Are you in? It’s your takings, not your profit
Add up everything you earned from your content in the 2025/26 tax year – platform ad revenue, creator fund payouts, brand deals, affiliate commission, memberships, tips and gifts from viewers, merch sales, and the value of products you received in return for promoting them – before taking off any costs. If that total (plus any rent from property you let) is over £30,000, MTD applies from 6 April 2027. Over £50,000 and you have been in since April 2026.
Over £50,000
Over £30,000
Over £20,000
planned
Your work in accountant language
What actually happens in your working life, what your accountant and HMRC call it, and what to do about it.
| What happens | Accountant calls it | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| YouTube or TikTok pays your monthly ad revenue | Turnover | Record the amount you earned in pounds, using the payment date. |
| The payout came in US dollars and your bank converted it | Turnover in sterling – foreign currency | Record the pound amount that landed, or convert using a consistent rate. |
| A brand pays you £1,200 for a sponsored video | Turnover | Record it when paid; keep the contract or email. |
| A brand sends you a £400 coffee machine in return for a review | Non-cash income – counts at its value | Note the item and its market value as income. |
| Viewers send gifts or super chats during a live stream | Turnover (platform pays out after its cut) | Record the gross amount and the platform cut as an expense where the statement shows it. |
| You buy a new camera, mic and ring light | Equipment – deductible in the year you buy it (cash basis) | Keep receipts; claim only the business share if you also use them personally. |
| You pay a freelance editor for your videos | Allowable expense – subcontractor costs | Keep their invoice. |
| You move money to your personal account | Drawings – not an expense | Fine to do, but it does not reduce your tax. |
| Every three months, then after 5 April | Quarterly update and final declaration | Send quarterly totals, then confirm the year by 31 January, when the tax is due. |
What can a content creator claim?
✓ Usually allowable
- Cameras, microphones, lighting and editing computers (business share)
- Editing software, music licences and stock footage
- Freelance editors, thumbnail designers and managers’ commission
- Props and products you buy specifically to feature in content
- Business share of your phone and broadband
- Travel to film on location or attend brand events
- Merch production, packaging and postage
- Agency or management fees
- Use of home – the flat rate or a fair share if you film from home
✗ Not allowable
- Everyday clothes and make-up you would wear anyway, even if they appear on camera
- Holidays that are mainly personal, even if you post about them
- Food and drink for yourself
- The personal-use share of your phone or laptop
- Money you take out for yourself (drawings)
Rules that matter for content creators
Gifted products can be income
If a brand sends you something in return for a post, review or mention, its value is normally taxable income and counts towards the MTD threshold. Items sent with no obligation at all may be treated differently. Keep a simple list: date, brand, item, value, and what you agreed to do.
Overseas platforms and currency
Most platforms pay UK creators from abroad, sometimes in dollars. If you live in the UK, that is still UK self-employed income. Record it in pounds – the amount that reached your bank is usually simplest. Some platforms may withhold US tax on US viewer earnings unless you fill in their tax form; you may be able to claim relief for any tax withheld.
When a hobby becomes a business
Small, occasional earnings can be covered by the £1,000 trading allowance. Once you are earning regularly, taking brand deals or putting in serious time, you are trading and need to register for Self Assessment.
Worked example
Aisha, a lifestyle YouTuber in Birmingham (illustrative example)
| Takings (turnover) | £39,500 |
| less Camera, lens, mic and lighting | −£2,800 |
| less Freelance editor | −£6,000 |
| less Software, music licences and stock footage | −£650 |
| less Management commission | −£2,400 |
| less Phone and broadband (business share) | −£600 |
| less Travel to shoots and brand events | −£950 |
| Profit | £26,100 |
| Income tax (estimate) | £2,706 |
| Class 4 National Insurance (estimate) | £812 |
| Total tax for the year | £3,518 |
| Put aside each month | £293 |
Estimate for 2026/27 using England, Wales & NI rates, assuming no other income. Scotland has different income tax bands.
What a quarterly update looks like
A typical quarter for a creator: download your payout statements from each platform, add brand deal payments from your bank, list any gifted items with their value, then add receipts for kit, editors and software. Check every payout is in pounds. Then submit from your software, or let your accountant do it. With several platforms, a monthly 30-minute check saves a messy quarter-end.
| Quarter | Period | Submit by |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 | 6 Apr – 5 Jul | 7 Aug |
| Q2 | 6 Jul – 5 Oct | 7 Nov |
| Q3 | 6 Oct – 5 Jan | 7 Feb |
| Q4 | 6 Jan – 5 Apr | 7 May |
| Final declaration | The whole tax year | 31 Jan following |
Quarterly updates are summaries – they don’t change when you pay. Tax is still due by 31 January (plus payments on account on 31 January and 31 July if they apply to you).
What will an accountant cost?
Typical monthly fees under MTD for Income Tax for: Sole trader, one business.
| Option | What you get | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| You do it yourself | MTD-compatible software. You keep the records and send the updates. | £0–£15up to £180 a year |
| Accountant files for you | You keep records in an app; they check them, send the 4 quarterly updates and the final declaration. | £30–£60about £360–£720 a year |
| Full service | They do the bookkeeping too – you share receipts and bank feeds, they handle the rest. | £60–£120about £720–£1,440 a year |
What pushes the price up: lots of transactions every month, or more than one income stream; records kept on paper rather than in an app; being VAT-registered; catching up on missed updates or late returns.
What a fixed-fee quote should include
- All 4 quarterly updates and the final declaration (your tax return)
- The MTD software licence – or whether you pay for it separately
- Whether they do the bookkeeping or only check what you’ve recorded
- A reminder before each deadline and an estimate of the tax to put aside
- Whether VAT (20%) is added on top – not every practice charges it
Accountancy fees for your business are an allowable expense, so they reduce your tax bill.
Indicative ranges from published UK price lists, checked October 2026. Not a quote – your fee depends on how many transactions you have, how tidy your records are and where you live.
Questions content creators ask
Do I have to pay tax on free stuff brands send me?
If you received it in return for promoting it, its value is normally income. Unsolicited items with no strings attached may not be – keep a record either way so you can show which is which.
My AdSense income is paid from abroad. Does it still count?
Yes. If you live in the UK, your worldwide self-employed income counts, wherever the platform is based. Record it in pounds.
Can I claim my clothes if I wear them in videos?
Usually not. Everyday clothing is not allowable, even if it is only worn on camera. Costumes or props bought purely for content are a different matter.
I’m still at uni and make a bit from TikTok. Do I need to do anything?
If your creator income is under £1,000 a year, the trading allowance usually means you don’t need to report it. Above that you need to register for Self Assessment; MTD only applies once you pass the threshold.
Sources
- Find out if and when you need to use Making Tax Digital for Income Tax – GOV.UK
- Work out your qualifying income for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax – GOV.UK
- Send quarterly updates using Making Tax Digital for Income Tax – GOV.UK
- Find software that works with Making Tax Digital for Income Tax – GOV.UK
- Penalties for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax – GOV.UK
This guide is general information about HMRC’s Making Tax Digital rules as of 26 October 2026, not tax advice. MTD Match is an independent introduction service and is not affiliated with HMRC. Check gov.uk or speak to an accountant about your own situation.