Katana VentraIP

HM Revenue and Customs

His Majesty's Revenue and Customs (commonly HM Revenue and Customs, or HMRC)[4][5] is a non-ministerial department of the UK Government responsible for the collection of taxes, the payment of some forms of state support, the administration of other regulatory regimes including the national minimum wage and the issuance of national insurance numbers. HMRC was formed by the merger of the Inland Revenue and HM Customs and Excise, which took effect on 18 April 2005.[6] The department's logo is the Tudor Crown enclosed within a circle.

"HMRC" redirects here. For the ship prefix (His Majesty's Revenue Cutter), see List of Border Force cutters (UK).

HM Revenue and Customs
Welsh: Cyllid a Thollau Ei Fawrhydi

18 April 2005 (2005-04-18)

63,223[1] FTE

£4 billion (2018–2019)[2]

100 Parliament Street, London, SW1A 2BQ

  • Sir Jim Harra, Chief Executive
  • Angela MacDonald, Deputy Chief Executive

Departmental responsibilities[edit]

The department is responsible for the administration and collection of direct taxes including Income Tax, Corporation Tax, Capital Gains Tax (CGT) and Inheritance Tax (IHT), indirect taxes including Value Added Tax (VAT), excise duties and Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT), and environmental taxes such as Air Passenger Duty and the Climate Change Levy. Other aspects of the department's responsibilities include National Insurance Contributions (NIC), the distribution of Child Benefit and some other forms of state support including the Child Trust Fund, payments of Tax Credits, enforcement of the National Minimum Wage,[7] administering anti-money laundering registrations for Money Service Businesses[8] and collection and publication of the trade-in-goods statistics.[9] Responsibility for the protection of the UK's borders passed to the UK Border Agency within the Home Office on 1 April 2008 and then to UK Border Force and the National Crime Agency in 2013..

Powers of officers[edit]

HMRC is a law enforcement agency which has a strong cadre of criminal investigators responsible for investigating Serious Organised Fiscal Crime. This includes all of the previous HMCE criminal work (other than drug trafficking but used to include this up until 2008) such as tobacco, alcohol, and oils smuggling. They have aligned their previous Customs and Excise powers to tackle previous Inland Revenue criminal offences. They are responsible for seizing (or preventing the loss of) billions of stolen pounds of HMG's revenue. Their skills and resources include the full range of intrusive and covert surveillance and they are a senior partner in the Organised Crime Partnership Board.


HMRC criminal investigation officers have wide-ranging powers of arrest, entry, search and detention. HMRC have the power to apply for orders requiring information to be produced; apply for and execute search warrants; make arrests; search suspects and premises following arrest; and recover criminal assets through the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.[10]


The main power, under section 138 of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 (as amended by section 114 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984) is to arrest anyone who has committed, or whom the officer has reasonable grounds to suspect has committed, any offence under the Customs and Excise Acts[11] as well as related fraud offences.


On 30 June 2006, under the authority of the new Labour home secretary, John Reid, extensive new powers were given to HMRC. Under chairman Sir David Varney, a new Criminal Taxes Unit of senior tax investigators was created to target suspected fraudsters and criminal gangs. To disrupt and clamp down on criminal activity. This HMRC/CTU would pursue suspects in the same way the US Internal Revenue Service caught out Al Capone on tax evasion. These new powers included the ability to impose penalties without needing to prove the guilt of suspected criminals; extra powers to use sophisticated surveillance techniques, and for the first time, to have the same ability as customs officers to monitor suspects and arrest them.[12] On 19 July 2006, the executive chairman of HMRC, Sir David Varney resigned.[13]


HMRC is also listed under parts of the British government which contribute to intelligence collection, analysis and assessment. Their prosecution cases may be co-ordinated with the police or the Crown Prosecution Service.

April 2005 – August 2006

Sir David Varney

(acting) September 2006 – February 2007 and (confirmed) February 2007 – November 2007

Paul Gray

(acting) 2007 – 31 July 2008

Dave Hartnett CB

CBE 1 August 2008 – 1 August 2012

Mike Clasper

Permanent secretary

Director general

Director

Deputy director

Grade 6

Grade 7

Senior officer

Higher officer

Officer

Assistant officer

Administrative assistant

Source:[29]


See civil service grading schemes for details.

Revenue and Customs Digital Technology Services[edit]

Revenue and Customs Digital Technology Services (RCDTS) is a subsidiary of HMRC established in 2015 to provide technical and digital services. The company works exclusively for HMRC and its employees are not civil servants.[46] On 17 January 2022, HMRC announced its intention to wind up the company.[47]

HM Revenue and Customs Museum

Government Offices Great George Street

Revenue Scotland

Tŷ William Morgan - William Morgan House

Welsh Revenue Authority

Official website

Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005

(25 November 2004)

Treasury Press Release

The Guardian, 2014

HMRC criticised for using terror laws against tax whistleblower

Politics Home, 2018

Government must revisit the 2019 Loan Charge to avoid bankrupting thousands of innocent contractors

The Telegraph, 2018

Mental health problems can be 'exacerbated' by HMRC demands, experts say

The Telegraph, 2018

MP targets 'immoral' HMRC over 'retrospective' taxation of contractors

Business Matters, 2018

Please only be suicidal during office hours, say HMRC, to workers facing bankruptcy