From April 6 2026, some sole traders and landlords must start using compatible software to report their income under the Making Tax Digital for Income Tax initiative.

Now the government has released guidelines on what software landlords should use.

The HMRC guidance says the software must be capable of creating, storing and correcting digital records of self-employment and property income and expenses, must be able to send quarterly updates to HMRC, and be used to submit your tax return by January 31 the following year.

You do not need to create digital records for other income sources, but your software must be able to report them on your tax return. This may include income such as from pensions, a partnership, savings or dividends.

The detailed guidance says that when choosing the type of software that’s best for your circumstances, you must check it can support all your income sources covered by Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (self-employment, UK property, foreign property); let you make your submissions to HMRC; and allow you to report all your other income sources to complete your tax return.

Several software providers are building software that works with Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. HMRC suggests landlords contact these providers about the features and services they plan to offer. These providers include BTC Software by Bright; Federation of Small Businesses MTD; Glasscubes MTD Assist; Kletta; Landlord Studio; Landlord Vision; PaTMg Property Manager; SE Reports; Vital Tax; and Zoho Books.

You can see the extensive guidance in full here.