MTD Deadlines 2026/27: Quarterly Update Calendar

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax has five dates a year: four quarterly update deadlines and one tax return deadline. The quarterly deadlines are the same every year, 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May, and the tax return is due by 31 January after the tax year ends. The dates you pay tax do not change.

Below are the full calendars for 2026/27, 2027/28 and 2028/29, what the two kinds of update period mean, and what happens if you miss one.

MTD deadlines for 2026/27

This is the first year of Making Tax Digital for Income Tax for people whose qualifying income was over £50,000 in 2024/25. On the standard update periods:

You may have seen the periods written as three-month blocks (6 April to 5 July, 6 July to 5 October, and so on). HMRC now describes each update as covering from the start of the tax year to the end of the update period, which is why every period above starts on 6 April. More on why that matters below.

MTD deadlines for 2027/28

From 6 April 2027 people whose qualifying income was over £30,000 in 2025/26 join as well. Everyone already using the service carries on with the same dates:

MTD deadlines for 2028/29

From 6 April 2028 the threshold falls to qualifying income over £20,000, based on the 2026/27 return:

Is it the 5th or the 7th?

The 7th. Earlier guidance, and a lot of articles written from it, used the 5th of the month. HMRC's guidance has given the 7th since May 2025, and that is what applies now.

Standard or calendar update periods

There are two ways to slice the year, and the deadlines are the same for both:

• Standard update periods follow the tax year: 6 April to 5 July, then to 5 October, 5 January and 5 April. Use these if your accounts run to 5 April, which is the default.
• Calendar update periods follow month ends: 1 April to 30 June, then to 30 September, 31 December and 31 March. HMRC suggests these if your accounts run to 31 March, because it keeps the record-keeping simpler.

If you want calendar periods, you have to choose them in your software for each income source before you send your first quarterly update. Once you have sent an update for a tax year, you cannot switch that year.

Why every period starts on 6 April

Quarterly updates are cumulative. The update due on 7 November does not just cover July to October; it covers everything from 6 April to 5 October. In practice this means:

• if you spot a mistake from an earlier quarter, you correct the record and it flows into your next update, without resending the old one;
• if you fall behind, catching up means getting the year's records in order rather than rebuilding each quarter separately;
• after the fourth update you may still need to resend it, for example to add expenses for a jointly let property or to correct an error, before you submit your tax return.

When you can send an update

• Any time from the day after the period ends up to the deadline. You do not have to wait for the 7th.
• Up to 10 days before the period ends, if you know nothing more will come in or go out (HMRC's example is going on holiday).
• More often than quarterly if you want a running tax estimate, as long as each update still starts on 6 April.

If nothing happened in a period, you still send the update. A nil update tells HMRC there was no income or expense, and a missing one counts as missed.

If you have more than one income source

You send an update for each business on the same deadline. All your UK lettings count as one UK property business, however many properties you have. Overseas lettings are one foreign property business. Each separate trade you run as a sole trader is its own business, so an electrician who also gives driving lessons sends two self-employment updates.

Do I pay tax every quarter?

No. Quarterly updates are summaries, not bills. Making Tax Digital does not change how or when you pay: your balancing payment is still due on 31 January, with payments on account on 31 January and 31 July if they apply to you.

The return for the year before you start

The last return before you join is sent the old way. If you started on 6 April 2026, your 2025/26 return is due by 31 January 2027 through your usual Self Assessment route. From 2026/27 onwards the tax return goes through your Making Tax Digital software.

What happens if you miss a deadline

Late submission penalties under Making Tax Digital are points based. HMRC's penalties guidance sets out how they work. In short:

• 2026/27: HMRC does not apply penalty points for late quarterly updates. You must still send all four before you can submit your tax return, and a late tax return earns a point.
• 2027/28 onwards: each missed quarterly deadline and each missed tax return deadline earns a point, one per deadline even if you have several businesses. Reaching the points threshold triggers a financial penalty.
• Paying late is separate. Late payment interest is charged from the first day a payment is late, and late payment penalties apply if the tax is still unpaid after the periods HMRC sets out.

Our MTD penalties guide covers the points system in more detail.

How VoxaMTD handles the calendar

VoxaMTD shows each quarter of the tax year with its deadline and sends the update for your self-employment and UK property income directly to HMRC's live Making Tax Digital service. Sending updates is free. VoxaMTD uses the standard update periods (6th to 5th); if you have chosen calendar update periods, you will need software that supports them.

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Dates are taken from HMRC's guidance as at 27 September 2026. This guide is general information, not tax advice.