MTD quarterly updates explained

Under Making Tax Digital you send HMRC four updates a year from your software, plus a tax return at the end. The updates are simpler than many people expect.

What is in a quarterly update?

A quarterly update contains totals for each income and expense category you use, for example your sales and your travel costs. HMRC does not receive your individual records, such as receipts or invoices. Your software adds up the digital records you have kept and sends the totals.

Updates are cumulative: each one covers the period from the start of the tax year to the end of the update period. The second update covers six months, the third nine months and the fourth the whole year.

Update periods and deadlines

By default the periods follow the tax year (6 April to 5 April). If your accounts run from 1 April to 31 March, you can choose calendar update periods instead. The deadlines are the same either way.

You have to choose calendar periods before your first update for each income source, and you can't switch for a tax year once you have sent an update. You can send an update any time after the period ends, or up to 10 days before the end if you don't expect any more transactions. Exact dates for the coming years are in the deadline overview.

No income in a quarter?

You still have to send the update. HMRC wants to know that there was nothing to report, and a missing update can lead to a late submission penalty point.

Correcting mistakes

Fix the error in your digital records. Because the next update covers the whole tax year so far, the correction is included automatically and you don't need to resend earlier updates. If you change your records after the fourth update, you may need to resend the fourth update.

Jointly let property

For property you let jointly with someone else, you can choose to send either your share of the income and expenses, or only your share of the income. If you leave the expenses out during the year, you have to add them by resending your fourth update before you submit your tax return. For properties you own alone, you always include both income and expenses. More in our guide for landlords.

Frequently asked questions

Do I send every receipt to HMRC?

No. A quarterly update only contains totals for each income and expense category. HMRC does not receive individual records such as receipts or invoices.

What if I had no income or expenses in a quarter?

You still have to send the quarterly update to tell HMRC.

How do I fix a mistake in an earlier update?

Correct your digital records. Because each update covers the tax year to date, the next update includes the correction, so you do not need to resend earlier updates. After the fourth update you may need to resend the fourth one.

Source: GOV.UK: Send quarterly updates (updated 7 September 2026). Checked October 2026.