Making Tax Digital
If “Making Tax Digital” makes you want to fake your own interval and never return — you’re not alone. Here’s the calm version.
HMRC goes digital
MTD is HMRC’s push to modernise the tax system: less paper, more digital. It’s a big change, but it should make the beautiful chaos of performing life easier. Why it beats the current once-a-year scramble:
- Live figures → set aside the right tax and avoid nasty surprises.
- No January panic → four small quarterly summaries instead of one big return.
- Perfect for irregular income → touring one month, teaching the next, a voiceover in a cupboard after that.
- Report as you go → no scrambling to remember a gig from over a year ago.
- Matches how we already work → digital invoices, internet banking, tracking apps.
Digital records + quarterly updates
You’ll keep digital records of income and expenses through the tax year (6 April – 5 April) and send them to HMRC every 3 months using HMRC-approved software, instead of the old once-a-year return. Then a final end-of-year check (your End of Period Statement and Final Declaration) confirms everything and HMRC gives you the final bill. Your PAYE income is reported automatically by employers, but you still include it in that final check. Crucially, the payment deadline doesn’t change — still 10 months after the tax year ends (31 January).
The phased thresholds
Whether MTD is compulsory depends on your previous tax years’ gross income from self-employment and property:
| From | You must use MTD if your income is over |
|---|---|
| April 2026 | £50,000 |
| April 2027 | £30,000 |
| April 2028 | £20,000 |
| April 2029 onward | Government plans to lower it further |
You can also start voluntarily from 6 April 2026 even if you’re not required to yet.
Good to know: penalties for late quarterly updates are waived for the first year MTD applies to you (2026/27), giving you room to adjust. That concession does not cover your year-end return for 2026/27 (due 31 January 2028).
The case for and against
Why jump in early: build good habits, get real-time insight into your finances, dodge future last-minute panic, and be ahead of the curve as HMRC goes fully digital.
Why wait:
- you’re confident you won’t hit the current threshold;
- you’re planning to stop being self-employed soon;
- you’d rather not pay for software until you must;
- you’re in a good rhythm already and aren’t legally required yet;
- your accountant advises holding off.
You’ll need MTD-recognised software
HMRC keeps a full list of “recognised”, MTD-ready software. The SansDrama Web App is on that list and built specifically for performers — including Equity pension handling. It’s £3.50/month, and remember: anything you spend on MTD software is an allowable business expense. Making Tax Digital isn’t here to steal our spotlight — it’s just a tidier way of doing what we already do.
Your tax, sorted.
The tax app built just for performers, creatives and side-hustlers — track your income, expenses and live tax bill in one tidy place, ready for your return.
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