HMRC have clarified how it will assess qualifying income for a tax year for the purposes of entry into Making Tax Digital for Income Tax Self-Assessment. In its guidance note, ‘Check if you'll need to sign up for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax’, HMRC have expanded the section on how it assesses qualifying income to confirm that it will look at the self-assessment return submitted in the previous tax year. This is already set out in the principal MTD Regulations (the Income Tax (Digital Requirements) Regulations, SI 2021/1076, reg 21). One key point to note: the tax return submitted in the previous tax year is the return which covers the tax year before the previous tax year. HMRC give the following example: ‘To assess your qualifying income for the tax year 2026–27, we will look at the tax return you submitted for the tax year 2024–25. This tax return should have been submitted by 31 January 2026.’
HMRC have clarified how it will assess qualifying income for a tax year for the purposes of entry into Making Tax Digital for Income Tax Self-Assessment. In its guidance note, ‘Check if you'll need to sign up for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax’, HMRC have expanded the section on how it assesses qualifying income to confirm that it will look at the self-assessment return submitted in the previous tax year. This is already set out in the principal MTD Regulations (the Income Tax (Digital Requirements) Regulations, SI 2021/1076, reg 21). One key point to note: the tax return submitted in the previous tax year is the return which covers the tax year before the previous tax year. HMRC give the following example: ‘To assess your qualifying income for the tax year 2026–27, we will look at the tax return you submitted for the tax year 2024–25. This tax return should have been submitted by 31 January 2026.’
