PingtailGet your MTD clients' records in before the 7th
Quarterly updates turned one deadline a year into four. Pingtail asks each sole trader and landlord for the quarter's records, follows up on its own, and checks every file the moment it lands.
Start free See how a quarter runs
- 14 days free
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- Cancel at any time
- Quarter to 5 October Next, in 15 days
- Quarter to 5 January
- Quarter to 5 April
- Quarter to 5 July
Clients on calendar quarters end on the last day of the month before. The deadlines are the same. Dates from GOV.UK. Check the current rules for your client.
Four deadlines a year, and the records still arrive late
Under Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, a sole trader or landlord sends HMRC an update every quarter. Your software is ready and so is your team. What holds the update up is what always held up the tax return: the client's records.
That is a process problem, not a people problem. A client who used to hear from you once a year now hears four times, and nobody has four times the hours to follow up.
- The wrong quarter. You asked for July to September. The bank statement that arrives covers April to June.
- Pages missing. The statement says page 1 of 6 and four pages arrive.
- A photo nobody can read. The receipt is too dark, and you find out a week later.
- No reply. You write the third "just checking in" email of the quarter. Next quarter you write it again.
- The last week. The days before the 7th go on waiting, then rushing.
Pingtail asks once, follows up on its own, checks every file the moment it lands, and comes to you only when a person needs to decide.
What it does
- Sends each client a request for the quarter's records, by email, in your firm's name. Replies go to your own inbox.
- Reminds on its own, and each reminder lists only what is still missing.
- Checks every upload against what you asked for while your client is still on the page.
- Shows on one board who is complete and who is holding the quarter up.
What it does not do
Pingtail is not Making Tax Digital software. It does not keep digital records for HMRC, it does not send quarterly updates, and it does not file a tax return.
You keep doing that in the compatible software you already use. Pingtail gets the client's records to you, checked, in time to do it. Accepted files can go to QuickBooks Online, where each one is attached to the client's customer, to Google Drive or Dropbox, or by email to tools like Dext and Hubdoc. Pingtail only adds files there: nothing already in your books is changed. Or download one zip per request.
One quarter, start to finish
A request sent the day after the quarter ends leaves about a month before the 7th. This is how that month runs on the default settings.
- The quarter ends
Nothing to write
Standard quarters end on the 5th. Calendar quarters end on the last day of the month before.
- Day 0
The request goes out
One email per client, with a private link. No login and no app. It opens on a phone.
- Day 3, 7 and 12
Reminders send themselves
At a sensible hour, weekends skipped. Each one lists only what is still missing.
- On every upload
Each file is checked
The wrong quarter or a missing page is caught while your client can still fix it.
- After the last reminder
Time for a call
You get an email naming the client, and the reminders stop. Now a call is worth your time.
- Before the 7th
You send the update
With the records in and checked, you prepare the quarterly update in your own software.
By default reminders count from the day you send, so send early. Or count them back from your due date: the pattern is 7, 3 and 1 days before, on the day, then 3 and 7 days after. Either way you can change the schedule, up to six reminders, and pause or send one now on any request.
You do not have to chase until the 7th. Add a cut-off notice, a set number of days before or after the due date. It tells your client that after that date you will go ahead with what you have, and lists what is still missing. Then reminders stop, the request is marked "Cut-off passed", and you get an email. The chasing log lists every message sent and when, to print or download.
The quarterly records request, ready to send
There is a ready-made checklist for this in the United Kingdom set. It is written for a sole trader or a landlord, in words a client understands.
- Pick the client, the checklist and the quarter.
- Take out what this client does not have. Add what is special to them.
- Send. The follow-up and the checks are already running.
Every item tells your client what to send, for which period and where to find it. The due date never defaults to the past. Set it to the day you want the records, with room before the 7th.
Clients on standard quarters that end on the 5th are covered: set the start and end dates of the period yourself. On a paid plan the request can repeat every quarter, so the next one goes out without anyone remembering. Save your edited version as your own template and use it for every client like this one.
- Bank statementsRequired
- Sales and income recordsRequired
- Bills and receiptsRequired
- Rental income statementsIf it applies
- Credit card statementsIf it applies
- Card processor reports (Stripe, SumUp, Zettle)If it applies
- Business mileageIf it applies
- Any change to how you earn your income this quarter?Required
- Anything unusual this quarterIf it applies
Checked while your client is still on the page
Every file is checked the moment it lands, against what you asked for. A problem shows on your client's screen, not in your inbox a week later.
