The short answer
HMRC said in July it would send reminder letters from October 2026 to people who signed up to Making Tax Digital from April 2026 and missed the 7 August update, and agents won't get copies. Scan the letter, redact the UTR and National Insurance number, and paste it into a prompt that says what the letter is, quotes the deadline word for word, runs GOV.UK's scam checklist and drafts a reply or a client note. Then a person checks the date against the paper and sends it. Rules checked on GOV.UK on 22 October 2026.
- Who it’s for
- UK accountants and bookkeepers whose clients forward HMRC post, and sole traders and landlords who open their own
- Time to set up
- 20 minutes once, then 5 minutes a letter
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Monthly cost
- £0
The quick version
Time: About 5 minutes a letter, free
Paste a redacted HMRC letter, get what it is, the deadline in the letter's own words, a scam check and a draft reply or client note.
Not ready to automate yet? Paste this prompt into a free ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini account, fill in the [square brackets] and do the job by hand today.
You help a UK accountant deal with a letter from HMRC. The letter below has been redacted: never ask for the UTR, National Insurance number, names or bank details. Using ONLY what the letter says, write: (a) What it is, in one plain sentence. (b) Every date and deadline, quoted word for word from the letter, with what starts the clock (the date of the letter, the day it's received, or a fixed date). Never work out a date the letter doesn't state: instead, add a short note in brackets saying in plain words what to check, for example (check when this letter arrived). (c) What the reader has to do, as numbered steps. (d) A scam check using HMRC's checklist: does it rush, threaten, arrive unexpectedly, ask for personal or bank details, ask for money to be transferred, offer a refund, rebate or grant, or send you to a QR code or link that asks for personal information? Say which apply and tell me to look the letter up on GOV.UK's 'Check if a letter you've received from HMRC is genuine' page. (e) If the letter asks for a written reply, a draft reply in plain British English; if it doesn't, say 'No written reply needed' and draft a short note to the client instead. Don't give tax advice beyond what the letter says, and don't promise anything on HMRC's behalf.
Letter: [paste redacted text]Example outputfrom invented details
Example output: shows what a good result looks like. Every name, business and address is fictional. Your results will vary, even with the same prompt. Check every figure, price and date before you rely on it, and check anything about tax or MTD against GOV.UK.
What we gave it (fictional): [EXAMPLE LETTER WE WROTE, NOT HMRC'S WORDING] HM Revenue and Customs. Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. Date: 16 October 2026. Dear [NAME], Our records show we have not received your quarterly update for 6 April 2026 to 5 July 2026, which was due by 7 August 2026. Your next quarterly update, for 6 April 2026 to 5 October 2026, must be sent by 7 November 2026. Please use your Making Tax Digital compatible software to send your updates. Unique Taxpayer Reference: [REDACTED]. National Insurance number: [REDACTED]. Scan the QR code to read guidance on GOV.UK.
(a) What it is
A Making Tax Digital reminder: HMRC says it hasn't received the first quarterly update.
(b) Dates, in the letter's words
- Letter dated 16 October 2026.
- First update, 6 April to 5 July 2026: "was due by 7 August 2026". This has passed.
- Next update, 6 April to 5 October 2026: "must be sent by 7 November 2026". A fixed date, not counted from the letter.
(c) What to do
- Open the client's MTD software and check that the 6 April to 5 July update shows as outstanding.
- Send the missed 6 April to 5 July update now. GOV.UK says to send "any missed quarterly updates for the year so far", and they all have to be in before the tax return can be filed.
- Send the 6 April to 5 October update by 7 November 2026.
(d) Scam check
- Rushes or threatens: no. It gives a date but no threat.
- Unexpected: no, if the client signed up to MTD from April 2026. HMRC said it would send these from October 2026.
- Asks for personal or bank details, or a transfer: no.
- Offers a refund, rebate or grant: no.
- QR code: it says it leads to GOV.UK guidance, which is how HMRC says its codes work. If it asks for personal details, stop.
Nothing here matches the checklist, but look the letter up on GOV.UK's 'Check if a letter you've received from HMRC is genuine' page before acting (if it isn't listed, check the QR code and the phone number on GOV.UK).
(e) No written reply needed
The letter asks for the updates, not a letter back. Note to the client:
Hi Jo, thanks for sending this over. It's a genuine-looking reminder that your first Making Tax Digital update (April to July) hasn't reached HMRC. We'll send that missed update now, and the next one before Saturday 7 November. There are no penalty points for late quarterly updates this tax year, so nothing to pay. If anything else from HMRC turns up, a photo of the letter is all we need. Please don't call a number from a text or email claiming to be HMRC.
