Can I still use spreadsheets for MTD ITSA?

What HMRC actually requires

Two things. First, keep a digital record of each income and expense item - the date, amount and category - for your self-employment and property income. GOV.UK You do not need to scan receipts or invoices; you only need the line items recorded in a digital format.

Second, those records must reach HMRC through a digital link. The figures must not be manually re-typed or re-keyed along the way. A spreadsheet that feeds bridging software meets both requirements.

What counts as a digital link

A digital link is a transfer of data between programs that happens electronically, with no one re-typing the figures in between. HMRC accepts all of these: GOV.UK

• Linked cells in a spreadsheet - for example, a formula in one sheet that mirrors a value in another.
• Importing and exporting CSV or XML files, and uploading or downloading files.
• Emailing a spreadsheet of digital records so it can be imported into other software.
• Saving digital records to a memory stick and handing them to someone who imports them.
• Automated data transfer, and transfer between products over an API.
• Uploading your spreadsheet to bridging software that reads it directly.

This list is not exhaustive - the test is simply whether the data moves electronically without manual re-entry.

What breaks the digital link

The line HMRC draws is the manual step. These do not count as digital links:

• Copy and paste, or cut and paste, to move figures between programs.
• Re-typing or writing down figures from one place and entering them into another by hand - for example, noting a total from an invoice and keying it into another system.

How aligned.tax bridges your spreadsheet to HMRC

aligned.tax is bridging software for filing MTD for Income Tax quarterly updates. Upload the spreadsheet you already use. Smart Map suggests how each column maps to the HMRC submission categories, you confirm or adjust, and the figures flow through to HMRC's MTD service. The spreadsheet stays the source of truth, and nothing is re-typed by hand, so the digital link holds.

HMRC permits more than one compatible product working together, GOV.UK so you can keep your existing record-keeping and add aligned.tax for the submission step alone.

A worked example

Say you are a sole trader who keeps a simple Excel workbook: one row per invoice on an income tab, one row per cost on an expenses tab, each with a date, an amount and a short description. That is already a digital record of each income and expense item, which is exactly what HMRC asks for.GOV.UKWhen a quarterly update is due, you upload that workbook to bridging software, it reads the totals, you confirm how each column maps to the HMRC categories, and it sends the cumulative figures to HMRC. Nothing was re-typed, so the digital link held, and you never had to learn an accounting package.

What about Google Sheets, Numbers or ODS files?

The rules are about the digital link, not the brand of spreadsheet. HMRC's accepted methods explicitly include exporting and importing files and uploading a spreadsheet to bridging software,GOV.UKso a Google Sheet exported to Excel, or any spreadsheet your bridging software can read, works the same way. The test is always the same: the figures move electronically, with no one re-keying them in between.

Common questions

Do I have to scan my receipts? No. You only need the line items recorded digitally - the date, amount and category. You do not need to scan or photograph invoices or receipts.GOV.UK

Will spreadsheets be banned later? There is no announced plan to ban them. The digital link requirement is about how data reaches HMRC, not about forcing everyone onto accounting software.

Can I keep using a spreadsheet for my tax return under MTD? Yes. You can keep your digital records in a spreadsheet. Before submitting your tax return through compatible software, you must send all four quarterly updates, add any other income and gains, and make any corrections. Check that your chosen software supports the year-end tax return as well as quarterly updates.

Who this matters for

If you are a sole trader tracking self-employment income in a spreadsheet, or a landlord with rental income in a spreadsheet, bridging software is the route that lets you keep what you have.

Related reading: the MTD deadlines you will file against, how qualifying income decides whether you are in scope, and an honest look at free MTD software.