HMRC is developing new digital services

ACCA welcomes further efforts by HMRC to develop new digital services for agents in response to recent calls to improve service levels

IP image

It should be noted that where there are digital services, HMRC won’t be offering phone support for these services, other than when agents need support to get back online. However, the good news is that there has also been a relaunch of the agent dedicated line with revised service level targets aimed for by HMRC.

HMRC is currently working on more service developments such as:

  • forms processing – HMRC is looking at ways to process claims more efficiently eg improve the processing of R40 (PPI interest taxed at source) and other high demand forms
  • agent authorisation processes – longer term, HMRC is looking at ways to streamline agent client authorisation processes while retaining security and GDPR requirements, developing smoother access to client information
  • agent income record viewer – HMRC has developed an agent income record viewer service, which provides agents with their client’s pay and tax details, employment history and tax code details. It involves a digital handshake which needs to be completed by your client; this is to protect your client’s security and comply with GDPR obligations. Once this service is up and running, it should clear a huge bottleneck for tax agents for clients’ records and information.

Currently, this tool is still in private beta testing and so is limited to a small number of agents, but HMRC can now extend the service to a further 200 agents. If you would like to be part of this trial, please contact Denise Beat on hmrcirvrequest@hmrc.gov.uk.

Feedback on the service levels on any of the above digital services when up and running can be fed through to our policy section on UKPolicy@accaglobal.com.