How to pay General Betting Duty
This guide offers a reminder of General Betting Duty payment deadlines and explains all of the available payment options.
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) recommends that you make all of your General Betting Duty payments electronically. Paying electronically:
- is safe and secure
- gives you better control over your money
- provides certainty when your payment will reach HMRC
- avoids postal delays
- may lower your bank charges
- gives you up to seven extra days in which to pay
On this page:
- General Betting Duty payment deadlines
- Paying by Internet, telephone banking or BACS Direct Credit
- Paying by CHAPS transfer
- Paying by post
- Paying with euros
- No payment due
- Correspondence or receipt requests
- Information about the Faster Payment service
- More useful links
General Betting Duty payment deadlines
You are responsible for calculating how much General Betting Duty is owed and for paying this duty on time. Failure to do so may result in HMRC applying to the Gambling Commission for a review of your general betting operating licence or premises licence.
Your General Betting Duty payment is due no later than 15 days following the end of your accounting period. If the 15th day is a Saturday, Sunday or bank holiday, the General Betting Duty Return and payment must reach HMRC by the previous working day.
You may face a civil penalty if you fail to pay duty or assessments of duty.
Read more about Betting Duty returns and duty payment (Notice 451 Section 5)
Read more about civil penalties (Notice 209: Civil Penalties – Fixed, geared and daily)
Paying General Betting Duty by Internet, telephone banking or BACS Direct Credit
You can use your bank or building society services to pay by Internet, telephone banking or BACS Direct Credit (available to businesses that are authorised by their bank to submit files direct to BACS).
If you pay using any of these methods, your bank will transfer your money electronically and you may receive up to an extra seven calendar days after the standard due date for the payment to reach HMRC.
It normally takes three bank working days for payment to reach HMRC. Bank working days are Monday to Friday excluding bank holidays. Some bank and building societies can take longer. You should check with your bank or building society to see how long they take to transfer payment and what their cut-off time is for initiating payment. If they take longer then you will need to initiate your payment earlier.
Providing HMRC bank account details
To pay your General Betting Duty by Internet, telephone banking or BACS Direct Credit, you will need to provide your bank with HMRC’s bank account details. You will need to contact HMRC’s Greenock office to request account details using the contact details below.
HM Revenue & Customs
Greenock Accounting Centre
Customs House
Custom House Quay
Greenock
PA15 1EQ
Tel: 01475 881434 or 01475 881435
If your payment is made using the wrong sort code or account number there may be a delay in updating your record or the payment may not be received at all.
Your General Betting Duty reference number
When making a General Betting Duty payment you will need your reference number. This is shown on your General Betting Duty Return.
Read about civil penalties (Notice 209: Civil Penalties Fixed, geared and daily)
Paying General Betting Duty by CHAPS transfer
The CHAPS system enables you to tell your bank to make an immediate payment that will reach HMRC on the same day, provided you initiate payment within the time specified by your bank (usually between 9.00 am and 3.00 pm). Bank working days are Monday to Friday excluding bank holidays. CHAPS payments are more expensive than other payment methods but may be of benefit if you are making very large payments.
Providing HMRC bank account details
When using this system you will need to provide HMRC bank details to your bank or building society. You will need to contact HMRC’s Greenock office to request account details using the contact details below.
HM Revenue & Customs
Greenock Accounting Centre
Customs House
Custom House Quay
Greenock
PA15 1EQ
Tel: 01475 881434 or 01475 881435
If your payment is made to the wrong sort code or account number there may be a delay before your account is credited or your payment may not be received at all.
Your General Betting Duty reference number
When making a General Betting Duty payment you will need your reference number. This is shown on your General Betting Duty Return.
You may face a civil penalty if you fail to pay duty or assessments of duty.
Read more about civil penalties (Notice 209: Civil Penalties Fixed, geared and daily)
Paying General Betting Duty by post
HMRC recommends that you make your General Betting Duty payments electronically using one of the methods described elsewhere in this guide.
Electronic payments are generally more efficient and secure, provided you give HMRC an accurate reference number.