- A statement for a different quarter than the one you asked for.
- A document that says "Page 1 of 6" with pages missing.
- A PDF locked with a password.
- A photo too small, too dark or too blurred to read.
- The same file sent twice.
The check never rejects. People decide.
Your client can always answer "This is correct, send it anyway", and the file reaches you with a flag. Only a person at your firm can send a file back, and that takes a note your client receives by email at once.
A statement that covers several months, including the quarter you asked for, is accepted, and you see every month it covers.
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, in brief
What HMRC's guidance on GOV.UK said when we read it on 4 October 2026. Rules change, so check the current rules for your client.
| Question | What the guidance says |
|---|---|
| Who is in | Sole traders and landlords who are registered for Self Assessment, once their qualifying income passes a threshold. Qualifying income is self-employment and property income together, taken from a tax return already sent. |
| From when | Over £50,000 on the 2024 to 2025 return: from 6 April 2026. Over £30,000 on the 2025 to 2026 return: from 6 April 2027. Over £20,000 on the 2026 to 2027 return: from 6 April 2028. |
| What changes | Digital records kept in compatible software, an update every quarter, and then the tax return by 31 January after the tax year ends. |
| Quarterly deadlines | 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May. The dates are the same for standard quarters, which end on the 5th, and calendar quarters, which end on the last day of the month before. |
| What an update covers | Totals for each income and expense category from the start of the tax year to the end of the quarter. A correction to an earlier quarter goes into the next update. |
| A late update | No penalty for missing a quarterly update deadline in the 2026 to 2027 tax year, but the updates still have to be sent before the tax return can be. For later tax years each missed deadline earns a penalty point, and at four points the penalty is £200. |
Sources on GOV.UK: who needs to use it and when, sending quarterly updates, penalties. This page is not tax advice.
Questions
Does Pingtail send quarterly updates to HMRC?
No. Pingtail is not Making Tax Digital software and it does not file anything. It collects the quarter's records from your client and checks them. You prepare and send the update in the compatible software you already use.
How do requests and reminders reach my clients?
By email, from your firm's name, with replies going to your own inbox. Each email has one button that opens the client's private page. Your client can stop reminders with one click.
Do my clients need an account or an app?
No. The link opens a page for that one request, on a phone or a computer. Your client can take a photo with the camera, and everything is saved as they go. On a new device the page asks for a 6-digit code sent to their email.
My clients use standard quarters that end on the 5th. Does that work?
Yes. A request has a start date and an end date, and you can set both. The check compares the dates in each file with the period you set.
What happens when a client still does not reply?
Reminders go out on day 3, 7 and 12 after sending unless you change the schedule. You can count them back from your due date instead. After the last one you get an email saying it is time for a call, and the reminders stop. Or end with a cut-off notice: your client is told that after a date you will go ahead with what you have, and the reminders stop there. On any request you can pause reminders, send one now, or follow up yourself.
Can I change the checklist?
Yes. Add or remove items on any request, edit the wording your client sees, and save the result as your own template.
From UK firms using Pingtail
Month-end used to mean chasing clients for invoices and receipts while trying to get the books closed. Pingtail handles the reminders and flags the wrong or incomplete documents before they reach us. We now start the actual work much earlier instead of spending the first few days of every month catching up.
The third or fourth 'just checking in' email was becoming a surprisingly big part of our month. Pingtail takes that repetitive follow-up off the team's desk and keeps the client focused on exactly what is still outstanding. It has made month-end feel much less rushed.
Guides on this topic
Four quarterly updates a year means four rounds of chasing. A calendar, checklist and routine for UK bookkeepers with Making Tax Digital clients.
9 min read UK Self Assessment client document checklistWhat to ask a client for before you prepare a Self Assessment return: income, property, pensions, gains and the reliefs people forget, with typical dates.
8 min read Chasing bank statements every month: a routine that worksBank statements hold up more closes than any other document. When to ask, how to ask for the right account and period, and what to do when one is missing.
8 min readSend this quarter's requests today
The next quarterly update is due on 7 November 2026. A request sent today has 15 days to bring the records in.
Try it on yourself first: send a request to your own inbox, upload the wrong file, and watch it get caught. Ten minutes, no card.
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