MTD for IT

If you are a tax agent filing on behalf of clients – first, you must follow the ‘agent MTD step-by-step guide’. After logging into your Ftax Account, click the down arrow to the right of the menu bar. Then click ’HMRC Auth’ and follow the instructions. You will need to authorise MTD for VAT and MTD for IT separately after entering your HMRC User ID and Password.

If you are filing your own tax – first, you must follow the ‘business MTD step-by-step guide’. After logging into your Ftax Account, you will be able to initiate your Ftax web form from the Dashboard by clicking the appropriate NEW button. This will open the form Overview that will guide you through the tax submission process. An ‘Authorise Ftax for MTD’ button, in an early section of this Overview will initialise the authorisations process if you have not already done so. Follow the instructions which include entering your HMRC User ID and Password.

• Click here to read how to download MTD for IT spreadsheet templates from the Ftax website.
• Ftax supply Self-employment, UK Property, and Foreign Property templates.
• Enter each template you are using in a new tab in your spreadsheet.
• Link all the income and expense totals in the template to the totals you have setup to calculate on your spreadsheet.
• Enter all incomes and expenses transactions as they arise.
• These must include the date, the type of transaction, the customer/supplier name, the amount (including and excluding VAT), and any VAT.
• Just before you transfer the spreadsheet data, enter the cumulative period dates in the template as it instructs.
• Export the data from the template tab as a CSV file.
• Click the ‘Import’ button on the Ftax Quarterly update form and select this file.
• Check the imported data. Note – to keep the data transfer MTD complaint, this cannot be changed on the form.

1. Download and open the Ftax Cashbook PDF form in Adobe Reader.
2. Tick the ‘agent’ box and click ‘Enter’. This will make this form an ‘agent copy’.
3. Follow the process on the right beginning by clicking the top button to login.
4. Then click ‘Select/Enter Client’ and select one of the top 2 options.
5. If you select a ‘new MTD for IT tax filer’ then you will be prompted to enter their name, UTR, and National Insurance number.
6. When the ‘Set Cashbook’ button is clicked then the Cashbook is ready to use.
7. Click to enter the business details. You can enter details for more than one business.
8. You may now enter incomes and expense transactions.
9. Regularly save the PDF form. When you do so you will be prompted to forward income and expenses totals to the Ftax Quarterly update form.
10. Download another Ftax Cashbook PDF form if you wish to set up a ‘client copy’.
11. This time click the ‘client’ box before clicking ‘Enter’.
12. If you have already set up the ‘agent’ copy, then the ‘Existing MTD for IT tax filer ’ option may be selected after clicking the second button. This will save having to enter the same UTR and National Insurance number again.
13. The third button should confirm that a credit has already been assigned while to fourth should load any data you have saved using the agent copy.
14. You will now be presented with a Password which you must copy and securely save.
15. After clicking ‘Set Cashbook’ save the PDF form and send it to your client.
16. Send the Password by a different means.
17. When they open the client copy of the PDF Ftax Cashbook it will prompt them to enter the Password and then to save the form.
18. Your client can now enter income and expense transactions. When they save you will also be able to see this data. Follow any ‘Sync’ instructions when prompted.
19. You and your client are now sent up to populate the same Ftax Cashbook. Data may be forwarded to the Ftax MTD for IT Quarterly form every time the cashbook is saved.

1. Download and open the Ftax Cashbook PDF form in Adobe Reader.
2. Follow the process on the right beginning by clicking the top button to login.
3. Then click ‘Select/Enter Client’ and select one of the top 2 options.
4. If you select a ‘new MTD for IT tax filer’ then you will be prompted to enter their name, UTR, and National Insurance number.
5. When the ‘Set Cashbook’ button is clicked, the Cashbook is ready to use.
6. Click to enter the business details. You can enter details for more than one business.
7. You may now enter incomes and expense transactions.
8. Regularly save the PDF form. When you do so you will be prompted to forward income and expenses totals to the Ftax Quarterly update form.

2026/27 is the first year that quarterly update submissions must be cumulative. This means that the period always starts at the beginning of the tax year (usually 6th April but may also be April 1st). The end date can be today’s date or the date of the most recent transaction that was used to calculate the totals.

