMRC

HMRC is urging sole traders and landlords earning more than £30,000 to act now as Making Tax Digital extends its reach.

The UK tax authority is reminding the group that there are only six months to go before the lower-level income threshold, currently it's £50,000, requires obligatory enrollment on the Making Tax Digital scheme.

An early sign-up will help people choose compatible filing software and give them more time to prepare said HMRC.

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax will extend to sole traders and landlords earning more than £30,000 from 6 April 2027.

HMRC stresses that those sole traders and landlords affected should check whether they meet the threshold, as turnover includes gross income from self-employment and property before any tax allowances or expenses are deducted.

From 6 April 2027, around 1,077,000 more sole traders and landlords will need to create digital records and use compatible software to send HMRC quarterly updates of their income and expenses and to complete their tax return, in addition to those already using the service.

The quarterly updates are not additional tax returns, but short summaries.

HMRC reckons that by creating digital records throughout the year, sole traders and landlords can save hours previously spent gathering information at tax return time, helping them spend more time focusing on their business and avoiding the last-minute rush every January.

Craig Ogilvie, HMRC’s Director of Making Tax Digital, said:

"Hundreds of thousands of sole traders and landlords are already successfully using Making Tax Digital and now it’s time for the next group to get ready.

"Signing up now means you can prepare and familiarise yourself with the process before it becomes mandatory next April."

This builds on the launch of MTD for Income Tax for sole traders and landlords earning more than £50,000, who have been using the service since April 2026.

Their next milestone is the second quarterly update due on 7 November.

The threshold will decrease further to £20,000 from April 2028, bringing MTD for Income Tax to an even wider group of sole traders and landlords.