Ways to contact us

Using Online Services

HMRC’s Online Services offer a quick, convenient and cost efficient way for you to deal with a whole range of tax issues on behalf of your clients. We are constantly improving our Online Services so you may be able to conduct your business by going online, rather than telephoning or writing to us.

Using our tax related Online Services you can:

  • submit tax and PAYE returns
  • submit declarations
  • make payments electronically or check refunds
  • access real time accounts and view your clients’ statements
  • view and amend information such as contact details
  • obtain authorisation to act for your client

For example, by viewing the ‘View Liabilities and Payments’ information on ‘SA Online for Agents’, you will be able to check whether a repayment has been made to your client without having to call our Contact Centres.

Using the HMRC website

If you have a general query, you may be able to find the answer in the ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ (FAQs) on our website, or in one of our online manuals or booklets, without having to contact anyone in HMRC. Here are some useful links:

All FAQs
Construction Industry Scheme
Corporation Tax
National Insurance
Partnerships
Rates & Allowances
Residence and Domicile
SA manual
SA menu
Trusts & Estates
VAT information & guides

We continuously update our website by removing out-dated material and making navigation and search facilities easier to use.

Contacting us by telephone

We have a large number of contact points for conducting business by telephone. If you deal with individual Self Assessment (rather than Corporation Tax) clients, the Taxes Contact Centres, which deal with taxpayer-specific calls about SA and Pay As You Earn (PAYE) for individuals, are likely to be the most useful. These Contact Centres can also deal with partnership matters. The range of business you can conduct by telephone with the Contact Centres is outlined below.

We have priority telephone lines available for agents telephoning our Taxes Contact Centres. The latest list of agent priority line numbers, alongside the normal public numbers and the tax offices which they serve, can be found at agent priority lines. Please only use the agent priority numbers if you have an urgent issue and are unable to get through on the usual public numbers.

There is also an agent priority number for Tax Credits: 0845 300 3943. Please do not disclose any of the agent priority line numbers to your clients, as this will affect the efficiency of the service.
We also have a range of telephone helplines for general enquiries (these provide general guidance on particular subjects such as Charities, Residency, Inheritance Tax, etc). Further details are outlined in our 'Other specialist areas' section.

Contacting us by post and email

For more complex matters you may want to write to us. HMRC has a number of postal contact points which deal with the business of the former Inland Revenue for:

  • individuals
  • employers
  • businesses and corporations

Our website has appropriate links at local office addresses.

Details of where to send correspondence on VAT and Excise matters are outlined later in this chapter.

At present, we cannot offer an email service to all of our customers, although we are working towards this. Please see our listing of the areas for tax and tax credit matters that can be conducted by email.

Visiting us in person

We know that agents rarely use the Tax Enquiry Centres. We encourage individual customers to self serve, either by using the telephones to contact the Taxes Contact Centres or by using the HMRC internet access in those locations where it is available. Customers who still need a face-to-face service and the assistance of an adviser will be offered an appointment at a future time.

Details of our Enquiry Centres are available through the HMRC website. Enquiry Centre locations are also listed in BT area telephone directories under HM Revenue & Customs. Please note: Enquiry Centres do not handle VAT queries - for these, please contact the National Advice Service.