However if paying by post please:
- make your cheque payable to ‘HM Revenue & Customs only’ followed by your General Betting Duty reference number and send it with your return to HMRC
- do not fold the payslip or cheque and do not fasten them with paper clips or staples or in any other manner
If you are sending a payment to HMRC and do not have a pre-addressed HMRC envelope please send your payment to:
HM Revenue & Customs
Greenock Accounting Centre
Customs House
Custom House Quay
Greenock
PA15 1EQ
To allow for possible postal delays (for which HMRC is not responsible) please allow at least three working days for the payment to reach them.
You may face a civil penalty if you fail to pay duty or assessments of duty.
Read more about civil penalties (Notice 209: Civil Penalties Fixed, geared and daily)
Paying General Betting Duty with euros
You can pay your General Betting Duty in euros using the BACS or CHAPS payment methods, including any arrears. Repayments of tax due to you from HMRC will continue to be made in sterling.
Exchange rate to be used for payments
The payment figure, shown in sterling on your General Betting Duty
return will need to be converted into euros. HMRC recommends that you
use the UK market selling rate for the day that you are making the payment.
You can get this information from the Financial Times or by calling
the HMRC Euro Helpline on Tel 01702 366349.
The risk associated with the exchange rate fluctuations will be your
responsibility as the decision is yours as to whether you pay in euros
or sterling. HMRC will continue to maintain its accounts in sterling
and you will be credited with the actual sterling value HMRC receives
after conversion by their bankers. The cost incurred by HMRC in converting
euro payment into sterling will be met by HMRC.
You will need to fax the following information to the HMRC Euro Helpline on Fax 01702 366378 to enable them to update your account:
- description of tax being paid General Betting Duty
- your General Betting Duty reference number
- the period the payment relates to
- the sterling liability of the payment
Providing HMRC bank account details
You will need to contact HMRC’s Greenock office to request account details using the contact details below.
HM Revenue & Customs
Greenock Accounting Centre
Customs House
Custom House Quay
Greenock
PA15 1EQ
Tel: 01475 881434 or 01475 881435
Your General Betting Duty reference number
When making a General Betting Duty payment you will need your reference number. This is shown on your General Betting Duty Return.
You may face a civil penalty if you fail to pay duty or assessments of duty.
Read more about civil penalties (Notice 209: Civil Penalties Fixed, geared and daily)
No General Betting Duty payment due
You must let HMRC know if you have no General Betting Duty payment due by completing your return showing a ‘nil’ payment due.
General Betting Duty correspondence or receipt requests
In order to minimise costs to all taxpayers HMRC does not automatically issue receipts for payments.
If you have made your payment electronically using one of the methods described elsewhere in this guide you can confirm from your own bank or building society statement that payment has cleared your account.
However, if you are paying HMRC by post and you need to ask for a receipt, include a separate letter with your payment.
If you wish to tell HMRC about a change (for example a new address) you will need to include a separate letter with your payment if paying by post or write to them separately if you have made your payment electronically.
HM Revenue & Customs
Greenock Accounting Centre
Customs House
Custom House Quay
Greenock
PA15 1EQ
Tel 01475 881434 or 01475 881435 (open between 8.30 am and 5.00 pm, Monday to Friday excluding bank holidays)
Information about the Faster Payment service
HMRC is currently unable to receive or make payments using the Faster Payment service, which is offered by some banks.
For a bank’s customer to make a Faster Payment, both banks involved in the transaction need to be members of the Faster Payment Scheme. The Bank of England, which is currently HMRC’s banking supplier, made a decision some time ago to withdraw from the provision of retail banking services to its customers (one of which is HMRC) and has not joined the Faster Payment service.
HMRC is in the process of moving its business to a new banking supplier. Following this migration the opportunity for using the Faster Payments service will be reviewed.
More useful links
Find out what to do if you have problems making a payment
Get details of organisations that can help if you have debt problems
Find out what could happen if you don’t pay what you owe to HMRC
Find out more about General Betting Duty
Find out about Excise assessments
