We have some news we are quietly very proud of: aligned.tax is now officially HMRC-recognised software for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. On 4 July 2026, HMRC granted aligned.tax production approval, which means we file real quarterly updates to HMRC through the official MTD API - free, from the spreadsheet you already keep.
What “HMRC-recognised” means
HMRC-recognised software is software that has completed HMRC’s production approval process: it connects to HMRC’s live Making Tax Digital API, meets HMRC’s technical and fraud-prevention standards, and has demonstrated real end-to-end submissions under HMRC’s review. Recognition is the official status HMRC gives to MTD software - it is the thing to look for when you choose a product.
It is not a rubber stamp you can self-declare. Getting here took months of building against HMRC’s sandbox, passing HMRC’s fraud prevention header checks on every single API call, and completing HMRC’s production approval review for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax.
Approved, recognised or compatible - what is the difference?
People search for all three, so it is worth being precise:
- HMRC-recognised software is the official term. HMRC “recognises” software that has passed its production approval process. This is the status aligned.tax now holds.
- HMRC approved software is what most people type into Google. HMRC itself avoids the word, because HMRC does not approve, endorse or recommend individual products. If a vendor says “HMRC approved”, the accurate claim behind it is recognition.
- MTD compatible software simply means software that can talk to the MTD API - HMRC’s find software for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax tool on GOV.UK lists compatible products, and it is the closest thing to an official HMRC MTD software list.
So: recognised is the official word, approved is the everyday word, and compatible is the technical word. aligned.tax is all three - and we have asked HMRC to add aligned.tax to the GOV.UK software list, which can take a short while to appear after recognition.
What this means for you
Nothing about the aligned.tax promise changes; it just becomes real:
- Free stays free. Filing your MTD quarterly updates with aligned.tax is free - not a trial, not a teaser tier. Recognition does not change that.
- You keep your spreadsheet. aligned.tax is bridging software: you keep your records in your preferred spreadsheet application, save or export them as an XLSX workbook before upload, review the figures, and we submit to HMRC through the official API. HMRC confirms spreadsheets plus bridging software are a fully valid way to meet MTD - permanently, not as a workaround.
- Your submissions go through the front door. Every quarterly update is filed via HMRC’s official MTD API with the security HMRC requires, and you get a full audit trail of what was sent and when.
What happens next
aligned.tax is now live. If you are ready to file, create your free account and get started.
And genuinely, there is no rush. The first MTD for Income Tax quarterly update is not due until 7 August 2026, and HMRC’s penalties are points-based and relate to missed filing deadlines - not to when you pick your software. You have lost nothing by waiting for a free option that lets you keep your spreadsheet.
Is aligned.tax HMRC-recognised? (the short answer)
Yes. aligned.tax is officially HMRC-recognised software for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, recognised in July 2026. It passed HMRC’s production approval checks and files quarterly updates through HMRC’s official MTD API. It is free for individuals filing their own updates - practices start with three clients free - and it accepts XLSX workbooks. If you use another spreadsheet format or application, save or export your records as XLSX before upload.
Thank you to everyone who signed up early, sent us their messy spreadsheets, and told us what was confusing. See you at go-live.