MTD quarterly deadlines 2026/27: every date, and what happens if you miss one
MTD for Income Tax has four quarterly deadlines in 2026/27: 7 August 2026 (passed), 7 November 2026, 7 February 2027 and 7 May 2027, plus a final declaration due 31 January 2028. Each late update earns a penalty point; four points means a £200 fine.
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax became mandatory on 6 April 2026 for UK sole traders and landlords with combined gross income from self-employment and property over £50,000. HMRC contacted 864,000 people ahead of the first deadline, so if HMRC has contacted you, these dates apply to you. Here is every date for the 2026/27 tax year, what the penalty system actually does when you miss one, and a practical checklist for the next deadline: 7 November.
What are the MTD quarterly update dates for 2026/27?
Under the standard periods, each quarterly update covers the tax year so far and is due roughly a month after the quarter ends. The full timetable:
| Submission | Period covered | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly update 1 | 6 April – 5 July 2026 | 7 August 2026 (passed) |
| Quarterly update 2 | 6 April – 5 October 2026 (cumulative) | 7 November 2026 |
| Quarterly update 3 | 6 April 2026 – 5 January 2027 (cumulative) | 7 February 2027 |
| Quarterly update 4 | Full year: 6 April 2026 – 5 April 2027 | 7 May 2027 |
| Final declaration + tax payment | Tax year 2026/27 | 31 January 2028 |
Two things worth being clear on. First, quarterly updates do not mean paying tax quarterly — your tax is still paid by 31 January (plus payments on account where they apply). Second, the final declaration on 31 January 2028 replaces the Self Assessment return for 2026/27; it is where you finalise the year and confirm the figures.
Never rely on remembering these dates. Our free MTD Deadline Pack puts every 2026/27 deadline in your phone or email calendar (.ics file) with two-week warnings, plus a one-page cheatsheet of what each update needs. It costs nothing — it exists to help make sure no deadline sneaks past you.
What happens if you miss an MTD deadline?
HMRC uses a points-based penalty system for late quarterly updates, and it works like this:
- Each late quarterly submission earns one penalty point. One missed deadline does not, by itself, cost you money.
- At 4 points, a £200 fine applies. The points build up across deadlines, so repeated lateness is what gets expensive.
- Points expire after 24 months. A single slip drops off your record in time, as long as you do not keep collecting them.
In other words, missing 7 August 2026 was not a disaster — but with four update deadlines every year, someone who is habitually late can reach the £200 fine quickly. The system is designed to be forgiving of a one-off and firm on a pattern. The cheapest response to a missed deadline is simple: make sure the next one goes in on time.
Missed something? The next update fixes it
This is the most misunderstood — and most reassuring — part of MTD. Quarterly updates are cumulative: each one covers the whole tax year so far, not just the latest three months. Your 7 November submission reports totals from 6 April to 5 October, which means:
- If you made an error in your August update — a missed invoice, a miscategorised expense — the corrected year-to-date figures in your next update automatically fix it. There is no resubmission process to go through.
- If you missed the August update entirely, your November update still brings HMRC fully up to date, because it covers the whole period from 6 April. You may carry a penalty point for the late submission, but your records are not permanently broken.
Updates contain totals per HMRC income and expense category, not individual transactions — so keeping your digital records tidy and categorised as you go is what makes each deadline painless.
If getting the categories right is the part that worries you: the MTD Quarterly Kit — Landlord Edition and Sole Trader Edition (£19 each) are workbooks for Excel and Google Sheets built around HMRC's exact quarterly-update categories, with an automatic cumulative Quarterly Update sheet that is bridging-software-ready. Free updates for 2026/27.
Can you use calendar quarters instead?
Yes — there is an optional calendar-quarter election. Instead of periods ending on the 5th (5 July, 5 October and so on), your update periods run 1 April – 30 June, 1 July – 30 September, and so on. If your records already work in whole months — most spreadsheets and bank statements do — calendar quarters can be tidier. It is a choice, not a requirement; the standard tax-year periods above are the default. Check gov.uk for how to make the election and exactly how it applies to your situation before switching.
The 7 November checklist
The next deadline is the quarterly update due 7 November 2026, covering 6 April to 5 October. Five concrete steps, in order:
- Confirm you're signed up for MTD. Go to gov.uk and search "Sign up for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax" — you use the same Government Gateway ID as Self Assessment. Some accountants sign clients up, so check whether yours already has.
- Bring your digital records up to date to 5 October. Every item of income and expense, categorised under HMRC's headings. Spreadsheets are allowed as digital records, provided totals flow to HMRC by formula or software link — retyping or copy-pasting totals breaks the digital-links rules.
- Fold in anything you missed from Q1. Because updates are cumulative, this submission is your correction window for the August period. Add missed items now and the year-to-date totals come out right.
- Check your submission route works. If you use a spreadsheet, that means recognised bridging software — it reads your category totals and submits them to HMRC via API, with field mapping done once and remembered. HMRC's official list is on gov.uk: "Find software that works with Making Tax Digital for Income Tax".
- Submit early — aim for the first week of November. A few days' buffer covers software hiccups, Gateway login problems and anything you spot at the last minute. Set a reminder for late October now.
One extra note for landlords who also have self-employment income: property and self-employment each need their own quarterly updates, submitted separately — so this checklist runs twice.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to pay tax at each quarterly deadline?
No. Quarterly updates are information submissions — totals per income and expense category. Your tax bill for 2026/27 is still paid by 31 January 2028, along with payments on account where applicable. Nothing about the quarterly dates changes when you pay.
I missed the 7 August 2026 deadline. What should I do now?
Focus on the 7 November update. Because updates are cumulative, it covers everything from 6 April to 5 October, so HMRC gets your complete year-to-date figures. The late August submission may have earned you one penalty point — but points only turn into a £200 fine at four, and they expire after 24 months, so one slip followed by on-time submissions costs nothing.
Can I change my quarterly dates to calendar quarters?
Yes, via the optional calendar-quarter election, which switches your periods to 1 April – 30 June, 1 July – 30 September and so on. It suits people whose records run in whole months. Check gov.uk for how to make the election before relying on the changed periods.
Are the deadlines different for landlords and sole traders?
No — the same 2026/27 dates apply to both: 7 August, 7 November, 7 February, 7 May, then the final declaration by 31 January 2028. The difference is that if you have both property and self-employment income, each needs its own separate quarterly updates.
Want the dates handled for you? Start with the free Deadline Pack — calendar file with two-week warnings, plus a cheatsheet. When you're ready to make the submissions themselves quick, the £19 kits (Landlord / Sole Trader) or the £29 Complete Bundle add the category-perfect workbook and the "Submit in 20 Minutes" guide.
This page is general information, not tax advice, and buying our products does not create an accountant–client relationship. For your own circumstances, check gov.uk or speak to a qualified accountant. We are not affiliated with HMRC. Published by Cunniffe & Helm Ltd (registered in England & Wales, no. 08990516), trading as MTD Quarterly Kit. Full terms: mtdquarterlykit.co.uk/legal.