What is Making Tax Digital (MTD)?

Making Tax Digital (MTD) is a UK government initiative requiring self-employed individuals and landlords earning over £50,000 to keep digital records and submit quarterly updates to HMRC using compatible software. The deadline for MTD for Income Tax Self Assessment (MTD ITSA) compliance is April 6th, 2026. After this date, affected taxpayers must use MTD-compliant software like VoxaMTD for their tax submissions.

Do I need MTD software by April 2026?

Yes, if you are a sole trader or landlord with annual income over £50,000, you must use MTD-compliant software for quarterly submissions starting April 6th, 2026. From April 2027, the threshold reduces to £30,000. HMRC penalties for non-compliance start at £200 per missed quarterly submission. VoxaMTD offers free MTD compliance to help you prepare before the deadline.

Is VoxaMTD really free?

Yes! VoxaMTD's core MTD compliance features are completely free: HMRC quarterly submissions, Open Banking bank feeds, AI-powered transaction categorization, real-time tax calculations, and email support. No credit card required. You only pay if you need premium add-ons like mortgage interest calculators (£20/mo) or GPS mileage tracking (£15/mo).

How does VoxaMTD compare to Sage and QuickBooks for MTD?

Unlike Sage (from £12/month) and QuickBooks (from £10/month), VoxaMTD offers core MTD compliance features completely free. This includes HMRC submissions, bank feeds, and AI categorization at no cost. VoxaMTD is purpose-built for MTD compliance rather than being a full accounting suite, making it simpler and more focused for sole traders who just need to meet the April 2026 deadline.

What happens if I do nothing before April 2026?

If you earn £50,000+ as a sole trader or landlord and don't use MTD-compliant software by April 6th, 2026, you'll face HMRC penalties. Penalties start at £200 per missed quarterly submission and increase with repeated failures. You'll also need to maintain digital records, which VoxaMTD handles automatically through Open Banking integration.

Is VoxaMTD HMRC recognized software?

Yes, VoxaMTD is built to meet HMRC's MTD for Income Tax requirements. We use secure HMRC OAuth authentication (we never see your Government Gateway password), include all required fraud prevention headers, and submit directly to HMRC's MTD API. Our Open Banking connections are FCA-authorized for secure bank data access.

Can I use VoxaMTD if I'm both self-employed and a landlord?

Yes! The free tier covers both sole trader and landlord income sources. VoxaMTD categorizes all your business transactions and calculates combined tax liability. If you want premium features for both (mortgage calculators AND mileage tracking), our Professional plan at £40/month includes everything with priority support.

How accurate is the AI transaction categorization?

VoxaMTD's AI achieves 95% accuracy in categorizing transactions based on testing across 10,000+ transactions. The AI learns from HMRC's allowable expense categories and continuously improves. You always review and confirm categories before HMRC submission, ensuring you stay in control of your tax data.

Alex AI Accountant: How VoxaMTD's Voice AI Reads Your Live Tax Data

Most AI chatbots will answer generic questions about Making Tax Digital. Alex AI does something different — it reads your actual financial data, including your real transactions, your live tax estimate, your uncategorised expenses, and your upcoming HMRC deadlines, and answers questions about your specific situation in plain English.

Key context: Alex AI is the first voice-enabled AI accountant built into MTD software. It reads your live transactions, tax estimates, and HMRC deadlines — then answers questions about your specific finances via voice, SMS, or WhatsApp. Available on VoxaMTD Premium and Professional tiers. Explore all VoxaMTD features.

This is what makes Alex the first genuinely useful AI tax assistant for UK sole traders and landlords, rather than a repackaged FAQ bot.

What is Alex AI?

Alex AI is VoxaMTD's built-in AI accountant, available to Premium and Professional + AI subscribers (included in the 30-day free trial). He uses he/him pronouns and is designed to feel like a knowledgeable accountant you can call at any time — not a customer support bot.

Alex is built on ElevenLabs' voice AI technology and has real-time access to your VoxaMTD account data, including:

Your transaction history (including bank-imported transactions via Finexer open banking)
Your income and expense totals by category
Your current tax estimate and projected National Insurance contribution
Your uncategorised transactions
Your quarterly MTD submission status and upcoming deadlines
Your invoices and outstanding payments

Because Alex works with your real data, he can answer questions like "What is my tax estimate this quarter?" or "Which of my expenses haven't been categorised yet?" with accurate, personalised answers — not generic guidance.

