Making Tax Digital for Income Tax — Are You Affected?
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (MTD for ITSA) changes how sole traders and landlords keep records and report to HMRC. Answer two quick questions to find out if — and when — it applies to you.
Check in 20 seconds
Total turnover/rental income from self-employment and property combined — not profit.
This income comes from… (tick all that apply)
Get your personal MTD readiness summary
Enter your details and we'll email your result plus a short plain-English summary of what to do next.
Who files it for you
Knowing you are affected is the easy part. From the date it applies, you need records kept digitally, software that talks to HMRC, a quarterly update filed four times a year and a final declaration after the year end. That is what we do for clients, and it is not sold as a separate compliance product — it sits inside ongoing bookkeeping and support, because quarterly filing only works if the records behind it are already current.
Setup and registration
We confirm which of your income counts towards the threshold, get you signed up with HMRC and make sure the right authorisations are in place before the first quarter starts.
Digital records that qualify
Records kept in Xero rather than on a spreadsheet, so the digital link HMRC requires is real rather than retrofitted at the deadline.
Quarterly updates
Prepared and submitted for you, four times a year, from records we are already keeping up to date.
Xero set up for it
As a Xero Platinum Partner and a 100% Xero practice, we set the software up properly — bank feeds, receipt capture and the property or trade split where you have both.
The final declaration
The year-end position pulled together, reliefs and allowances applied, and the submission that replaces the old Self Assessment return.
Someone to ask
A named client manager who knows your situation, rather than a helpline. Questions are included in the fee.
Common questions
Who needs to comply with MTD for Income Tax?
Sole traders and landlords whose combined qualifying income is at or above the threshold for their wave. The checker above tells you which wave you are in from your own figures, and the thresholds step down over the following years — so being outside it today does not mean being outside it for good.
Can you submit my quarterly updates?
Yes. We prepare and submit all four quarterly updates and the final declaration, from records we are already keeping current. It forms part of an ongoing bookkeeping and support arrangement rather than a filing service on its own — quarterly deadlines are unforgiving if the records are three months behind.
Do I have to use Xero for this?
In practice, yes — CASS is a 100% Xero practice and a Xero Platinum Partner. MTD requires digital records with a genuine digital link to HMRC, and keeping every client on one platform is how we make sure that link is real rather than patched together each quarter. If you are moving across, we handle the migration and bring the history with it.
I already file a Self Assessment return. Does that stop?
Once MTD for Income Tax applies to you, the quarterly updates plus a final declaration replace the Self Assessment return you file today. The information is similar; the timetable is not, which is the part most people need help with.
What does it cost?
It forms part of your fixed monthly fee rather than appearing as a separate charge. Build your package on the pricing page and you will see your own figure in about two minutes, with no email address needed.
Already using Xero and want the records side handled properly? See our bookkeeping service.