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Check your MTD for IT deadlines and obligations in QuickBooks

by Intuit•32• Updated 5 months ago

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (MTD for IT) changes your reporting from a single annual event to a quarterly cycle. QuickBooks connects directly to HMRC to show you exactly what is due and when.

Note: For a broader overview of the HMRC mandate, eligibility thresholds, and how these changes affect your business, visit our Making Tax Digital hub page.

Understanding your obligations

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (MTD for IT) is a new way of reporting earnings to HMRC for sole traders and landlords. Instead of sending a single Income tax return once a year, you send quarterly updates for your business income, and a year-end tax return.

QuickBooks connects to your day-to-day bookkeeping data to help you create these updates and file them directly to HMRC.


Connecting your account to HMRC

See your upcoming deadlines and manage your tax submissions in one place.

If you can’t see the Income tax app, you may need to update your business type. QuickBooks uses this setting to map your accounts to the correct HMRC tax categories.

  1. Select Settings âš™ and select Account and settings.
  2. Select the Company tab.
  3. In the Legal info section, select Business type.
  4. Choose  Sole Trader or Landlord.
  5. Select Save, then select Done.

To see your specific deadlines, QuickBooks needs permission to talk to your HMRC account.

  1. Go to All apps and select Income Tax (Take me there).
  2. If this is your first time, you will see a welcome screen. Select View Income Tax Estimate or Join MTD for Income Tax.
  3. You will be redirected to the HMRC website. Sign in using your Government Gateway ID and password.
  4. Select Grant Authority. You will then be redirected back to QuickBooks.

Once connected, your personalised dashboard will populate with your specific tax year deadlines.

  • Go to Income tax and select Overview (Take me there).
  • Obligations table: Here you will see your four quarterly update deadlines and your Final Declaration deadline.
  • Status tracker: QuickBooks will mark these as Open, Overdue, or Submitted so you can see your progress at a glance.
  • Tax estimates: As you submit updates, this section will show a real-time estimate of the tax you owe, helping you budget for your January and July payments.

Things to know

  • Threshold check: Remember, the ÂŁ50,000 threshold (starting April 2026) is based on your gross qualifying income (total turnover) from the 2024/25 tax year.
  • Refresh frequency: QuickBooks syncs with HMRC periodically. If you’ve just signed up for MTD with HMRC, it may take up to 24 hours for your obligations to appear in QuickBooks.
  • Missed deadlines: If an obligation is marked "Overdue," you should submit it as soon as possible. During the first year of MTD for IT, HMRC has confirmed a "soft landing" regarding penalty points, but digital records must still be maintained.

More help

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