Checked against GOV.UK on 14 August 2026 · Applies from 6 April 2026 onwards.
“why is there not a simple software that one can use?”
We hear this most. a landlord who banks online and has done for 34 years, OpenRent Community forum, 1 August 2026 — someone in the same position as you.
Whatever software you end up choosing, it has to hit these dates. Your next quarterly update is due 7 November 2026, and because updates are cumulative it covers 6 April to 5 October 2026 — so it also catches up 7 August 2026 if you missed it. Your tax return for 2026 to 2027 is due 31 January 2028, and that one is still in the points system. And from September 2026 HMRC has been signing people up itself, in stages, if they had not signed up.
You are not alone, and this is the measured version of that sentence. HMRC put 864,000 sole traders and landlords in scope for this tax year (HMRC, 5 February 2026), and reported on 12 August 2026 that 436,000 had sent a first quarterly update and 570,000 had signed up. We have not subtracted one from the other to make a "how many are behind" headline — they were published six months apart and count different things — but you can see the size of the room you are standing in.
half an hour, tonight, and you may not need to spend a penny
None of those three steps costs money. Anyone charging you to do them is selling you something HMRC gives away.
Where these come from, on GOV.UK: quarterly updates and their deadlines · the tax return · who has to use MTD, and when · working out qualifying income · the recognised-software finder · what to do if HMRC signed you up.
HMRC publishes the official list of software recognised for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, and its own guidance says plainly that “free products are available for those with simple tax affairs”. We drove that finder ourselves on 1 September 2026 and it returns recognised products costing £0 — for sole traders and for landlords, including bridging tools that submit straight from a spreadsheet you already keep. We take no commission from any of them, we rank none of them, and this site carries no affiliate links.
HMRC's official software finder (gov.uk) · how bridging software works · the free two-number check · your own four dates
Signing up for Making Tax Digital is free at GOV.UK. So is the checker on this page, and so is every answer on this site.
Spreadsheets are not banned. They just cannot be the last step. Bridging software connects the spreadsheet to HMRC, and the connection between your records and your submission has to be digital all the way. This page is the rules; if what you want is the priced list of bridging tools, that is on the bridging-software page.
Looking for the tools and what they cost? This page is the rule — what a digital link is, and what you may not do. The priced list of bridging products, read on each provider's own page with the date we read it, is on the bridging software page →
Once you have created a digital record and it has been sent to HMRC in a quarterly update, you must not manually move that record within your record-keeping software or to other software. HMRC gives two explicit examples of what is not allowed:
HMRC's own material is straight about the trade-off: spreadsheets will not have the timesaving, user-friendly features that all-in-one bookkeeping apps have. Bridging keeps your existing system; it does not modernise it.
What bridging software costs → The full digital records rules →
Yes, if you use bridging software to make the submissions and your records are connected by digital links rather than copy and paste.
No. Once a digital record has been sent to HMRC in a quarterly update you must not move it by cut and paste, copy and paste, or by writing it out again elsewhere.
Andrew at Axion Labs
I don't sell software, take commission, or rank products, so I can say the plain thing: check HMRC's own list before anyone's sales page, and filter it for the free ones. They exist. If your records already live in a spreadsheet, bridging software is built for exactly that, and you do not have to move onto a monthly subscription to comply.
General information about UK tax rules, not tax advice. Your own circumstances and HMRC's official guidance govern your position. If you are unsure, speak to an accountant or contact HMRC. Tax rules change — if this page is more than a few months old, check the GOV.UK pages linked above. Found an error? Email hello@getaxionlabs.com and we will correct it.
← All Making Tax Digital answers
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