The letter is an example we wrote, not HMRC's wording: HMRC hasn't published the real reminder letter yet. 7 November 2026 checked by hand as a Saturday.
Make it run itself by FridayCheck the date in (b) against the paper, then send the note yourself.
HMRC says reminder letters are “scheduled to be issued from October 2026” to people who signed up to Making Tax Digital for Income Tax from April 2026 and missed the first update on 7 August (GOV.UK, Edition 5). Agents don’t get copies (ICAEW). So the first you’ll hear of it is a client’s photo of a crumpled page, sent at 9pm, captioned “is this real??”.
It’s a fair question. GOV.UK lists genuine HMRC-backed MTD research letters from agencies called Verian (until 30 October 2026) and NatCen or Walnut (until 31 October 2026) (GOV.UK), which is just the sort of thing a scammer would make up. The next update is due on Saturday 7 November, and ICAEW says the agent dedicated line won’t be open that day. This guide turns each letter into a five-minute job: is it real, what does it want, by when, and what do we send back. A person still checks it and presses send.
What does this automation do?
- You check the letter against HMRC’s scam checklist and list of genuine letters.
- You scan it and black out the UTR, National Insurance number and other personal details.
- ChatGPT says what the letter is, quotes every date word for word, lists the actions and drafts a reply or a client note.
- You check the deadline against the paper, send the reply yourself and log it.
What do you need before you start?
- The letter, and a phone camera or scanner.
- A free ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini account, with model training turned off (Step 2).
- Google Sheets for the letters log.
How do I set it up?
Step 1: Check the letter is genuine before you act on it
HMRC’s scam checklist is written for calls, emails, texts and social media, but the same signs apply to a letter: it could be a scam if it rushes you, is threatening, is unexpected, asks for personal information like bank details, tells you to transfer money, or offers a refund, tax rebate or grant (GOV.UK). Two more facts from the same page are worth knowing:
- HMRC’s QR codes usually go to GOV.UK guidance, and HMRC says you will “never be taken to a page where you have to input personal information”.
- HMRC will never ask you to pay with gift or payment vouchers, and only uses WhatsApp for one-way alerts if you’ve subscribed to the UK Government Channel.
Then look the letter up on GOV.UK’s list of genuine HMRC letters, which gives letter codes, dates HMRC is writing and what each letter asks for. The MTD missed-update reminder wasn’t on that list when we checked on 22 October 2026. If yours isn’t listed, GOV.UK points you to its page of HMRC contact that uses more than one method and its QR code checker. If it still feels off, GOV.UK says to contact the HMRC helpline for that kind of letter if you’re not sure it’s genuine (GOV.UK). Check the number against GOV.UK before you call it, not just on the letter: GOV.UK says to “search on GOV.UK to find official government services and phone numbers” (GOV.UK).
Step 2: Scan it and redact the identifiers
ChatGPT’s iPhone app is getting a Scan option that turns several pages into one PDF (OpenAI’s release notes for 1 October 2026 say “Rolling out on iOS”; it may not be on Android yet). Any scanner app works.
Before anything goes into a chatbot, black out:
- the UTR: a 10-digit number, sometimes just called “tax reference” (GOV.UK)
- the National Insurance number: 2 letters, 6 numbers and a final letter, like QQ123456B
- names, addresses, bank details and any HMRC reference that identifies the person
Black out on the image itself, or type the text out with [REDACTED] in place. Cropping isn’t enough if the number’s in the footer too. Then, on a free account, turn off Improve the model for everyone in Settings › Data controls, or use a Temporary chat. OpenAI says temporary chats aren’t used to improve its models but “may be retained for up to 30 days for safety purposes” (OpenAI Help). Redaction is the rule either way: the setting is a seatbelt, not permission.
Step 3: Get the summary, with the deadline quoted word for word
Paste the redacted text into the copy-paste prompt. It asks for five things: what the letter is, every date quoted exactly with what starts the clock, the actions, the scam check and a draft. The worked example above shows it on an MTD reminder letter we wrote ourselves; it is not HMRC’s wording.
Quoting matters more than summarising. “Respond within 30 days” and “reply by 30 November” are different instructions, and a summary can quietly turn one into the other.
