MTD exemptions: who doesn't have to use it

Some people don't need to use MTD for Income Tax even if their income is over the threshold. There are three kinds of exemption.

Automatic exemptions: no need to apply

You're exempt automatically if any of these apply:

• your qualifying income is £20,000 or less,
• you don't have a National Insurance number before the start of the tax year,
• you're a trustee filing a trust and estate return (SA900), including charitable trusts,
• you're the personal representative of someone who has died,
• your income is from a partnership (partnerships are exempt for now).

Non-resident companies filing an SA700 are also exempt.

These are also automatic, but only if they were on your 2024–25 tax return:

• you're a Lloyd's underwriting member (the SA103L),
• you're a minister of religion (the SA102M),
• you receive Married Couple's Allowance or Blind Person's Allowance,
• you can't manage your own affairs: your 2024–25 return said you can't provide information to HMRC, and a UK power of attorney or legal deputy is currently in place.

For Lloyd's members, ministers of religion, and people receiving Married Couple's Allowance or Blind Person's Allowance, HMRC has said it will announce a timeline later. If any of these is new since your 2024–25 return, you need to apply to HMRC.

Exempt until April 2027

You have a temporary exemption if, on your 2024–25 tax return, you:

• claimed averaging (farmers, market gardeners and creators of literary or artistic works),
• claimed qualifying care relief (for example foster carers or shared lives carers),
• filled in the Trusts etc. pages (SA107), or
• filled in the Residence, remittance basis etc. pages (SA109).

These are automatic if they were on your 2024–25 return. If you expect them on your 2025–26 or 2026–27 return instead, apply to HMRC. Partners claiming averaging on the SA104 always need to apply.

If your qualifying income for 2025–26 is over £30,000, you'll need to use MTD from 6 April 2027 like everyone else in that group.

If you're digitally excluded

You can apply for an exemption if it isn't reasonable for you to use software because of:

• your age, a health condition or a disability,
• your religious beliefs, if you're a practising member of a religious society whose beliefs are incompatible with using electronic communications, or
• your location, for example no internet access at home or anywhere suitable for your business.

If HMRC has already agreed you're exempt from Making Tax Digital for VAT because you're digitally excluded, contact HMRC with your National Insurance number, VAT number and the reason. If nothing has changed, HMRC will confirm you're exempt from MTD for Income Tax too.

How to apply

Contact HMRC by phone or in writing using the Self Assessment: general enquiries details. Have your National Insurance number, name and address ready, and explain why you're asking for an exemption. Agents can use their dedicated line. Until HMRC agrees, plan as if MTD applies to you.

This guide explains HMRC's published rules without the jargon. It's information, not tax advice, and it was accurate when we checked it on 19 October 2026. For your own situation, check your HMRC online account or speak to an accountant.