Rebecca Benneyworth joined AccountingWEB's podcast to discuss Making Tax Digital [UK] and what the final weeks before 6 April 2026 should look like for practices.
Benneyworth chairs HMRC's Digital Advisory Group and sits on the MTD Programme Board as an external adviser. She has been testing MTD with clients in her Gloucestershire practice, which operates fully digitally.
Her main recommendation: sign up at least one client now to understand what year-end filing actually involves. "You need to know what the process looks like in practice, not just in theory," she said on the podcast.
She outlined what she has learned from hands-on MTD testing, how the process has worked with real clients, and where the pressure points are as deadlines approach. The discussion covered what needs to be actioned now, what should already be in place, and where firms are likely to hit problems.
Benneyworth also previewed her sessions at the Finance, Accounting & Bookkeeping Show on 11-12 March at the NEC, Birmingham. Her first session, "MTD Accountability Club Live", will cover practical implementation issues.
She was awarded an MBE in 2012 for services to taxation and is a past Chair of the Tax Faculty of the ICAEW. She currently sits on both the Tax Faculty Board and ICAEW Council.
Her practice specialises in small business and personal tax clients, which puts her directly in the MTD firing line. She has written extensively on MTD's practical implications for small practitioners, particularly around digital adoption barriers.
The qualifying income threshold for MTD for Income Tax Self Assessment is £50,000. Landlords and sole traders above this threshold will need to lodge quarterly updates and file their year-end return through MTD-compatible software.
Benneyworth also serves on HMRC's Administrative Burdens Advisory Board, which monitors compliance burden on businesses. She previously advised the Government of Jersey on tax system modernisation.
The podcast is available on SoundCloud and major podcast platforms. Tom Herbert, AccountingWEB's technology editor, was on holiday.