How to Position Your Practice for the MTD Wave

The Accounted Editorial Team·10 March 2026·9 min read

The Biggest Shift in Tax Compliance in a Generation

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax Self Assessment (MTD for ITSA) is no longer something on the horizon — it's here. From April 2026, self-employed individuals and landlords with annual gross income over £50,000 must keep digital records and submit quarterly updates to HMRC. Those earning over £30,000 follow from April 2027.

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For accountancy practices, this represents both a challenge and a once-in-a-generation opportunity. Millions of sole traders who've been happily filing a single self-assessment return each year will suddenly need to submit quarterly. Many of them will need help, and they'll be looking for accountants who understand MTD, use the right software, and can make the transition painless.

The practices that position themselves now will capture these clients. The ones that wait will be scrambling to catch up.

The MTD Timeline — Where We Stand

Let's get the key dates straight:

April 2026

MTD for ITSA mandatory for self-employed individuals and landlords with gross income over £50,000
Digital record keeping required from the start of the 2026/27 tax year
Quarterly updates must be submitted to HMRC via MTD-compatible software
End-of-period statement and final declaration replace the traditional self-assessment return

April 2027

Threshold drops to £30,000 gross income
A much larger pool of sole traders and landlords are brought into scope

Beyond 2027

The government has signalled intentions to lower the threshold further, potentially to £20,000 or below
Partnerships are expected to be included in due course

This staggered rollout means the demand for MTD services will grow year on year. It's not a one-off spike — it's a sustained wave.

Why Many Sole Traders Will Need Your Help

It's easy to assume that sole traders will simply sign up for MTD-compatible software and handle it themselves. Some will. But the reality is that a significant proportion won't, for several reasons:

Digital Skills Gaps

Not every sole trader is tech-savvy. Many are tradespeople, market traders, childminders, and others who've been doing their books in a notebook or a basic spreadsheet for years. The jump to digital record keeping and quarterly submissions is daunting.

Time Constraints

Sole traders are busy running their businesses. Learning new software and understanding quarterly submission requirements takes time they don't have. They'd rather pay someone to handle it than spend evenings figuring it out.

Fear of Getting It Wrong

The MTD penalty system is points-based — each late submission adds a point, and accumulating too many points triggers financial penalties. Sole traders who are anxious about getting penalised will seek professional help for peace of mind.

Complexity

Some sole traders have genuinely complex affairs — multiple income sources, rental properties, foreign income, CIS deductions. For these clients, professional support isn't optional; it's essential.

Marketing to MTD-Anxious Clients

There's a growing pool of sole traders who know MTD is coming but don't know what to do about it. Here's how to reach them.

Content Marketing

Create content that addresses their fears and questions directly:

"What is MTD and does it affect me?"
"How to prepare for MTD if you're self-employed"
"MTD penalties explained — what happens if you're late"
"The simplest way to comply with MTD"

Publish this on your website, share it on social media, and send it to existing clients (who'll share it with their self-employed friends). Position yourself as the calm, knowledgeable voice amidst the confusion.

Local Networking

Many of the sole traders who need MTD help are local businesses — plumbers, electricians, hairdressers, tutors, dog walkers. They're in local Facebook groups, at networking events, and in trade associations. A short talk at a local business group about "What MTD means for your business" is an excellent way to generate enquiries.

Referral Programmes

Your existing clients know other self-employed people. A simple referral incentive — a discount on their next bill, a free tax review, or even a gift card — can generate a steady stream of new MTD clients.

Partnerships

Partner with businesses that serve sole traders: business banks, insurance brokers, co-working spaces, and software providers like Accounted. These partnerships can provide access to audiences of sole traders who are actively looking for help.

Pricing MTD Services

Pricing MTD services is one of the most discussed topics in practice management forums right now. Here's how to think about it.

What's Included in an MTD Service?

At minimum, an MTD service should cover:

Setting up MTD-compatible software for the client
Quarterly review and submission of digital records
End-of-period statement preparation
Final declaration (replacing the traditional self-assessment return)
Ongoing support for queries and issues

Pricing Models

Per-quarter pricing: Charge a fee for each quarterly submission. Typically £75-£150 per quarter for straightforward sole traders, more for complex affairs. This is simple for clients to understand and gives you regular income.

Annual package pricing: Bundle everything into an annual fee — four quarterly submissions, end-of-period statement, and final declaration. Typically £400-£800 for straightforward clients, £800-£1,500+ for complex affairs. This provides predictable revenue and can be positioned as better value than per-quarter pricing.

Tiered packages:

MTD Basic (£40/month) — digital record keeping, quarterly submissions, year-end filing
MTD Plus (£65/month) — everything in Basic, plus tax planning review and ad-hoc support
MTD Premium (£100/month) — everything in Plus, plus monthly management accounts and proactive advisory

Monthly fees work well because they smooth cash flow for both you and the client, and they make the cost feel more manageable than a lump sum.

