The short answer
Your MTD tax return covers all your income, not just your business. In SimpleTaxFlow you can add PAYE employment, UK savings interest, UK dividends and foreign dividends before you submit. Each screen shows what HMRC already holds, so check it first and nothing is counted twice. CIS deductions have their own guide.
Part of Add employment, savings and dividends to your MTD tax return.
Is this the right guide?
Use this guide if you are in Making Tax Digital for Income Tax and you also have a job, savings interest or dividends. It shows where each one goes in SimpleTaxFlow before you submit your tax return.
If a contractor took CIS tax from your pay, use the CIS deductions guide. Some income cannot be added in SimpleTaxFlow, such as capital gains or foreign income other than dividends. The year-end steps tell you if that applies, and you then need other MTD software for your tax return.
Why other income goes on your MTD tax return
Quarterly updates only cover self-employment and property income. Your tax return covers everything. HMRC says you must add your other income before you submit your tax return.
HMRC adds some information for you, including PAYE employment, pensions, taxable state benefits and CIS deductions. You add savings interest, dividends and anything else HMRC does not hold. The sign-up service does not ask about other income. You add it in your software before you submit your tax return.
Your job, savings and dividends do not count towards your qualifying income for Making Tax Digital, and you do not need digital records for them. Recording them earlier can make your tax estimate more accurate.
What you need
- Your P60, or P45 if you left a job during the year, for each employment.
- Interest statements for each bank or building society account.
- Dividend vouchers from UK companies, and the amount and tax taken off for any foreign dividends.
- If you are a company director, the company name, company number and your shareholding.
1. Gather your statements
Use your P60 or P45 for each job, your bank or building society interest statements, and your dividend vouchers. Work from these figures.
Open Tax2. Add employment income
Choose Open employments below to open Employments, financials & related income in Tax. Employments on HMRC lists jobs HMRC already knows about. Check each one against your P60. If a job is missing, choose Add custom employment and enter Employer name, Employer PAYE reference and Start date. Then choose Financials, enter Taxable pay to date and Total tax to date, and choose Save financials.
Open employments3. Open other income
Open Tax and choose Open year-end steps. Under Other income, choose Review other income. Pick UK savings interest or UK and foreign dividends and choose Open. You can also find both under More, then Your tax tools.
Open Tax4. Add UK savings interest
Under UK savings accounts, check the accounts HMRC holds. Choose Add account if one is missing. Enter Taxed UK interest or Untaxed UK interest for each account and choose Save. Interest from gilts and other securities goes under Savings & securities income.
Open savings5. Add UK dividends
Under UK dividends, enter UK dividends and Other UK dividends for the year and choose Save. Company directors also complete Directorship & close-company info.
Open dividends6. Add foreign dividends
Open Other and foreign dividends. Under Foreign dividend (first entry), enter Country code (ISO), Amount before tax, Tax taken off and Taxable amount. Choose Save all-dividends payload. The form takes one foreign dividend entry.
Open dividends7. Check HMRC’s calculation
Open HMRC’s calculation and check your other income is included before you submit your tax return.
Submit your tax returnA worked example
Riley (fictional) is a self-employed designer with a part-time job, a savings account and a few shares. Riley’s business figures go to HMRC in quarterly updates. At year end Riley checks the job HMRC already holds, adds the savings interest and adds the dividends.
Riley does not add the job a second time, because it is already in Employments on HMRC and matches the P60.
- Design business turnover (quarterly updates)
- £30,000
- Design business expenses (quarterly updates)
- £5,000
- Design business profit
- £25,000
- Part-time job pay (already held by HMRC)
- £10,000
- Untaxed UK savings interest (UK savings interest)
- £400
- UK dividends (UK dividends)
- £1,000
The figures are fictional. HMRC’s calculation works out the tax on the whole year.
Common mistakes
- Adding a job HMRC already holds as a custom employment, so the pay is counted twice.
- Putting savings interest in the dividends section, or the other way round.
- Entering foreign dividends as UK dividends.
- Recording a job or savings interest in Bookkeeping as business income, so it ends up in a quarterly update.
How to check it worked
Open each section again and check the saved figures match your statements. Then open Tax calculation under Your tax tools, or Open calculation in the year-end steps, and check your employment, savings and dividends appear in HMRC’s figures.
If a figure is missing from HMRC’s calculation, open the section again, save it, and calculate again before you submit your tax return.
Before you move on
- Statements were compared with what HMRC already holds
- Each amount is in the right section
- Nothing HMRC already holds was added twice
- £30.00 + VAT a year or £3.50 + VAT a month. Bookkeeping is free. Pay when you send to HMRC.
Frequently asked questions
I have a job and I am self-employed. Does my job go on my MTD tax return?
Yes. Your tax return covers all your income. HMRC often already holds your PAYE pay from your employer. Check it and add anything missing.
What other income can SimpleTaxFlow not submit?
Capital gains, foreign income other than dividends, State Pension and some other income. The year-end steps tell you if you need other MTD software for your tax return.
Do savings and dividends go in my quarterly updates?
No. Quarterly updates only cover self-employment and property income. You add savings interest and dividends to your tax return after the tax year ends.
Do I need digital records for savings interest and dividends?
No. HMRC does not require digital records for other income such as dividends. You still add the totals to your tax return before you submit it.
Check the official rules
Tax rules can change and individual circumstances matter. Use HMRC’s current guidance to confirm the treatment that applies to you.
Put the guide into practice.
Open the relevant workspace and complete the next step with this guide available in another tab.
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