HMRC require you to submit cumulative period updates for each of the 4 quarters of the tax year (the quarters usually commence for 6th April but the quarters can also commence from 1st April). You can submit more often than this but be sure to submit after each quarter ends and before its due date about 1 month tater. The Ftax Quarterly update form will guide you. 

Click here to view an MTD for IT timeline which shows the periods when the quarterly period updates must be made.

Click here to read how HMRC describe MTD for IT quarterly updates.

Ftax MTD for IT is expected to be ready before the end of April 2026.

The delay has been due to HMRC being extremely busy, and hence slow in approving and setting up new MTD for IT services. 

As HMRC do not require the first MTD quarterly update submissions to be made before the end of the first tax year quarter in July, there is no immediate urgency.

What is immediately important is to begin recording incomes and expense transactions in a way they can be easily totaled, and submitted to HMRC when the time comes.

The Ftax team are here to help you prepare for MTD for IT quarterly update submissions. 

Click here to learn more.

Send a support request if you are experiencing any problems or have any questions.

Businesses, self-employed people and landlords will be required:

• to operate MTD from 6 April 2026 in relation to their trading and property income chargeable to Income Tax and Class 4 National Insurance contributions, if their total qualifying income from these income sources for a tax year exceeds £50,000
• to operate MTD from 6 April 2027 in relation to their trading and property income chargeable to Income Tax and Class 4 National Insurance contributions, if their total qualifying income from these income sources for a tax year exceeds £30,000
• to operate MTD from 6 April 2028 in relation to their trading and property income chargeable to Income Tax and Class 4 National Insurance contributions, if their total qualifying income from these income sources for a tax year exceeds £20,000

They will:

• keep their records digitally
• provide digital quarterly updates
• be able to provide their MTD for IT return information to HMRC through MTD compatible software

Yes.

The Ftax team are working on a low-cost MTD for IT solution that is fully compliant with HMRC requirements. We are trying to make this as simple and clear as possible. We will make it easy for clients to exchange income and expense data with their agents, and also make it easy for the self-employed and landlords to file their own returns using MTD for IT.

If you have any questions or suggestions then please contact us. 

We appreciate your feedback as it will help us design a service that meets your needs.

The introduction of the new MTD service is being phased to enable the Ftax team to better support the immediate needs of its customers.

MTD for IT is new and confusing to many. HMRC have held trials but have not yet experienced large volumes of users. To best support its customers Ftax will initially focus on the following first stages of service use:

1. Assistance in selecting and purchasing the appropriate product.
2. Help in Authorising Ftax for the use of MTD for IT.
3. Support in setting up spreadsheets to record income and expense details.
4. Help to setup the Ftax Cashbook to record income and expense details.

The second phase will help customers to transfer income and expense data to the Ftax Quarterly update form and to submit the quarterly data to HMRC. HMRC do not require the first quarterly submission to be made until July 2026. Even though you can submit earlier there is no urgency to do so until then. The Ftax team will step up its support for this phase well in advance.

The following timeline shows how the full lifecycle of MTD for IT tax filing stretches across 1 year and 9 months. HMRC requirements are spread over this period.

MTD for IT Timeline

The Ftax team are here to help. We will tell you what you need to do when you need to do it.

All Ftax MTD for IT products include the Ftax Quarterly update form, the Ftax End-of-Year tax return, and the Ftax Tax Calculation form. These enable you to meet all of your HMRC obligations, including the 4 quarterly updates, the end-of-year tax return entries, the tax calculation display, and the final declaration. Note that most competitors do not offer a single solution for the full MTD for IT tax cycle.

When it comes to recording incomes and expenses and transferring them to the Ftax Quarterly update form you have two choices:

Your spreadsheet with CSV file transfer – the ability to transfer income and expense cumulative period totals from your spreadsheet to the Ftax Quarterly form is included with the Ftax MTD for IT product at no extra cost. Spreadsheet templates are provided which you set up yourself.

The Ftax Cashbook – incomes and expenses are currently entered in the Ftax Cashbook manually, but this is soon to be automated. The solution is much easier to use than CSV transfer and costs only £20 – £25 per tax filer per year. Agents can set up a copy for their client which automatically transfers data to the agent.

The recommended solution is Ftax MTD for IT combined with the Ftax Cashbook, especially if you are not familiar with spreadsheets. The latter is being sold at half price for the 2026/27 tax year. Agents can benefit from a discount when the products are purchased in bulk.