Free Making Tax Digital prep. For the basics, at no cost, ever.
If your books are straightforward, just profits, losses and the essentials HMRC asks for, we will get your quarterly update ready for free. You send it to HMRC yourself, the way you do now. Not a trial, not a taster. Free because it costs us nothing to run.
Where this has got to
The preparation is the part that needs nobody’s permission but yours. It works out your figures from what you type in, checks them against the rules HMRC actually tests, and hands you a quarterly update that is ready to go. That is what this list is for, and it is not open yet.
Sending it to HMRC from inside Lekhio is a different thing, and we will not blur the two. That needs HMRC production access. We have built the pipeline and run it end to end against HMRC’s own test systems, with the fraud prevention headers HMRC requires on every call, and we have asked for that access. It has not been granted. We will not put a date on a decision that is not ours to make, and getting your tax right matters more than being first to say we can send it. Until it is granted you file the way you file today, and Lekhio does the work that gets you there.
The date worth having in your head is 7 November 2026, the next quarterly update deadline. Getting your books straight before then is the thing that actually saves you a scramble, and that part works today.
How it will work
Answer the basics
Your profits, your losses, and the few essentials HMRC needs from a straightforward return. Nothing more.
We prepare it
A fully deterministic engine works out your figures and checks them against the rules HMRC actually tests. No AI touches this path, which is exactly why it can stay free.
You check it and you send it
You get a quarterly update that is ready, every figure shown. You send it to HMRC yourself, with whatever you use today. HMRC holds your taxpayer relationship throughout, always.
Why it is free
Every other part of Lekhio uses AI to read a photo of a receipt or answer a question about your figures. This basic preparation path does not. It is a fully deterministic engine working from numbers you type in, so it costs us nothing to run whether one person uses it or a million do. That is the whole reason we can keep it free rather than a promotion that ends.
What it covers, honestly
Straightforward sole trader profit and loss, nothing more, at least at first. Property income, a PAYE job alongside your trade, VAT, and the rest still need the fuller picture, which is what the full Lekhio service is for. We would rather tell you the edge of it now than have you find out later.
Questions people ask
Is it actually free?
Yes, for the basic path: getting your figures ready for a straightforward quarterly update, profits, losses, and the essentials HMRC asks for. It costs us nothing to run because no AI is involved, so there is no reason to charge for it.
So do I still send it to HMRC myself?
Yes. Lekhio gets the update ready, to the penny, and you send it the way you send one today. Sending straight from Lekhio needs HMRC production access, which we have asked for and have not been granted. We will not put a date on a decision that is not ours to make, and this page will say so the day it changes.
Do I have to be a paying Lekhio customer?
No. This basic path is built to stand on its own. If your situation is simple, this alone may be all you need.
What if my situation is not simple, property income, a PAYE job alongside my trade, VAT?
The free basic path covers straightforward sole trader profit and loss only. Anything with more moving parts is exactly what the full Lekhio service, bookkeeping and tax prep all year, is built for.
Does Lekhio file my tax for me?
Lekhio prepares your figures and gets them ready. You always review and approve before anything is sent, and you stay responsible for your tax. Sending straight from Lekhio to HMRC is not switched on: that needs HMRC production access, which we have asked for and have not been granted. Until it is, Lekhio does all the preparation and you send the update yourself, which takes minutes.
When can I actually use it?
It is not live yet. This page is here so you can join the list and hear the moment it opens, rather than us making a promise before it is ready.
General information, not tax advice for your exact situation. Lekhio is an independent UK company, not HMRC, and not endorsed by HMRC.
We PREPARE. You APPROVE. HMRC always holds your taxpayer relationship. That does not change here or anywhere else on Lekhio.