Software

Can your MTD software file your tax return?

Sending quarterly updates is only part of Making Tax Digital. At the end of the year you also have to file a final declaration, and not every product on HMRC's list can do that yet. Here's how to check yours.

Checked against HMRC guidance on 9 October 2026

Quarterly updates are only half of it

Under Making Tax Digital for Income Tax you send HMRC two kinds of submission:

Four quarterly updates a year: totals of your income and expenses by category.
A final declaration after the tax year ends, by 31 January. It replaces the old Self Assessment return: you confirm your figures, add anything the quarterly updates didn't cover, and HMRC works out your tax.

Both have to go through software recognised by HMRC. If your software only does the quarterly updates, you'll need something else for the year end.

About a third of products can't file it yet

In October 2026, LetCompliance reported that 44 of the 128 landlord software products on HMRC's list couldn't yet file the tax return (reported by LandlordZONE). Many of them say they're building it.

For people who started MTD in April 2026, the first final declaration covers the 2026 to 2027 tax year and is due by 31 January 2028. That sounds a long way off, but it's much easier to pick software that does both from the start than to switch at the end of your first year.

How to check your software in two minutes

Open HMRC's software finder on GOV.UK and find your product.
On its page, look at Submission type. You want to see both "Quarterly updates" and "Tax return".
Then check the features list. Each one is marked:

Status on HMRC's list	What it means
Ready now	The software does this today.
In development	The provider has committed to building it in time for the 2026 to 2027 tax return.
Not included	The software doesn't do this.

HMRC's own definitions, from the product pages on its software finder.

Also check the other income section. The final declaration covers all your income, so if you have a salary, savings interest, dividends or a pension, see whether your software includes them or whether you'll add them separately in your HMRC online account.

If your software can't file it

Ask the provider for a date, and whether it's marked "In development" on HMRC's list.
Check whether they partner with another product for the year end, and what that costs.
Because quarterly updates are cumulative, switching software mid-year is possible: the next update simply carries your year-to-date totals.

Where Quartax stands. We send all four quarterly updates and the final declaration for UK property and self-employment income, and HMRC lists us as "Ready now" for both (see our listing). We don't yet include salary, savings, dividends or pensions: if you have those, you add them in your HMRC online account before you declare, and we walk you through it.

Not sure if MTD applies to you yet? Check in a minute.