How to Track Rental Income for HMRC (Without a Spreadsheet)

Why spreadsheets no longer work for MTD

MTD ITSA changes how you record rental income entirely. Spreadsheets are not HMRC-recognised MTD software. You cannot submit quarterly updates directly from a spreadsheet — you need recognised digital software that connects to the HMRC API.

What HMRC requires you to record

For each property, HMRC requires income and expenses under specific categories. Key allowable expenses include mortgage interest (subject to Section 24 rules), letting agent fees, repairs, and insurance. LandlordSorted categorises all of these automatically.

The one-tap approach with LandlordSorted

LandlordSorted's rent ledger generates an expected payment entry each month — mark it received with one tap and the income entry is automatically created with the correct HMRC category. The free plan covers this for one property.

What to do with receipts

HMRC requires you to keep records for five years. LandlordSorted Pro includes receipt scanning via OCR. See the Pro plan for full details.

Starting mid-year

Setting up LandlordSorted takes under 10 minutes. Back-fill your existing records and your quarterly submission will be complete. Check your MTD wave and deadline to understand your timeline, and use the eligibility quiz if you are unsure which wave applies.