Step 4: Check the deadline against the paper
This is the step that keeps you out of trouble. Two GOV.UK examples show why:
- A tax decision usually gives you 30 days from the date of the decision letter to appeal (GOV.UK). The clock started before the envelope reached the doormat.
- An IDMS99 overdue payment letter tells you what happens if you don’t pay or call “within 28 days of receiving the letter” (GOV.UK).
Find each date in the original, not the summary. Put it in your diary with one day to spare. If the model has flagged a date it couldn’t find in the letter, that’s your cue to read the letter again, not to guess.
Step 5: Draft the reply, then a person sends it
Often the right reply is no letter at all: the MTD reminder wants a quarterly update, not correspondence. The prompt says so when that’s the case and drafts a client note instead.
When a written reply is needed, the person responsible checks every figure and date, adds the identifiers back in, and sends it by the route the letter gives. AI drafts. People send.
Step 6: Log every letter in one sheet
One row per letter:
| Column | Example |
|---|---|
| Client | Jo Example |
| Date on letter | 16/10/2026 |
| Date received | 20/10/2026 |
| Letter type or code | MTD quarterly update reminder |
| Deadline (from the letter) | 07/11/2026 |
| What starts the clock | Fixed date |
| Genuine check done? | Y |
| Action | Send missed Q1 update now, Q2 by 7 Nov |
| Handled by | Sam (partner) |
| Done | 23/10/2026 |
Sort by deadline every Monday. The “what starts the clock” column is the one that catches the 30-days-from-the-date-of-the-letter cases.
Step 7: Warn clients before the MTD reminder letters land
Because agents don’t get copies, tell your MTD clients now. Something like:
HMRC plans to post reminder letters to people who missed the August Making Tax Digital update. If one arrives, send us a photo. Please don’t reply to texts or emails about it, or call numbers in them: we’ll check and deal with it. The next update is due by Saturday 7 November.
There are no penalty points for late quarterly updates in 2026 to 2027, but the updates still have to be sent, points start applying for 2027 to 2028 for people who joined in April 2026, and a late tax return still gets a point (GOV.UK). Budget 2026 announced the same first year without quarterly-update points for people joining in April 2027 (Budget 2026 OOTLAR). A calm client who forwards a photo beats a worried one who rings the number on a fake text.
The copy-paste prompt
You help a UK accountant deal with a letter from HMRC. The letter below has
been redacted: never ask for the UTR, National Insurance number, names or bank
details. Using ONLY what the letter says, write: (a) What it is, in one plain
sentence. (b) Every date and deadline, quoted word for word from the letter,
with what starts the clock (the date of the letter, the day it's received, or
a fixed date). Never work out a date the letter doesn't state: instead, add a
short note in brackets saying in plain words what to check, for example (check
when this letter arrived). (c) What the reader has to do, as numbered steps.
(d) A scam check using HMRC's checklist: does it rush, threaten, arrive
unexpectedly, ask for personal or bank details, ask for money to be
transferred, offer a refund, rebate or grant, or send you to a QR code or link
that asks for personal information? Say which apply and tell me to look the
letter up on GOV.UK's 'Check if a letter you've received from HMRC is genuine'
page. (e) If the letter asks for a written reply, a draft reply in plain
British English; if it doesn't, say 'No written reply needed' and draft a
short note to the client instead. Don't give tax advice beyond what the letter
says, and don't promise anything on HMRC's behalf.
Letter: [paste redacted text]What can go wrong?
- Pasting the unredacted scan. The UTR and NI number are what a fraudster wants. Redact first, every time.
- Trusting the summary’s date. Quote it, then check it against the paper. “From the date of the letter” and “from receiving it” are different deadlines.
- Calling the number on the letter you’re unsure about. Check the number against GOV.UK before you call it.
- Letting the scam check overrule you. A clean checklist doesn’t prove a letter is real. A text “from HMRC” offering a refund is a scam whatever the model says: HMRC asks you to forward those to 60599.
- Tax advice by chatbot. The prompt explains the letter. Whether to appeal is still your call.
Once the letters are sorted, the next job is usually the 7 November update itself: our guide to sending an MTD quarterly update from a spreadsheet covers it, free bridging software included. And one practical automation like this, with the £ and the time it saves, lands in your inbox every Friday if you join our free email.
Do it yourself or pay for a tool?
