From April 2026, the self-employed and landlords must use MTD for IT, but exemptions may apply in limited cases.

If you are self-employed or a landlord with income over £50,000, you will need to prepare for digital record keeping, quarterly updates and a new penalty system. While most affected taxpayers will be required to comply, there are limited exemptions available.

You can apply for an exemption if you believe you are digitally excluded. HMRC will consider applications on a case-by-case basis once the process opens.

You may be eligible if:

• it is not practical for you to use software to keep or submit digital records – this could be due to age, disability, location, or another reason; or
• you are a practising member of a religious society or order whose beliefs are incompatible with electronic communication and digital record keeping.

In addition, if HMRC has already confirmed that you are exempt from Making Tax Digital for VAT, you will need to contact them again once the MTD for IT application process opens. HMRC will then review your exemption. If your circumstances remain the same then HMRC will confirm you are also exempt from MTD for IT. If not, you will need to reapply.

Some taxpayers are automatically exempt from MTD for IT and do not need to apply.

These include:

• trustees, including charitable trustees and trustees of non-registered pension schemes
• individuals without a National Insurance number, applicable only if one is not held by 31 January before the start of the tax year
• personal representatives of someone who has died
• Lloyd’s member, in relation to your underwriting business 
• non-resident companies

If you are automatically exempt, you do not need to apply for an exemption. If you do not use MTD for IT, you must continue to report your income and gains by submitting a self-assessment tax return if required.

You can claim tax relief on pension contributions up to 100% of earnings, but exceeding the annual allowance may trigger charges. Tax relief is paid on pension contributions at the highest rate of income tax paid.

The first 20% of tax relief is usually automatically applied by your employer with no further action required if you are a basic-rate taxpayer. If you are a higher rate or additional rate taxpayer, you can claim back any further reliefs on your self-assessment tax return.

There is an annual allowance for tax relief on pensions of £60,000. There is also a three year carry forward rule that allows you to carry forward any unused amount of your annual allowance from the last three tax years if you have made pension savings in those years.

If your total pension contributions are excessive and you exceed the annual allowance, you may face a tax charge. Your pension provider should inform you if you exceed the limit within their scheme, but if you have multiple pensions, you will need to request statements from each provider to check your position. You or your pension provider must pay any tax due from exceeding the limit.

You must report the charge in the ‘Pension savings tax charges’ section of your self-assessment tax return or use form SA101 if filing by paper. This is required even if your pension provider paid all or part of the tax due. You can still claim tax relief on contributions. HMRC does not tax anyone for going over their annual allowance in a tax year if they retired and took all their pension pots because of serious ill health or they died.

From 6 April 2027, new measures first announced in the Autumn Budget 2024 will come into force. These changes will bring most unused pension funds and death benefits into the scope of Inheritance Tax (IHT) from April 2027. This represents a major change to the tax treatment of pensions on death and will significantly broaden the IHT net by capturing assets that were previously excluded from tax.

Individuals with significant pension savings should review their estate plans carefully. Beneficiaries inheriting unused pension funds or death benefits may now face an IHT charge, making forward planning essential. Under the revised rules, personal representatives will be responsible for reporting and paying any IHT due, rather than pension scheme administrators.

There are important exclusions to note. Death-in-service benefits paid from registered pension schemes and dependants’ scheme pensions from either defined benefit arrangements or collective money purchase schemes will not fall within the scope of IHT. These will continue to be treated as before.

These reforms follow a technical consultation which concluded in January 2025 and led to changes in how liability is assigned. The new approach has raised concerns about potential issues such as payment delays, added administrative burden, and data privacy risks. As a result, close cooperation between personal representatives and pension providers will become increasingly important to ensure compliance and efficient estate administration.

Employers must report pay and deductions correctly to HMRC, but errors can usually be fixed in your next FPS.

Employers need to use payroll software or other payroll services to record employees pay, deductions and national insurance contributions on or before each payday. They also need to consider other deductions such as pension contributions and student loan payments.

These payments are reported to HMRC in real time using a Full Payment Submission (FPS). This submission contains all relevant information for each employee.

If you have made a mistake with an employee’s pay or deductions this can usually be corrected by updating the year-to-date figures in your next regular FPS.

HMRC’s guidance also states that you can correct mistakes by submitting an additional FPS before your next regular FPS is due. You would need to:

• update the ‘this pay period’ figures with the difference between what you originally reported and the correct figures
• correct the year-to-date figures
• put the same payment date as the original FPS
• put the same pay frequency as the original FPS
• put ‘H – Correction to earlier submission’ in the ‘Late reporting reason’ field

If you need to correct an employee’s National Insurance deductions, the action required will depend on whether the mistake occurred in this tax year or earlier tax years. There are also different actions that may be required to fix a mistake with an employee’s student loan repayments, again depending what tax year the mistake relates to.

In every market, businesses face competition. Some competitors may be larger, others may have deeper pockets, but gaining a competitive advantage is not always about size or spending power. It is about finding ways to stand out, deliver value, and build loyalty in ways that others cannot easily copy.

The starting point is understanding what your customers really want. Many businesses assume they know, but without asking directly, they risk focusing on the wrong things. Regular feedback, surveys, and conversations with clients can reveal needs that are not currently being met. Meeting those needs better than your rivals can quickly become a strong differentiator.

Another route to advantage is efficiency. Streamlining operations, adopting smarter technology, or cutting wasted time and cost can enable a business to deliver faster or at a lower price without reducing quality. Even modest savings can provide extra flexibility when pricing against competitors.

Brand and reputation also play a vital role. Trust is hard to win and easy to lose. Businesses that consistently keep promises, communicate clearly, and support their customers when problems arise often enjoy loyalty that competitors cannot buy. A strong reputation can be worth more than any marketing campaign.

Finally, innovation should not be overlooked. This does not always mean launching new products. It can mean packaging existing services differently, offering subscription or fixed-fee pricing, or providing added advice alongside the core offering. Small changes that make the customer’s life easier can be the difference between being a supplier and being a trusted partner.

Competitive advantage is rarely achieved through one big step. It comes from a series of consistent, customer-focused improvements that, taken together, make the business the obvious choice in a crowded market.