How to Prepare for Making Tax Digital

Use HMRC’s guidance or our eligibility check to confirm whether MTD applies to you and from what date.

Pick from HMRC’s list of recognised software based on your business size and complexity. Look for the features that will actually save you time each quarter — bank feeds, mobile receipt capture and automatic categorisation — and make sure it supports your income types (multiple trades, UK and foreign property, VAT). If you would rather keep your spreadsheet, bridging software lets you stay in Excel while still meeting the rules. Ease of use matters more than a long feature list: the tool you will keep up to date beats the powerful one you avoid opening.

Migrate existing records into your chosen software and establish a routine for capturing income and expenses digitally from the point of transaction. Connect a bank feed so transactions flow in automatically, agree how you will handle cash and receipts, and make sure the digital trail runs from source to submission without manual re-typing — that digital-links requirement is central to MTD.

Complete MTD registration in your HMRC online account, authorising your software at the same time. You need to be registered for Self Assessment with a UTR first — the one step an agent cannot do for you — so if you are newly self-employed, sort that early because identity checks and getting a UTR can take a couple of weeks. If you would rather not do the sign-up yourself, an authorised agent can register you and connect the software on your behalf.

Diary your four deadlines (7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May), set aside time before each, and do a practice run so the live submission holds no surprises. Get into a little-and-often habit — reconciling to your bank monthly — so each quarterly update is a quick review rather than a scramble. Remember the updates are cumulative estimates: no tax is due until the normal 31 January date, so you do not need them to be perfect, just filed on time.

Leaving setup until the last minute, choosing software that doesn’t fit your business, and assuming the HMRC portal can still be used for submissions.

Ideally, be set up before 6 April of your start year, because your digital records need to run from the first day of the tax year in which MTD applies to you. For the April 2026 cohort that means having software chosen, records ready and HMRC registration in hand during early 2026 — not in the summer when the first quarterly deadline (7 August 2026) is already close. Starting a few months early turns MTD into a routine rather than a scramble.

From eligibility check to first quarterly update, our service covers every step of MTD preparation. Call 0114 327 1480 or email shjenquiry@msc-g.com and we’ll build your MTD setup around your business.