Question 1

What is Making Tax Digital (MTD)?

Accepted Answer

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.

Question 2

Do I need MTD software by April 2026?

Accepted Answer

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.

Question 3

Is VoxaMTD really free?

Accepted Answer

Yes. VoxaMTD's free tier includes HMRC quarterly submissions, Open Banking bank feeds, AI-powered transaction categorisation, real-time tax estimates, the Section 24 landlord calculator and email support. No credit card required. Optional paid tiers add the Alex AI voice accountant (£15/month), a dedicated partner accountant (£30/month), or both combined (Professional Plus, £40/month). Agent portal pricing for accountants is £3 per client per month.

Question 4

How does VoxaMTD compare to Sage and QuickBooks for MTD?

Accepted Answer

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.

Question 5

What happens if I do nothing before April 2026?

Accepted Answer

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.

Question 6

Is VoxaMTD HMRC recognized software?

Accepted Answer

Yes. VoxaMTD is HMRC-recognised software for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (HMRC App ID 44aa3ba9-6072-4418-93c2-f52aa81a23b4). 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. Open banking is provided by Finexer Ltd, authorised and regulated by the FCA (FRN 925695).

Question 7

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

Accepted Answer

Yes. The free tier covers both sole trader and landlord income sources, including the Section 24 mortgage interest calculator. VoxaMTD categorises all your business transactions and calculates combined tax liability across both income types in one quarterly submission. The Professional Plus plan at £40/month adds a dedicated partner accountant plus the Alex AI voice assistant if you want full coverage.

Question 8

How accurate is the AI transaction categorization?

Accepted Answer

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.

Feature	VoxaMTD	123 Sheets
Annual cost	Free	£29.99/year
Bank feed automation	Yes (Finexer)	No — manual entry
AI categorisation	Yes (~95%)	No
AI voice accountant	Yes (Alex)	No
Section 24 automatic handling	Yes	Manual in spreadsheet
Per-property dashboard	Yes	Spreadsheet-driven
HMRC-recognised MTD ITSA bridging	Direct API submission	Yes (bridging)
Hybrid sole-trader + landlord	Single flow	Requires sheet structure

Is 123 Sheets a good MTD bridging solution for UK sole traders and landlords?

VoxaMTD vs 123 Sheets — feature by feature

Frequently Asked Questions

Is 123 Sheets HMRC-recognised for MTD ITSA?

How does 123 Sheets pricing compare to VoxaMTD?

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