Will your invoicing be ready for 2029?
From 2029, VAT invoices to businesses and the public sector must be e-invoices sent from software. See what applies to you, from when, and what to sort now.
Your answer
Tell us how you invoice now to see your readiness checklist and dates.
About this calculator
For small businesses, sole traders and landlords who want to know which digital tax rules apply to them, from when, and what to sort out now. It covers mandatory e-invoicing, Making Tax Digital for VAT and Making Tax Digital for Income Tax.
It's a rough guide. The government has announced e-invoicing for 2029, but the start month, the standard and the penalties are due in a roadmap at Budget 2026. We'll update this page when it's published. We don't recommend software products.
What happens to your answers
We don’t keep them. Your answers go to our server to do the sums and aren’t stored or logged. If you copy a link to your answers, they’re in the link itself, so only share it with people you trust.
How it’s worked out
From 2029 every VAT invoice to a business or the public sector must be an e-invoice: a structured file sent from software to software, not a PDF or paper. April 2029 is the proposed month. The network will be Peppol. Invoices to consumers aren't included, and nor are businesses that aren't VAT registered. There's one date for everyone, with no turnover threshold.
Making Tax Digital for VAT already applies to every VAT-registered business: records in software and returns sent from it. A spreadsheet is fine only with bridging software.
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax applies to sole traders and landlords with qualifying income (takings and rents before expenses) of more than £50,000 from 6 April 2026, more than £30,000 from 6 April 2027 and more than £20,000 from 6 April 2028. We take your income as the same each year. No date has been set for income of £20,000 or less.
Worked example
You have 4 things to fix or check, starting now.
VAT registered · invoice businesses · spreadsheet or Word · qualifying income £42,000, the same each year · as at 15 October 2026
| VAT records in a spreadsheet (Making Tax Digital for VAT): already applies (since 1 April 2022) | Check |
|---|---|
| VAT invoices to businesses sent as e-invoices: from April 2029 (proposed) | Gap |
| Bills from VAT-registered suppliers received as e-invoices: from April 2029 (proposed) | Check |
| Business and property records in software, with quarterly updates (Making Tax Digital for Income Tax): from 6 April 2027 | Check |
| Things to fix or check | 4 |
| Qualifying income of £42,000 is more than £30,000 (the 2025 to 2026 test) | From 6 April 2027 |
Worked out using HMRC's published rates for the 2026/27 tax year (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027), on a yearly basis.
Questions people ask
Is a PDF invoice an e-invoice?
No. An e-invoice is a structured file that the buyer's software reads without anyone retyping it. A PDF, a Word file, a scan or an email doesn't count.
I only sell to the public. Does e-invoicing affect me?
Not for your sales: invoices to consumers aren't in the 2029 rules. But if you're VAT registered, your suppliers will send you e-invoices, so you'll need a way to receive them.
My income is exactly £30,000. When do I start Making Tax Digital for Income Tax?
Your income has to be more than the threshold. At exactly £30,000 you'd start on 6 April 2028, when the threshold drops to £20,000, not in 2027.
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