• April 2017 – Private pilot rollout starts.
• July-December 2017 – Digital tax accounts show taxpayers an overview of their liabilities in one place and HMRC begins a private pilot of Making Tax Digital for VAT.
• Spring 2018 – Live pilot of Making Tax Digital for VAT begins.
• April 2019 – Businesses with VATable sales above the VAT threshold are required to keep digital records and submit quarterly returns for VAT purposes only through their accounting software.
• April 2021 – HMRC no longer accepts VAT submissions made using the XML facility. This means that MTD VAT returns must be submitted via HMRC’s MTD connection.
• April 2022 – All VAT-registered businesses are required to use MTD-compatible software to store business records digitally and send VAT returns to HMRC.
• April 2024 – Making Tax Digital for Income Tax will be introduced, requiring self-employed businesses and landlords with annual business or property income above £10,000 to follow the rules for MTD for Income Tax from 6th April 2024.
• April 2025 – Partnerships with individuals as partners will have to follow the rules for MTD for Income Tax from April 2025. Limited liability partnerships (LLPs) and partnerships with corporate partners will be required to join at a future date yet to be announced.
• 2026 onwards – MTD for Corporation Tax is expected to be the next phase in the initiative. However, HMRC has advised that MTD for Corporation Tax rules won’t come into effect until at least 2026.

Find out more on HMRC’s website.