Rules for VAT-registered individuals

If you are registered for VAT, you are already in Making Tax Digital for VAT. MTD for Income Tax (ITSA) is a separate regime with its own signup, deadlines, and record-keeping rules — even when you are the same person running the same business.

Two separate regimes

MTD for VAT has been mandatory for large businesses since April 2019, and for all VAT-registered businesses since April 2022. MTD for Income Tax begins for sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000 from 6 April 2026 (and over £30,000 from April 2027).

Each regime has its own HMRC signup, submission schedule, penalty point pool, and digital record requirements. Submitting a VAT return does not count as an income tax quarterly update, and vice versa — they are separate submissions to different HMRC systems.

In practice, one software package can handle both MTD-VAT and MTD-ITSA, but you must sign up for each regime separately and meet both sets of rules.

Digital records and bridging software

Under MTD for Income Tax you must keep digital records of your self-employment and UK property income and expenses, send quarterly summaries, and complete a Final Declaration at year-end. HMRC's guidance confirms that compatible software can connect to existing spreadsheets or accounting data — you do not have to abandon familiar tools.

Bridging software is designed for exactly this: you keep working in Excel or Google Sheets, and the bridge reads your totals and submits them to HMRC via the API. The digital link must be unbroken (no manual re-keying of figures into a separate submission screen).