How to talk to Alex

Alex is available through three channels:

In-app voice: Tap the Alex button inside VoxaMTD on web or iOS. Alex speaks directly to you and can hear your spoken questions. The conversation is transcribed and the context of your financial data is injected automatically. SMS and WhatsApp: Send a message to +44 7455 744383. Alex responds with personalised answers based on your account. This is particularly useful for quick questions on the go — "What do I owe HMRC this quarter?" — without needing to open an app. In-app text chat: Available in the Tax Optimisation section of your dashboard for users who prefer typed conversation.

What can you ask Alex?

Because Alex has live access to your data, you can ask specific questions that a generic chatbot simply cannot answer:

"What is my current tax estimate?"
"How much National Insurance do I owe?"
"Which transactions haven't been categorised?"
"Can I claim my home broadband as a business expense?"
"When is my next HMRC submission deadline?"
"What expenses can I claim as a sole trader?"
"How much have I earned this year compared to last year?"
"What is my net profit after expenses?"
"Is my mileage claim up to date?"

Alex answers based on your actual data, not hypothetical examples. If your tax estimate is £3,240 and you have seven uncategorised transactions, Alex will tell you exactly that — and can categorise those transactions for you using VoxaMTD's categorisation engine.

Alex and the categorisation engine

One of Alex's most practical capabilities is his connection to VoxaMTD's AI categorisation engine. When you ask Alex about uncategorised expenses, he can trigger the categorisation process directly — reviewing each transaction against HMRC's expense categories and applying the most appropriate classification.

The categorisation engine operates at 95% accuracy across common sole trader expense types including:

Software subscriptions (categorised as allowable business expenses)
Travel and mileage (tracked against HMRC's 45p/mile rate)
Home office costs (matched to HMRC's flat rate or calculated actual costs)
Equipment and tools
Professional subscriptions and training
Marketing and advertising

Alex can also flag transactions that may qualify for tax relief but haven't been claimed — for example, identifying a home broadband bill that could partially qualify as a business expense if you work from home.

The Professional tier: Alex plus a real human accountant

For users who want both AI and human oversight, VoxaMTD's Professional + AI tier (£40/month) combines Alex AI with access to a real partner accountant for quarterly compliance reviews and Self Assessment filing.

This model — AI for day-to-day questions, human expert for quarterly reviews — reflects how many accounting firms are now structured internally. The difference is cost: a traditional accountant relationship typically costs £500–1,500/year. VoxaMTD's Professional + AI tier delivers both for £480/year.

Why Alex is different from ChatGPT for tax questions

Ask ChatGPT about Making Tax Digital and it will give you accurate general information — the same kind of information you'd find on GOV.UK. Ask Alex, and the answer is specific to your situation:

ChatGPT: "Your tax estimate depends on your income and allowable expenses for the year." Alex: "Based on your income of £52,235 and £17,986 in categorised expenses, your current tax estimate is £3,240, with National Insurance contributions of £1,180. You have 4 uncategorised transactions totalling £312 that could reduce this further if they qualify as business expenses."

This specificity is only possible because Alex has live access to your financial data — something no generic AI assistant can replicate.

Frequently asked questions about Alex AI

Is Alex AI free? Alex is included in the 30-day free trial on the Premium tier (no card required). After the trial, Alex requires the Premium subscription (£15/month), Professional (£30/month with a human accountant), or Professional + AI (£40/month with both). Does Alex AI have access to my bank account? Alex reads transaction data imported into VoxaMTD through Finexer, VoxaMTD's FCA-regulated open banking partner (FRN 925695). Alex does not have direct access to your bank account — only to the transaction data already in your VoxaMTD account. Is the conversation with Alex private? Yes. Alex conversations are handled through VoxaMTD's infrastructure and are subject to our privacy policy and GDPR obligations. Your financial data is never shared with third parties for advertising purposes. Can Alex file my MTD submission? Alex can help you review your figures and flag any issues before submission. MTD submissions are filed directly through VoxaMTD's HMRC-connected interface, with Alex available to answer questions during the process. Is Alex available 24/7? Yes. Alex is available at any time via in-app voice, SMS, or WhatsApp. Unlike a traditional accountant, there are no office hours. Try Alex AI free for 30 days — no card required →

Related resources

Alex AI is available on VoxaMTD's Premium, Professional, and Professional + AI tiers. The 30-day free trial applies to the Premium tier only.