Landlord guide
Making Tax Digital for landlords: what property owners need to know
Landlords are within MTD for Income Tax when their qualifying property and self-employment income crosses the relevant threshold. The rules look at gross income before expenses, not rental profit.
Which landlord income counts
Qualifying income includes gross income from UK and foreign property, together with any self-employment income. Employment income and savings are not included in the MTD threshold.
If you jointly own a property, use your share of the property income. The records and final tax treatment can differ depending on ownership and your circumstances, so confirm unusual arrangements with HMRC or a tax professional.
What records landlords keep digitally
Compatible software is used to create and store records of property income and expenses. Each record needs an amount, date and an appropriate category.
You send quarterly summaries from those records. The updates are not four additional tax returns and do not require all year-end tax adjustments to be made first.
- Rental income received
- Allowable property expenses
- The date of each transaction
- The relevant income or expense category
Software choices for landlords
Some products keep the complete property bookkeeping record. Others connect to an existing spreadsheet. HMRC’s software finder lets you filter products by UK property, foreign property and the other income you need to report.
If you use an accountant, ask which products they support before committing to a subscription.
Common questions
Quick answers
Does MTD use rental profit or gross rent?
The threshold is based on qualifying gross income before expenses, rather than taxable rental profit.
Does PAYE income count towards the landlord threshold?
No. Employment income is not included when calculating qualifying income for MTD for Income Tax.
Official sources
Rules can change. Use these HMRC pages to confirm the position for your circumstances.