Under Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, you must send HMRC four quarterly updates a year, due on 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May. Each update is a cumulative summary of your income and expenses from 6 April to the end of that quarter — not a tax return — and you still submit a final declaration by 31 January.
That one paragraph clears up the two misunderstandings that cause the most trouble: people either treat each update as a mini tax return, or assume that sending four updates means the January deadline has gone away. Neither is true. This guide gives you the exact 2026/27 dates, explains what actually goes into each update, shows a worked cumulative example, and sets out the penalty rules — including the 2026/27 soft landing. If you are new to the whole scheme, start with our guide to Making Tax Digital for Income Tax for who must join and when, then come back here for the quarterly detail.
The 4 deadlines at a glance
For the standard tax-year periods, the deadlines are the same for everyone in MTD for Income Tax, whichever software you use. You send each update after the period ends, up to and including the deadline day — and you can even send it up to 10 days before the period ends if you do not expect any further transactions, for example because you are going on holiday.
| Update | Period it covers | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Quarter 1 | 6 April to 5 July 2026 | 7 August 2026 |
| Quarter 2 | 6 April to 5 October 2026 | 7 November 2026 |
| Quarter 3 | 6 April 2026 to 5 January 2027 | 7 February 2027 |
| Quarter 4 | 6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027 | 7 May 2027 |
| Final declaration | Full 2026/27 tax year | 31 January 2028 |
Put all five dates in your diary now, not just the January one. If you joined in April 2026, the 7 August deadline has already passed and 7 November is days away as this article is published — if either update is still unsent, catch up promptly rather than waiting for January. HMRC will not let you submit your final declaration until every quarterly update is in. The dates are set out in GOV.UK’s quarterly updates guidance.
What a quarterly update actually contains
A quarterly update is a summary, not a pile of paperwork. Your compatible software adds together your digital records for each self-employment or property business you have, using the same income and expense categories as Self Assessment, and sends HMRC the totals for each category. HMRC does not receive your individual receipts or invoices in a quarterly update, and you do not need to make any accounting or tax adjustments before sending one.
Three practical points follow from that. First, you must send a separate update for each business or property source you have — a sole trader who also lets a flat sends updates for both. Second, you must still send an update even if you had no income or expenses in that period: the update tells HMRC there was nothing to report. Third, after you send an update, HMRC gives you an estimate of your tax bill for the year to date, in your software and in your HMRC online account, where your recent activity will show “You sent a quarterly update”. That estimate gets more accurate as the year goes on, but it will be less accurate if you have other income you have not told HMRC about yet.
The cumulative trick: a worked example
This is the part most people get wrong, so here it is with real numbers. Each update covers from the start of the tax year (6 April) to the end of that update period — not just the last three months. Your software works this out for you, but understanding it stops you panicking when the figures look “too big”.
Take Priya, a freelance consultant who joined MTD in April 2026. In the first quarter (6 April to 5 July) she earned £14,000 and spent £3,000 on allowable expenses. Her Quarter 1 update therefore shows £14,000 of income and £3,000 of expenses. In the second quarter she earned a further £15,000 and spent £3,500 more. Her Quarter 2 update does not show £15,000 and £3,500 — it shows the year to date: £29,000 of income and £6,500 of expenses. By Quarter 4, her update shows the whole year’s totals, ready to be finalised in the final declaration.
The cumulative design is actually on your side. If Priya spots in Quarter 2 that she forgot a £400 expense in Quarter 1, she does not file a separate amendment — she corrects her digital records, and the correction simply appears in the next update. The same applies if a client pays late: the income lands in the update for the period in which it is recorded, and later updates restate the year to date accordingly.
Standard periods or calendar periods?
