How to handle five times more client submissions without hiring more staff
Key Takeaways
MTD for IT means a 5x workload increase, not a doubling. Moving from annual to quarterly submissions turns 200 client touchpoints into 1,000 – compounding admin, chasing, and error risk every quarter.
All-in-one accounting platforms often fail at the data preparation stage. Bundled MTD features can sound convenient, but they typically stumble on getting clean, categorised client data ready in time, creating more manual corrections, not fewer.
Specialist tools work alongside existing software rather than replacing it. Dext Solo sits as a dedicated layer for sole trader clients who don't need full ledgers, capturing data via WhatsApp, email, or mobile app and feeding it into your existing stack.
Real sole trader complexity needs flexible configuration. Solo supports up to five income streams per client, jointly let properties, CIS deductions, standard or calendar quarters, and switchable cash or accrual accounting per income stream.
Practices that prepare early will transition most smoothly. Building workflows, testing automation, and getting clients into good submission habits before submissions become time-critical creates capacity for higher-value work without extra hires.
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (MTD for IT) is there, and for most accounting practices, it means a dramatic increase in workload. If you currently manage 200 clients, you're not just doubling your interactions. You're going from 200 touchpoints a year to 1,000. That's five times the admin, five times the chasing, and five times the margin for error on a quarterly cycle, not an annual one.
Why existing software often falls short
Some providers are bundling MTD for IT functionality into their broader accounting platforms, and at first glance that sounds convenient. But all-in-one tools frequently stumble at the most critical stage: actually getting clean, categorised client data ready for submission on time.
The result? More time chasing receipts. More manual corrections. More repeated admin. Only now it's happening every quarter instead of once a year.
A specialist tool designed for sole traders
Dext Solo – our HMRC recognised MTD software – has been built specifically for this challenge. It's designed for sole trader clients who are unincorporated, don't require a purchase or sales ledger, and are now subject to MTD for IT.
Rather than replacing your existing accounting software, Solo fits alongside your current workflow. Clients can submit documents via WhatsApp, email, or the Dext mobile app – whatever suits them – and Solo handles the collection, organisation, and preparation of that data using Dext's automation.
For practices, this translates to faster submissions, less admin, and more capacity for higher-value work without needing to take on extra staff to absorb the additional quarterly touchpoints.
Built for the complexity of real clients
Sole trader finances are rarely straightforward. Solo is built to reflect that:
- Multiple income sources – up to five income streams per client on a single licence, including property income
- Jointly let properties – expenditure and recording handled within the same workflow
- CIS clients – Construction Industry Scheme deductions categorised correctly
- Standard and calendar quarters – reporting flexibility to match how your clients actually operate
- Cash and accrual accounting – switchable per income stream at any time via the client's business settings
The pricing starts from £2.50 per client per month, with a minimum bundle of five clients at £12.50 per month. Additional individual licences are available at £3.25 each, or you can maintain the £2.50 rate by adding further bundles of five.
Getting ahead before the pressure builds
MTD for IT still feels new, and many practices are still working out what it will look like in practice. The advantage of building your workflow now, before the volume hits, is that you can test, refine, and build confidence in how the system operates before submissions become time-critical.
The practices that will handle the transition most smoothly are those that invest in the right tools early, get clients into good submission habits, and let automation handle the routine categorisation work so their team can focus on what requires genuine expertise.
Dext Solo is designed to be that foundation. Not a replacement for your existing stack, but the specialist layer that makes quarterly compliance manageable at scale.
FAQs
MTD for IT shifts sole trader reporting from annual to quarterly submissions, meaning practices face roughly five times the touchpoints, admin, and error risk per client. A practice managing 200 clients will move from 200 to 1,000 annual interactions, making scalable workflows essential.
Dext Solo is a specialist MTD software built for sole trader clients subject to MTD for IT who don't require a purchase or sales ledger. It fits alongside your existing accounting stack, collecting and categorising client data submitted via WhatsApp, email, or the Dext mobile app, then preparing it for quarterly submission.
Solo is built for the complexity of real sole trader finances, including clients with up to five income streams per licence, property income, jointly let properties, and CIS deductions. It also supports both standard and calendar quarters, with cash or accrual accounting switchable per income stream.
Dext Solo starts from £2.50 per client per month, with a minimum bundle of five clients at £12.50 per month. Additional individual licences are £3.25 each, or you can keep the £2.50 rate by adding further bundles of five.
