MTD for accountants: one January became twenty deadlines
Fifty mandated clients means 250 filing events a year. The maths of MTD is a practice management problem before it is a tax problem.
The client waves hitting your practice
| Gross income (turnover) | MTD mandatory from | First quarterly update due | Checked against |
|---|---|---|---|
| £50,000+ | 6 April 2026 — already in force | 7 August 2026 | 2024/25 tax return |
| £30,000 – £50,000 | 6 April 2027 | 7 August 2027 | 2025/26 tax return |
| £20,000 – £30,000 | 6 April 2028 | 7 August 2028 | 2026/27 tax return |
| Under £20,000 | No start date announced yet | ||
The 2026 wave (£50k+) is live now, with quarterly updates due 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May. The 2027 and 2028 waves are where client counts explode — sub-£30k sole traders and landlords who have never kept a digital record in their lives.
Where the time actually goes
- Getting records out of clients — quarterly now, not annually. The chase is the job.
- Fragmented software — every client on a different tool (or none) means no single view of who's filed and who's exposed.
- Deadline stacking — every mandated client shares the same four dates. The 7th of August, November, February and May become mini-Januaries.
What we're building for practices
NippyTax for agents is a multi-client dashboard on top of the same dead-simple submission engine: RAG status per client per quarter, automatic record-chasing nudges sent to clients, review-and-submit in bulk, and pricing per client that doesn't punish you for having many small ones. It is in development and will complete HMRC's recognition process before launch.
The waitlist below asks one extra question — how many clients you'll need it for — because that answer decides which agent features we build first.
Get NippyTax for your client list
Manage quarterly updates for your whole client list from one place. Tell us roughly how many MTD-mandated clients you look after and we will get in touch.
Frequently asked questions
How does MTD for Income Tax change an accountancy practice?
Volume. A client who was one January return is now four quarterly updates plus a final declaration — five deadlines instead of one, multiplied across every mandated client. The work is smaller per submission but relentless, and it lands in the same weeks for everyone.
Can agents file quarterly updates for clients?
Yes — agents can be authorised for MTD for Income Tax and file on clients’ behalf through software. The pain point is doing that across dozens or hundreds of clients whose records live in different places.
Which clients are mandated first?
Clients with £50,000+ gross qualifying income (2024/25 returns) have been in since April 2026. The £30,000+ band follows in April 2027 and £20,000+ in April 2028 — for most practices, that last wave is the big one by client count.
What will NippyTax offer accountants?
A multi-client dashboard: every client’s quarter status at a glance, chase-up nudges for clients who haven’t sent records, and bulk review-and-submit. It is in development — the waitlist (with your client-count band) directly shapes the agent features and pricing.