There are two types of update period, and the deadlines are identical for both. Standard periods are the default and suit anyone whose accounting period lines up with the tax year (6 April to 5 April). Calendar periods suit businesses whose accounting year runs from 1 April to 31 March, because they line up with month ends.
| Update | Standard period | Calendar period | Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarter 1 | 6 April to 5 July | 1 April to 30 June | 7 August |
| Quarter 2 | 6 April to 5 October | 1 April to 30 September | 7 November |
| Quarter 3 | 6 April to 5 January | 1 April to 31 December | 7 February |
| Quarter 4 | 6 April to 5 April | 1 April to 31 March | 7 May (following tax year) |
Choose before you send your first update, because you cannot change your update periods for the rest of the tax year once you have sent one. If you have an agent, ask them which type fits your accounts. If you are unsure, standard periods are the safe default — your software will already be set to them.
Penalties: the 2026/27 soft landing — and what follows
HMRC will not apply penalty points for late quarterly updates during the 2026/27 tax year. That is a genuine grace period for the first year of the scheme, and it is worth using — but do not mistake it for an exemption. You must still keep digital records and send every update before you can submit your final declaration, and penalty points still apply for a late final declaration, and late-payment penalties and interest still apply to tax paid late.
From 2027/28, the points system applies to quarterly updates. Each missed quarterly deadline earns a penalty point, and once you reach 4 points you get a £200 penalty, with a further £200 for each deadline missed after that. Points for quarterly updates are separate from points for a late final declaration, so missing both can cost you twice. The lesson is simple: use 2026/27 to build a routine — records updated weekly, a diary reminder a week before each deadline — so that the points system never touches you when it starts.
Before each deadline: a 5-step checklist
- Bring your records up to date. Enter every invoice, receipt and expense for the period, in the right Self Assessment category, before you even open the update screen.
- Check every source. If you have two businesses, or a business and a property, confirm an update is ready for each one — it is easy to send one and forget the other.
- Review the totals, not just the last three months. Check the year-to-date figures your software shows against your own records, and correct any errors now — they will flow into the update.
- Send through your software, then confirm. Look for the “You sent a quarterly update” confirmation in your HMRC online account, and save or screenshot it.
- Glance at your tax estimate. After each update, check the estimated bill. If it jumps unexpectedly, that is your early warning to ask your accountant — not a surprise to discover in January.
5 mistakes that catch people out
- Sending only the last three months’ figures. Remember: each update is cumulative from 6 April. Your software handles this, but if you keep manual records, reconcile to the year to date.
- Skipping a nil quarter. No income and no expenses still needs an update. Silence is not a submission.
- Forgetting a second source. A property business is a separate obligation from your self-employment, even if the rent is small.
- Waiting until January to start. Quarterly updates cannot be submitted after the final declaration — they must come first, and reconstructing a year of records in January is exactly what MTD was meant to end.
- Switching period types mid-year. Decide between standard and calendar periods before your first update; you cannot change until the next tax year.
Frequently asked questions
Is a quarterly update the same as a tax return?
No. A quarterly update is a summary of income and expense totals for the year so far. It does not finalise your tax, and it does not replace the final declaration, which you still submit by 31 January after the tax year ends.
What if I had no income in a quarter?
Send the update anyway. HMRC’s guidance is explicit: if you received no income and incurred no expenses during an update period, you must still send a quarterly update to tell HMRC. A missing update is a gap in your record, not a saving.
Do quarterly updates change when I pay my tax?
No. Your payment dates do not change. Tax for the year is still normally due by 31 January after the tax year, with payments on account on 31 January and 31 July where they apply. Quarterly updates change when you report, not when you pay — although the running tax estimate after each update helps you set money aside in good time.
What happens if I miss a quarterly deadline in 2026/27?
No penalty points will be issued for a late quarterly update in 2026/27, but you must still send it before you can submit your final declaration, and late filing or late payment penalties can still apply. Send the overdue update as soon as possible, and from 2027/28 treat every deadline as points-bearing: 4 points means a £200 penalty.
Conclusion
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax does not ask you to file four tax returns a year — it asks you to keep your records current and send HMRC four cumulative summaries, on 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May, followed by a final declaration by 31 January. Get the routine right once — records updated as you go, every source covered, a diary reminder before each deadline — and the quarterly cycle becomes a habit rather than a headache. And if you joined in April 2026 and an update is still outstanding, today is the day to send it: the 2026/27 soft landing forgives the lateness, but it does not file the update for you.