This guide’s setup costs £0 a month. If you’d rather pay for something ready-made, here’s what the main paid tools cost, what they do that our setup doesn’t, and when they’re worth it.
| Paid tool | Price | What it does that ours doesn’t | When to pay instead | Price seen on |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adobe Acrobat Studio | £24.98 a month (annual plan, billed monthly)VAT: Includes VAT (“incl. VAT.”)Free option: Free trial; “Fee applies of half your remaining annual commitment if you cancel after 14 days.” | “Includes everything in Acrobat Pro, plus AI Assistant”: summaries and answers on the PDF itself, so the scan never goes into a separate chatbot | Your letters already arrive as PDFs and you'd rather summarise them where they're stored than copy text across | adobe.com pricing for Adobe Acrobat Studio |
| Microsoft 365 Business Standard with Copilot | £18.10 per user a month, paid yearlyVAT: Excludes VAT (“Price does not include VAT.”)Free option: “Try for free” (one-month trial, credit card required) | Copilot built into Outlook and Word, so a letter that arrives as an email attachment can be summarised and the reply drafted in the same place | Your practice already runs on Microsoft 365 and wants AI inside a business account rather than a free consumer chatbot | microsoft.com pricing for Microsoft 365 Business Standard with Copilot |
Prices are what each company showed on its own pricing page on the date given, in the currency it uses (we haven’t converted US dollars), and can change. Check before you buy. We don’t earn anything from these links. How we check prices.
Frequently asked questions
Is it safe to put an HMRC letter into ChatGPT?
Only once you've redacted it. Black out the UTR (a 10-digit number, sometimes called 'tax reference'), the National Insurance number (2 letters, 6 numbers and a final letter), names, addresses and any bank details first. On ChatGPT Free, turn off 'Improve the model for everyone' in Data controls, or use a Temporary chat, which OpenAI says isn't used to improve its models but may be kept for up to 30 days for safety purposes.
How can I tell if an HMRC letter is a scam?
Use HMRC's own checklist: it could be a scam if it rushes you, threatens you, is unexpected, asks for personal information like bank details, tells you to transfer money, or offers a refund, rebate or grant. Then look the letter up on GOV.UK's list of genuine HMRC letters. HMRC says its QR codes usually go to GOV.UK guidance and will never take you to a page where you have to enter personal information.
What is the HMRC letter about a missed Making Tax Digital update?
HMRC says people who signed up to MTD for Income Tax from April 2026 and missed the first quarterly update on 7 August 2026 will get a reminder letter, scheduled from October 2026, explaining how to bring their updates up to date. Those who chose digital contact may also get up to two online messages. ICAEW says agents won't get copies.
Will I get a penalty for a late MTD quarterly update?
Not for 2026 to 2027. GOV.UK says there are no penalties for missing a quarterly update deadline in the 2026 to 2027 tax year, but you still have to send the updates, and penalty points still apply to late tax returns. From 2027 to 2028, each missed quarterly update deadline can earn a point for people who joined in April 2026, and 4 points means a £200 penalty. Budget 2026 announced that people joining in April 2027 won't get points for late quarterly updates in 2027 to 2028, but they must still send them before their tax return.
How long do I have to reply to an HMRC letter?
Whatever the letter says, measured the way it says it. A tax decision usually gives you 30 days from the date of the decision letter to appeal, while an overdue-payment letter (IDMS99) talks about 28 days of receiving it. Those are different clocks, so take the date from the paper, not from a summary.
Can AI send the reply to HMRC for me?
It shouldn't. Use AI to draft, then have the person responsible check every figure and date against the letter and send it themselves, by the route the letter gives. A confident wrong answer to HMRC is worse than a slow right one.
Sources
- GOV.UK: Edition 5, Making Tax Digital for Income Tax software developer newsletter (29 July 2026): reminder letters from October 2026
- ICAEW: How to get help ahead of the next MTD deadline on 7 November (20 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Use Making Tax Digital for Income Tax: send quarterly updates (updated 16 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Penalties for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (updated 30 March 2026)
- GOV.UK (HMRC): Budget 2026 overview of tax legislation and rates (OOTLAR), 2.36 (28 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Identify tax scams by phone, text, email or social media (updated 6 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Check if a letter you've received from HMRC is genuine (updated 15 September 2026)
- GOV.UK: Check genuine HMRC contact that uses more than one communication method (updated 21 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Avoid and report internet scams and phishing
- GOV.UK: Disagree with a tax decision or penalty
- GOV.UK: Find your UTR number
- OpenAI Help: Data controls in ChatGPT (checked 22 October 2026)
This guide is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Tool prices and screens change; we re-check every guide regularly. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we’ll fix it.