Don't Undercharge

There's a temptation to price MTD services cheaply to win volume. Resist this. Quarterly submissions require regular attention, and underpricing leads to either poor service or write-offs — neither of which is sustainable. Price based on the value you provide and the time the work genuinely takes, factoring in technology costs and overheads.

Your Software Stack for MTD Compliance

The right software makes MTD compliance efficient and scalable. Here's what you need:

MTD-Compatible Record Keeping

Your clients need software that maintains digital records and can submit quarterly updates to HMRC via their API. The major options include Xero, QuickBooks, FreeAgent, Sage, and newer platforms like Accounted.

When evaluating software for your practice, consider:

Client experience — how easy is it for non-accountants to use?
Automation level — does it auto-categorise transactions, or does everything need manual input?
Practice tools — can you manage multiple clients from a single dashboard?
HMRC integration — is it confirmed as MTD-compatible by HMRC?
Cost — per client? Per practice? What's the total cost at scale?

Accounted is worth a look here, particularly for sole trader clients. Penny, the AI bookkeeper, handles most of the categorisation and reconciliation automatically, which means less work for you at quarter-end. The WhatsApp-based interface also means clients actually engage with their bookkeeping rather than ignoring it until you chase them.

Practice Management

Tools like Senta, Karbon, or TaxCalc Practice Management help you track client deadlines, automate reminders, and manage your team's workload. With quarterly deadlines multiplied across your client base, practice management becomes essential rather than optional.

Communication

Set up efficient communication channels for MTD queries. A shared inbox, a client portal, or even a dedicated WhatsApp Business number can handle the increased volume of client questions without overwhelming individual team members.

Training Your Team

MTD affects every level of your practice, and your team needs to be prepared.

Technical Training

Everyone who handles MTD work needs to understand:

How digital record keeping requirements differ from traditional bookkeeping
The quarterly submission process and deadlines
The end-of-period statement and final declaration
The penalty regime and how to help clients avoid points
The specific MTD-compatible software your practice uses

Client-Facing Skills

Your team will field a lot of questions from confused or anxious clients. They need to be able to explain MTD clearly, calmly, and without jargon. Role-playing common client conversations can be surprisingly helpful here.

Workflow Changes

Quarterly submissions mean regular touchpoints with every MTD client. Your team needs to understand the new workflows, timelines, and quality review processes. Document everything — standard operating procedures ensure consistency as you scale.

Scaling Your Practice for Volume

The MTD opportunity is only valuable if you can handle the volume. Here's how to scale without burning out your team or compromising quality.

Standardise Your Processes

Create a repeatable process for each stage of the MTD client journey:

Onboarding — set up software, connect bank feeds, train the client
Quarterly preparation — automated reminders, data review, exception handling
Quarterly submission — review, approve, submit
Year-end — end-of-period statement, tax review, final declaration

The more standardised these processes are, the more clients each team member can handle.

Leverage Technology

Use AI-powered bookkeeping tools that do most of the heavy lifting. If your software auto-categorises 90% of transactions correctly, your team only needs to review exceptions — which is dramatically faster than manual processing.

Consider Your Team Structure

You may need to restructure your team for MTD volume:

MTD administrators — handle routine quarterly processing
Reviewers — check work before submission
Advisors — handle client relationships and complex queries
Tech support — help clients with software issues

This lets you hire for different skill levels rather than needing every team member to be a qualified accountant.

Capacity Planning

Do the maths. If each MTD client requires approximately 2 hours per quarter (including review and submission), one full-time team member can handle roughly 200 MTD clients. How many MTD clients do you want? How many team members do you need? What's the revenue per client? Build your growth plan around these numbers.

Partnership Opportunities

The MTD wave is creating interesting partnership opportunities for practices.

Software Partnerships

Many MTD software providers offer partner programmes with benefits like discounted licences, co-marketing, training, and sometimes revenue sharing. If you're recommending software to clients anyway, a formal partnership can provide additional value.

Referral Networks

Build relationships with complementary professionals who serve sole traders: mortgage brokers, business coaches, insurance advisors. They encounter sole traders who need MTD help and can refer them your way (and vice versa).

White-Label Services

If you have capacity, consider offering white-label MTD processing services to smaller practices that don't have the systems or staff to handle quarterly submissions themselves. This can be a significant revenue stream.

Act Now, Not Later

The April 2026 deadline is imminent. If you haven't already started preparing, here's what to do this month:

Audit your client base — how many clients will be affected by MTD in April 2026? How many in April 2027?
Choose your software — if you haven't already, evaluate and select your MTD-compatible software stack
Set your pricing — decide on your MTD service packages and pricing before clients start asking
Train your team — make sure everyone understands the requirements and your processes
Start marketing — let existing clients know you're MTD-ready, and start reaching new prospects

The practices that move first will capture the most clients. Don't be the one trying to set up systems in March 2026 when you should be onboarding clients.

The MTD wave isn't something to survive — it's something to ride. Position yourself well and it could be the biggest growth driver your practice has seen in years.

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