MTD calendar quarters: make the election before changing the period

By the Quidtrail team · Facts last checked 28 October 2026

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Choose calendar update periods before sending the first quarterly update for the tax year. The election can suit bookkeeping that follows month ends, but you need to check what is already recorded before changing the software setting.

Rules checked: 28 October 2026, UK.

This is general information, not financial or tax advice. Rules change, so check GOV.UK or speak to a qualified adviser.

Check the election first

HMRC: SALF1140 calendar quarters election says the election must be notified before any quarterly update is submitted for the year. It can be made digitally through compatible software and continues into subsequent applicable years unless withdrawn. Its withdrawal timing also affects which year is the last covered.

If you withdraw before any update has been sent for the current tax year, HMRC says the election ends with the previous tax year. If an update has already been sent, it ends with the year in which you give notice. A withdrawal is therefore not always an immediate switch for the current year's records.

Before changing anything, ask your agent and software provider what election is already recorded for the relevant business and year. Do not assume an accounting year ending on 31 March proves that the MTD election has been made.

Read the actual obligation dates

HMRC: SALF1160 calendar update periods sets out the calendar election's reporting periods and deadlines. Use the dates presented for your actual business and transition position, rather than shifting a saved standard-period checklist by a few days. The deadline and the period covered are different fields to check.

Keep the period basis with the business identity and year in your working record. If software displays a different range from the one expected, resolve it before submitting. Do not force the totals to fit by manually moving transactions between dates.

Agree who changes it

Where an agent handles submissions, record who checks eligibility, makes the election and confirms the resulting obligations. One person changing a setting while another prepares an update can leave both working from different assumptions.

Ask the provider which screen displays the HMRC reporting basis and whether any software refresh is required. Save the confirmation or support explanation, while using the provider's proper access and authorisation procedures.

Keep a small decision record

Record the business, tax year, current and desired period settings, adviser consulted, election confirmation and whether an update has already been submitted. Mark pending actions separately from completed ones.

If an update has already been sent, seek the correct route for that position rather than assuming a change can be backdated. Likewise, check the withdrawal rules before reverting. The fact that a software control is available does not establish the effect you intend.

Keep record checks consistent

Once the basis is confirmed, use matching dates when checking digital records against the proposed submission. Refer to MTD quarterly updates are cumulative for year-to-date totals. Calendar reporting does not remove that checking task or turn an in-year update into the final annual calculation.

Recheck HMRC's guidance before relying on this for a later reporting year. The practical objective is one documented basis shared by the taxpayer, agent and software, with the actual obligations understood.

Related reading

• Check cumulative quarterly totals
• Quarterly update periods and deadlines