Under Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, your year is no longer one filing — it's four quarterly updates plus an end-of-period statement. Here are the four deadlines every UK landlord in scope should have on the wall.
Quarter 1: 6 April – 5 July
The first quarter of the tax year runs from 6 April to 5 July. Your update covers everything you recorded in that window — rent received, expenses paid. You submit by 5 August.
Quarter 2: 6 July – 5 October
The second quarter runs from 6 July to 5 October, with a submission deadline of 5 November. If you're joining MTD for the first time, this is often the quarter that catches landlords out, because the 5 November deadline arrives just as the lettings year gets busy.
Quarter 3: 6 October – 5 January
The third quarter spans the festive season: 6 October to 5 January, due by 5 February. Rent collected over Christmas and New Year still needs to be recorded and reported on time.
Quarter 4: 6 January – 5 April
The final quarter closes the tax year: 6 January to 5 April, due by 5 May. After this update, you confirm your figures at year end and declare any final adjustments.
Why the record-keeping window matters as much as the deadline
Each quarterly update is only as good as the records behind it. The mistake landlords make is treating the deadline as the date to start recording. The update is a summary of what you recorded during the quarter — so the real work happens continuously. A simple habit of recording rent and expenses weekly, mapped to HMRC's categories, makes each submission a ten-minute job.
Put all four deadlines on one page, give each a red-amber-green status, and check it once a month. That single habit is the difference between a calm year and four last-minute scrambles.