Enter your gross self-employment and rental income to see if — and from when — Making Tax Digital for Income Tax applies to you.
| Combined gross qualifying income | Mandatory from |
|---|---|
| Over £50,000 | 6 April 2026 |
| Over £30,000 | 6 April 2027 |
| Over £20,000 | 6 April 2028 |
Qualifying income is your gross self-employment turnover plus gross rental income added together — before any expenses, allowances or reliefs are deducted. HMRC tests this using the figures from your Self Assessment return roughly two tax years before the threshold applies, so your 2024/25 return (filed by 31 January 2026) is what determines whether you join in April 2026.
Tom has £28,000 gross self-employment turnover and £15,000 gross rental income from one buy-to-let — a combined £43,000. That's under the £50,000 threshold for 2026, so he's not required to join yet. But once the threshold drops to £30,000 from April 2027, his combined £43,000 will pull him in.
Sources: GOV.UK — Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. This tool gives an estimate based on current published thresholds, not an official HMRC determination — check your own Self Assessment history or ask an accountant to confirm your position.
No — it's a quick estimate based on the current published thresholds. HMRC determines your actual position from the qualifying income on your Self Assessment return roughly two years before the relevant threshold year.
Because eligibility looks back at a specific past tax year's figures, a one-off high or low year can affect your MTD start date even if your current income is different — check your actual filed returns for the relevant year.
No — qualifying income for MTD is specifically gross self-employment turnover and gross rental income, not employment income taxed through PAYE.
All self-employment income is aggregated together as one figure for the qualifying income test, even if it comes from multiple different sources or trades.