Updated 14th April 2020

Government Gateway Uses

A government gateway account is an online “portal” where you are able to log in and view your current tax position. Once registered you will be able to:

• See any outstanding amounts that are owed to HMRC or refunds that are due.
• Dependent on the service, as they do vary, you will be able to establish how payments have been allocated against HMRC liabilities.

Why should I use the government gateway?

Businesses wishing to claim grants through the coronavirus job retention scheme, or the self-employed income support scheme are likely to need access to their HMRC business digital tax account.

There are other good reasons to register for online services  :

• Should there be any issues or discrepancies with your tax account you will be able to bring this to HMRC’s attention before they make contact with any demands.
• If you change address or wish to report changes to your business you will be able to update this through the online login rather than completing forms to send to HMRC.
• Due to unprecedented current demands on HMRC’s services, the call waiting times could be much longer than expected. Being able to access your tax services ‘live’ through the digital account will be quicker than contacting HMRC via telephone or by post.

Can my advisor or accountant do this for me?

Dependent on the tax online service that is required, your advisor will be able to register however the information provided by HMRC is very limited compared to the full details shown to the taxpayer. The HMRC information shown to the advisor will differ depending on the service, for example,  sometimes only the balance on your account can be seen or only the submission status. For these reasons, businesses and taxpayers are encouraged to register themselves.

What is government gateway two-step verification?

The two-step verification is now mandatory. Once logged into your account with your username and password there is another step to complete before you can access the online tax account. This is possible via the HMRC smartphone app, by a text being sent to your phone or by an automated phone call.

HMRC introduced this to protect individuals. This means that agents can no longer access these accounts as they are for use by the individual.

How do I register?

The link below will take you to the Gov.uk site where you will be able to sign up and create an online account :

https://www.gov.uk/log-in-register-hmrc-online-services/register.

If you have any queries please ask a member of the WardWilliams Creative team.