Bookkeeping for UK Landlords Under Making Tax Digital
Rents and costs recorded property by property, with MTD quarterly figures ready to approve.
Landlords overview
Landlords whose gross rents, plus any self-employment turnover, exceed £30,000 join Making Tax Digital for Income Tax on 6 April 2027. The test is rent before expenses, not profit, and for jointly owned property only your share counts. From the same date, property income in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is taxed at its own rates of 22%, 42% and 47%.
We keep landlord books property by property. Rents are matched to tenancies and letting agent statements, with agent fees, repairs, insurance, service charges and ground rent recorded against the right property. Mortgage interest is kept apart from other costs, because it earns a tax credit rather than a deduction. Repairs are separated from improvements, which cannot be set against rent.
We also work with landlords who live outside the UK, including in the Gulf. HMRC has said that people who filed the SA109 residence pages with their 2024-25 return are not brought into MTD before April 2027. Under the Non-Resident Landlord Scheme, your letting agent or tenant deducts basic rate tax from the rent unless HMRC has approved you to receive it gross.
Prefer to talk it through first? Call +971 54 542 4854 or email info@hof-partners.com.
For each property we record
- Property-by-property records
- Income and costs tracked for each property, so each one's profit is clear.
- Letting agent statements
- Agent statements broken down into rent, fees, repairs and deductions, then reconciled.
- MTD quarterly figures
- Property income totals prepared each quarter for you or your accountant to submit.
- Finance costs
- Mortgage interest and other finance costs recorded separately for the tax credit.
- Joint ownership
- Rent and costs split by ownership share for each co-owner's records.
- Year-end property schedule
- A schedule for your tax return, including any tax already deducted under the Non-Resident Landlord Scheme.
Every property's rent and costs recorded, ready for each quarterly update.
Questions about Landlords
If your gross property income, added to any self-employment turnover, was over £30,000 on your 2025-26 tax return, you join on 6 April 2027. The test is income before expenses, and it falls to £20,000 from April 2028. See Making Tax Digital bookkeeping for the quarterly deadlines.
Each owner compares only their own share of the rent with the threshold. Married couples and civil partners are treated as owning 50:50 unless they have declared different beneficial shares to HMRC on Form 17. Joint owners can send their expenses once a year instead of each quarter, but their share of the rent is still reported quarterly.
Yes, if you have UK rental income. Non-resident landlords pay UK tax on UK rents and come into MTD once over the threshold, although HMRC is not bringing in those who filed the SA109 residence pages for 2024-25 before April 2027. Under the Non-Resident Landlord Scheme, tax is deducted from rent unless HMRC approves gross payment.
Not as an expense for a residential let. Mortgage interest and other finance costs give a tax credit at the basic rate instead: 20% now, and 22% from 6 April 2027 where the new property rates apply. We record finance costs separately so the credit is simple to work out.
No. We prepare the figures and send them to you to approve; you submit them from your MTD software, or your UK accountant does. If your accountant would like us to keep records for all their landlord clients, see outsourced bookkeeping for accountants.
More ways we can help
All services- For accountancy practicesA white-label bookkeeping team that works in your software, to your checklists, under your name.
- Making Tax DigitalDigital records kept and quarterly figures prepared, so every MTD update is ready to approve.
- BookkeepingBooks posted, reconciled and closed every month, ready for VAT, payroll and year end.
- Xero bookkeepingYour Xero file kept clean every month: bank feeds reconciled, VAT coded, MTD returns ready.
- VAT returnsQuarterly VAT returns prepared, reconciled and ready to submit under Making Tax Digital.
- Management accountsA monthly pack that shows profit, cash and performance against budget, soon after each month end.
- PayrollWhite-label payroll processing: pay runs, RTI figures and pension files prepared for your review.
Talk to us about your rental books
Tell us what you need. Your message goes straight to our accountants, and we aim to reply within one business day.