Landlords lose six days to Making Tax Digital admin

Six months after Making Tax Digital came into effect, landlords are already feeling the impact of the extra administration.

Research from Tide suggests landlords could spend an average of six full days dealing with Making Tax Digital administration during the scheme’s first year.

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax became compulsory in April 2026 for landlords and sole traders with qualifying income of more than £50,000. The threshold will fall to more than £30,000 from April 2027.

Personal time is paying the price

According to the data, nearly half of the qualifying sole traders and landlords (44%) expect Making Tax Digital admin to eat into their normal working hours, with more than one in three (36%) stating that this will be during time they would otherwise be serving paying clients and customers.

More than half (58%) expect it to take more than a working week, with more than one in 10 (13%) predicting that Making Tax Digital will require more than 10 full days of their time in year one alone.

When the working day runs out, personal time is also paying the price. The data reveals 38% expect to complete their Making Tax Digital admin in the evenings, 35% at weekends and 32% during planned time off or while on holiday.

George Schmidt, CEO UK/Europe at Tide, said: “Six months in, business owners and landlords know what Making Tax Digital is. What they’re still counting is the time it takes: days away from customers, evenings, weekends and even holidays given up to increased tax admin.

“With the second quarter closing on the 5th October and the next update due by 7th November, now is the time to make Making Tax Digital work around the business, not the other way round.”

£1.5 billion across the UK

The data also reveals that the average six days lost to Making Tax Digital admin equates to £1,778 in income per business in the first year alone, or £1.5 billion across the UK.

The news comes as HMRC urges landlords with income above £30,000 to prepare early for the next phase of Making Tax Digital, which comes into effect in 2027. Around 1,077,000 additional landlords and sole traders are expected to join the scheme.