What I've learnt so far about Making Tax Digital

And how to make it as simple as possible

I’ve been freelancing now for two decades and over that time, I had created simple spreadsheets for capturing my income and expenses so I that filing my self-assessment tax return was as straightforward as it could be. At first I did it all myself and then as my income streams got a bit more complicated I hired an accountant and it was all ticking over very nicely. No problems, no fuss.

Then came Making Tax Digital (MTD), a pretty big shift to the UK tax system that I had been burying my head in the sand about. My income made me eligible for the first wave of the new system which came into force at the start of the 2026/27 tax year on April 6th.

While the concept appears straightforward - using digital records and compatible software to provide quarterly updates rather than doing it all at the end of the year - in reality it is bit of a headache that has already proving (for me at least) to be more complex that the previous system.

In this newsletter, I’m going to discuss what I’ve learned so far, and the approach I’ve taken. I cannot stress enough that this does not constitute advice - that’s what accountants are for - but it might help you prepare or make decisions about your own MTD approach.

Whether you’re already in the thick of this or are only just starting to think about what MTD might mean for you in the future, hopefully this will provide some reassurance that we’re all in this together.