The next Making Tax Digital (MTD) quarterly update deadline is 7 November 2026, and it covers the period from 6 April to 5 October for most people. If you are a sole trader or landlord with qualifying income over £50,000, this is your second update of the 2026/27 tax year. This guide from Filing Accounts UK sets out every MTD for Income Tax deadline, what to do if you missed the 7 August one, and how the penalty points and £200 charge work. Everything here is checked against HMRC’s own guidance.
Not sure whether MTD applies to you yet? Start with who Making Tax Digital applies to, then come back here for the dates.
MTD Quarterly Update Deadlines 2026/27
There are four quarterly updates a year. The deadlines are the same whether you use standard or calendar update periods. Only the period each update covers differs.
| Update | Standard period | Calendar period | Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 6 Apr to 5 Jul | 1 Apr to 30 Jun | 7 August 2026 |
| 2nd | 6 Apr to 5 Oct | 1 Apr to 30 Sep | 7 November 2026 |
| 3rd | 6 Apr to 5 Jan | 1 Apr to 31 Dec | 7 February 2027 |
| 4th | 6 Apr to 5 Apr | 1 Apr to 31 Mar | 7 May 2027 |
You can send an update at any point after the update period ends, up to and including the deadline day. If you do not expect any more transactions, HMRC lets you send it up to 10 days before the period ends.
Standard vs Calendar Update Periods
Standard periods are the default in your software and run from 6 April to 5 April, matching the tax year. Calendar periods suit businesses with a 1 April to 31 March accounting period and can make record keeping simpler. You choose calendar periods in your software before you send your first update. Once you have sent a quarterly update, you cannot change your update periods for the rest of that tax year.
What a Quarterly Update Actually Contains
A quarterly update is a summary, not a tax return. Your MTD-compatible software adds up your digital records and sends HMRC totals for each income and expense category, using the same categories as Self Assessment. HMRC does not receive individual receipts or invoices.
- Figures are cumulative. Each update covers 6 April to the end of the update period, so the November update includes your first quarter as well.
- No tax adjustments needed. You do not need to make accounting or tax adjustments before sending a quarterly update.
- Nil periods still count. If you had no income or expenses in a period, you still need to send the update.
- One update per business. You send separate figures for each self-employment and each property business.
Missed the 7 August Deadline? What to Do Now
First, the reassuring part: HMRC will not apply penalty points for late quarterly updates in the 2026/27 tax year. Missing 7 August did not trigger a penalty. But the obligation has not gone away, and the 7 November deadline is close. A sensible recovery plan looks like this:
- Confirm MTD applies to you. It covers sole traders and landlords whose qualifying income, before expenses, is over £50,000 from April 2026.
- Sign up and link compatible software. You cannot send updates without it.
- Bring your digital records up to date from 6 April, checking them against bank statements, sales platforms and tenancy records.
- Send the outstanding update as soon as you can and keep the confirmation. Because updates are cumulative, your 7 November update will in any case include the figures from the first quarter.
- Do not skip the next one. The 7 November, 7 February and 7 May deadlines all still apply, and so does your tax return.
HMRC’s guidance does not spell out whether late updates must be sent in order, so check with your software provider or your accountant if your records are badly behind. Other penalties are unaffected: late tax returns and late payments are still penalised.
MTD Penalties: How the Points and £200 Charge Work
MTD for Income Tax uses a points-based system for late submissions rather than an instant fine:
- You get one penalty point for each missed quarterly update or tax return deadline. You can only get one point per deadline, even with more than one business.
- The threshold is 4 points. Reaching it brings a £200 penalty, and each further missed deadline while you are at the threshold brings another £200.
- Below the threshold, points drop off automatically 24 months after the missed deadline.
- Once you hit the threshold, points are not removed automatically. To clear them, you must file your quarterly updates and return on time for 12 months and send any outstanding submissions from the previous 24 months.
When Do the Penalties Start?
For quarterly updates, penalty points apply for tax years after 2026/27, so they start with the 2027/28 year. Late tax returns are different: points can still apply to them in 2026/27. The new penalties apply from the tax year you join MTD, and from April 2027 they apply to everyone who files a Self Assessment return. Volunteers who join early do not face penalties for late quarterly updates, though late tax returns still count.
Late Payment Penalties
Late payment is penalised separately. In your first year of the new penalties, you get a 30-day grace period from the due date, reducing to 15 days after that. For 2026/27, paying 31 or more days late brings a 3% penalty at day 15 and another 3% at day 30, plus an annual rate of 10% on the unpaid tax from day 31. For 2027/28 the first two charges rise to 4%. These do not apply to payments on account.
After the Fourth Update: Your Tax Return
Quarterly updates do not replace your tax return. After the fourth update, you check whether your self-employment and property income need any adjustments, then submit your return through your software. For 2026/27 that return is due by 31 January 2028. If you spot errors in your fourth update, resend it before you make tax adjustments. Your 2025/26 return, due 31 January 2027, is still filed the usual way under the current penalty rules.
If you are new to the process, our guide on who needs to file a Self Assessment return and our landlord tax return guide give useful background, and self-employed allowable expenses will help you categorise your records correctly.
MTD Deadlines and Penalties at a Glance
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Next quarterly update deadline | 7 November 2026 |
| Remaining 2026/27 deadlines | 7 February 2027 and 7 May 2027 |
| Penalty points for late quarterly updates | Not applied in 2026/27, start in 2027/28 |
| Points threshold | 4 points |
| Penalty at threshold | £200, then £200 for each further missed deadline |
| Points expire | 24 months after the missed deadline |
| 2026/27 tax return deadline | 31 January 2028 |
| Income threshold | £50,000 from April 2026, £30,000 from April 2027, £20,000 from April 2028 |
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Assuming No Penalty Means No Deadline
The 2026/27 relief only removes penalty points for late quarterly updates. You still have to send them, and you must send them before you can submit your tax return through software.
Forgetting Nil Updates
A quiet quarter still needs an update. Skipping it counts as a missed deadline.
Changing Update Periods Too Late
You can only choose calendar periods before your first update. After that, your periods are locked for the year.
Leaving Records Until the Deadline
Digital records must be kept as you go. Catching up in the last few days before 7 November is how errors and missed items creep in.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is the next MTD quarterly update deadline?
7 November 2026. It covers 6 April to 5 October for standard periods, or 1 April to 30 September for calendar periods.
What happens if I missed the 7 August 2026 deadline?
There is no penalty point, because HMRC is not applying points for late quarterly updates in 2026/27. You should still get your records up to date and send the update as soon as possible.
How much is the MTD late submission penalty?
£200, charged when you reach 4 penalty points, with another £200 for each further missed deadline while you remain at the threshold.
When do MTD penalty points for quarterly updates start?
For tax years after 2026/27, so from 2027/28.
Do I need to send a quarterly update if I had no income?
Yes. A nil update still has to be sent to tell HMRC there was no income or expenses.
Do quarterly updates replace my tax return?
No. They are summaries. You still submit a tax return, due 31 January after the end of the tax year.
Need Help With MTD Quarterly Updates? Talk to Filing Accounts UK
With 7 November approaching, now is the time to get your records straight. At Filing Accounts, we help sole traders and landlords set up MTD-compatible software, catch up on missed updates, and file on time so penalty points never become a problem.
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