HMRC online services: sign in or set up an account
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1. Sign in to HMRC online services
Once you’ve set up an account, you can sign in for things like your personal or business tax account, Self Assessment, Corporation Tax, PAYE for employers and VAT.
This page is also available in Welsh (Cymraeg).
If you cannot sign in to your account
Get help if you’re having problems signing in to your account.
Services with a different login
There’s a different way to sign in for:
- excise, import and export services
- your childcare account
- your Capital Gains Tax on UK property account
Services you can use with your HMRC online account
Use your HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) online account to sign in for:
- Alcohol and Tobacco Warehousing
- Alcohol Wholesaler Registration Scheme
- Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings
- Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI)
- Business tax account
- Charities Online
- Construction Industry Scheme (CIS)
- Corporation Tax
- DIY housebuilder scheme
- Duty Deferment Electronic Statements (DDES)
- electronic Binding Tariff Information (eBTI)
- Employment Intermediaries
- Excise Movement and Control System (EMCS)
- Fulfilment House Due Diligence Scheme
- Gambling Tax Service
- Gift Aid
- Import Control System (ICS)
- Machine Games Duty
- Making Tax Digital for Income Tax
- Managing Pension Schemes
- Money laundering supervision
- New Computerised Transit System (NCTS)
- New Export Scheme (NES)
- Notification of Vehicles Arrivals (NOVA)
- PAYE for employers
- Pensions Schemes Online
- Personal tax account
- Plastic Packaging Tax
- Rebated Oils Enquiry Service
- Self Assessment
- Self Assessment for partnerships and trusts
- Shared Workspace
- Soft Drinks Industry Levy
- Stamp Taxes
- Tied Oil Enquiry Service
- VAT
- VAT EU Refunds
- VAT Import One Stop Shop (IOSS) Scheme
- VAT Mini One Stop Shop (MOSS) Scheme
- VAT One Stop Shop (OSS) Scheme
2. Set up an account for HMRC online services
You’ll need to set up a Government Gateway account in order to access HMRC’s online services.
There are 3 types of account:
- individual accounts
- organisation accounts
- accounts for agents
Individual accounts
You can, for example:
- set up a personal tax account to check things like your Income Tax estimate and tax code, update your personal details and claim a tax refund if one’s due
- register for Self Assessment if you need to send a Self Assessment tax return to report rental or investment income
You can use the same Government Gateway sign in details to access both accounts. For example, if you set up a personal tax account you can then add Self Assessment to that account.
Organisation accounts
These include accounts for:
- businesses, such as limited companies, partnerships and sole traders (business tax accounts)
- trusts that need to be registered
Business tax accounts
Once you’ve set up your business tax account, you can use it to for example:
- register for Self Assessment if you’re self-employed
- register for VAT if your taxable turnover is over £85,000
- set up PAYE because you’ve started to employ people
- register for Corporation Tax if you’ve set up a limited company or other organisation that needs to pay this tax
If you’re an agent
You can use HMRC online services on behalf of your clients if you’re a tax agent or adviser.
3. Get help with signing in to HMRC online services
You can get help with signing in to HMRC’s online services if you’re having problems.
Lost user ID or password
If you’ve forgotten the user ID or password you use to sign in, you can:
If you’re asked for an activation code
You may need to enter a 12-digit activation code the first time you use a HMRC service.
You’ll have been told if you need an activation code when you enrolled for the service. You’ll get your activation code by post within 10 days (21 days if you live abroad).
If you need a new activation code
If you cannot find your activation code or if your code has expired you can request a new one.
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Sign in to HMRC online services using your Government Gateway account.
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Select ‘services you can add’.
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Select ‘request a new activation code’ and enrol for the service again.
You’ll get a new code within 28 days of enrolling.
If you’ve been locked out of your account
You will be locked out of your account if you enter the wrong user ID or password 5 times.
Your account will unlock after 2 hours. Helpdesk advisers cannot unlock your account.
Service availability and issues
Online services may be slow during busy times. Check if there are any problems with services.
Get help with other problems
You can ask HMRC’s digital assistant for help with using HMRC online services.
If the digital assistant cannot help, you can ask to be transferred to a webchat with an HMRC adviser, if they’re available.
You can also get help with: