National statistics

HMRC tax receipts and National Insurance contributions for the UK (monthly bulletin)

Updated 22 May 2024

Released 22 May 2024. Next release 21 June 2024.

Headlines

Total HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) receipts for April 2024 are £75.4 billion, which is £4.2 billion higher than the same period last year.

Cash receipts data from April 2023 remains provisional until aligned to the HMRC Annual Reports and Accounts (ARA), to be published in Summer 2024. Differences between the two publications exist as the HMRC ARA presents data on an accrued basis.

The data source for this release is available in the HMRC tax receipts and NICs statistics table. Monthly receipts data is available from April 2008.

Figure 1, HMRC receipts for April 2024

Figure 1 above shows total HMRC receipts for April 2024, compared to the same period last year in both percentage and monetary terms and shows:

• overall cash receipts were higher mainly from Income Tax, Capital Gains Tax and National Insurance contributions (NICs) (£3.5 billion),
• VAT cash receipts were lower by £0.3 billion
• in percentage terms, receipts were higher for Tobacco Duty (26%)

About this release

This bulletin includes monthly receipts (on a cash basis) for the current and last three tax years from tax and duties, NICs, and fines and penalties that HMRC are responsible for administering.

Further background on the methodology, release and quality of these statistics can be found in the quality report for HMRC Receipts on GOV.UK.

Income Tax, Capital Gains Tax and NICs

Income Tax, CGT & NICs receipts for April 2024 are £44.4 billion, which is £3.5 billion higher than the same period last year.

PAYE Income Tax and NIC1 receipts for April 2024 are £44.2 billion, which is £3.3 billion higher than the same period last year. The latest receipts in April largely relate to March liabilities. Estimates on earnings and employment are available in HMRC’s published statistics.

Figure 2, Monthly Receipts

Figure 2 above contains the monthly receipts patterns in each tax year since 2021 to 2022 and shows:

• peaks in July and January each year reflect the bi-annual due dates for Self Assessment
• peaks in January to April typically capture PAYE bonus-related receipts, particularly from the financial sector
• the NICs rates increase, effective from April to October 2022, affects HMRC’s NICs receipts from May to November 2022 inclusive
• the NICs Primary Threshold increase, effective from July 2022, affects HMRC’s NICs receipts from August 2022 onwards
• the effect from changes to NICs rates from 6 January 2024, affects receipts from February 2024 onwards
• the reduction of Employee National Insurance rates from 10% to 8%, announced at the Spring Budget and effective from 6 April 2024, is expected to affect receipts from May 2024 onwards

Further information on Income Tax and personal incomes is available in the personal taxes section published on GOV.UK.

Value Added Tax (VAT)

VAT receipts for April 2024 are £17.7 billion, which is £0.3 billion lower than the same period last year.

Figure 3, Monthly receipts

Figure 3 above shows the monthly receipts patterns in each tax year since 2021 to 2022 shows:

• large peaks in April, July, October, and January reflect when the majority of receipts are paid quarterly and largely corresponding with the end of the financial and calendar years
• receipts in 2022 to 2023 may have been influenced by both high levels of inflation and subsequent changes in real consumer expenditure, though it is not possible to directly disaggregate these effects
• higher receipts for April 2023 to March 2024 compared to the same period in the year earlier, could be due to consumption remaining at the same level in real terms while prices have increased

Further information and statistics on VAT are available in the Excise duties, VAT and other indirect tax statistics section on GOV.UK.

Business Taxes

This section includes receipts from Corporation Tax, Petroleum Revenue Tax, Bank Levy (from July 2011), Bank Surcharge (from April 2016), Diverted Profits Tax (from March 2017), Digital Services Tax (from March 2022), Residential Property Developer Tax (from June 2022), Energy Profits Levy (from December 2022), Electricity Generator Levy (from September 2023) and Economic Crime Levy (from September 2023).

Overall receipts for April 2024 are £4.6 billion, which is £0.5 billion higher than the same period last year.

Figure 4, Monthly receipts

Figure 4 above shows the monthly receipts pattern in each tax year since 2021 to 2022 and shows:

• peaks in June, September, December and March are where the majority of the largest companies make their corporation tax quarterly instalment payments
• the much higher receipts in January 2023 compared with a year earlier is mainly due to higher offshore receipts, because of high energy prices following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the new Energy Profits Levy
• the noticeably higher receipts in June 2023, September 2023, December 2023 and March 2024 compared with previous years can be attributed to the increase in the main rate of corporation tax from 19% to 25% from April 2023, alongside growth in company profits

Further information and statistics on these taxes are available in the corporate tax statistics section on GOV.UK.

Stamp Taxes and Annual Tax Enveloped Dwellings (ATED)

Overall receipts for April 2024 are £1.4 billion, which is £0.2 billion higher than the same period last year. Figures exclude land transaction taxes devolved to Scotland and Wales.

Figure 5, Monthly receipts:

Figure 5 above contains the monthly receipts patterns in each tax year since 2021 to 2022 and shows:

• the spikes in June and July 2021, and then in September and October 2021 can be explained by higher numbers of transactions completed before the end of the SDLT holiday which ended on the 30 June (for zero tax rate on the first £500,000) and 30 September (for zero tax rate on the first £250,000)
• the higher receipts between April and September 2022, compared to the same period a year earlier, can be explained in part by the lower tax rates in 2021 to 2022 due to the SDLT residential holiday which finished at the end of September 2021
• the introduction of lower rates of stamp duty from 23 September 2022 is largely reflected in receipts from October 2022 onwards

Further information and statistics on stamps taxes are available in the property statistics section on GOV.UK.

Hydrocarbon Oil (fuel duty)

Hydrocarbon Oils receipts for April 2024 are £1.9 billion, which is £0.2 billion lower than the same period last year.

Figure 6, Monthly receipts

Figure 6 above contains the monthly receipts patterns in each tax year since 2021 to 2022 and shows:

• troughs at the beginning of each calendar year in January are most likely to be a result of bad weather conditions
• the lower receipts observed in July 2023 are due to a timing issue which has been offset in August
• total receipts for April 2023 to March 2024 are £0.3 billion lower when compared to the same period a year earlier, primarily driven by a fall in diesel receipts due to a general move away from diesel and towards alternative fueled vehicles, including electric and hybrid electric vehicles

Further information and statistics on road fuel taxes are available in the Excise duties, VAT and other indirect tax statistics section on GOV.UK.

Tobacco duty

Tobacco receipts for April 2024 are £0.8 billion, which is £0.2 billion higher than the same period last year.

Figure 7, Monthly receipts

Figure 7 above contains the monthly receipts patterns in each tax year since 2021 to 2022 and shows:

• the pattern in monthly receipts can be volatile, though the downward trend is expected given the tax was designed to lower consumption of combustible products
• monthly volatility may be caused by high clearances one month followed by low clearances the next month, and these fluctuations can follow price increases by manufacturers, for example forestalling, whereby a manufacturer will bulk release products for consumption prior to anticipating duty increases at budget, though this can vary each year depending on the timings of the budget
• total receipts for April 2023 to February 2024 are lower than in the same period in the year before, and this decline aligns with governmental objectives to reduce uptake and use of tobacco products across the country as the duty tax was partly designed with this in mind

Cigarettes are also subject to anti-forestalling restrictions in advance of a Budget, and further information is available in the HMRC Notice 85C published on GOV.UK.

Further information and statistics on Tobacco Duty are available in the Excise duties, VAT and other indirect tax statistics section on GOV.UK.

Alcohol Duty

Alcohol receipts for April 2024 are £1.0 billion, which is £73 million lower than the same period last year.

Figure 8, Monthly receipts

Figure 8 above contains the monthly receipts patterns in each tax year since 2021 to 2022 and shows:

• December peaks due to higher levels of alcohol being released for consumption during November in preparation for the Christmas period
• the high peak in July and August 2023 receipts could be partly due to forestalling, pointing to higher levels of alcohol being released for consumption in anticipation of Alcohol duty changes from the 1 August 2023 but also the cost of living may have had an impact as it could result in more off-trade drinking (drinking at home) which is cheaper and can increase consumption
• receipts in a particular month largely relate to liabilities (alcohol being released for consumption) in the month prior, hence August 2023 receipts also being higher in advance of the duty rate change
• receipts may have been further impacted by the Alcohol Duty Reforms that were implemented in August 2023, causing changes to both producer and trader behaviour

Further information and statistics on Alcohol Duties are available in the Excise duties, VAT and other indirect tax statistics section on GOV.UK.

Environmental Taxes

This section includes receipts from Landfill Tax, Aggregates Levy, Climate Change Levy, Carbon Price Floor and Plastic Packaging Tax.

Environmental Taxes receipts for April 2024 are £0.4 billion, which is £38 million higher than the same period last year.

Figure 9, Monthly receipts

Figure 9 above contains the monthly receipts patterns in each tax year since 2021 to 2022 and shows:

• peaks in April, July, October, and January, reflect when most traders make their quarterly instalment payments
• higher receipts in May 2021, August 2021, November 2021, and February 2022 can be attributed to timing effects linked to the month prior

Further information and statistics on environmental taxes are available in the Excise duties, VAT and other indirect tax statistics section on GOV.UK.

Air Passenger Duty (APD)

Air Passenger Duty receipts for April 2024 are £0.3 billion, which is £38 million higher than the same period last year.

Figure 10, Monthly receipts

Figure 10 above contains the monthly receipts patterns in each tax year since 2021 to 2022 and shows:

• receipts tend to rise in the summer months and fall during winter, with a slight upturn in January, reflecting increased travel during December
• receipts from March 2021 onwards are significantly lower due to the continued effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated impacts on the aviation sector
• following COVID-19 and the subsequent lifting of travel restrictions, the sector has recovered, and receipts have now surpassed pre-pandemic levels
• receipts for April 2024 were £38m higher when compared to the same period last year and this could be a sign of the industry’s continued growth

Further information and statistics on APD are available in the Excise duties, VAT and other indirect tax statistics section on GOV.UK.

Inheritance Tax (IHT)

Inheritance Tax receipts for April 2024 are £0.7 billion, which is £85 million higher than the same period last year.

Figure 11, Monthly receipts

Figure 11 above contains the monthly receipts patterns in each financial year since 2021 to 2022 and shows:

• higher receipts from March 2022 are expected to be due to a combination of higher volumes of wealth transfers following recent IHT-liable deaths, recent rises in asset values, and the government’s March 2021 and Autumn 2022 decisions to maintain the IHT tax free thresholds at their 2020 to 2021 levels up to and including 2027 to 2028, and more information on these decisions are available in the policy papers accompanying the Budget 2021 Finance Bill and the Autumn Finance Bill 2022
• the higher receipts in June 2022, November 2022, June 2023, and October 2023 can be attributed to a small number of higher-value payments than usual

Further information and statistics on IHT are available in the personal incomes statistics section on GOV.UK.

Contacts

For any further information, queries or to provide feedback on this publication, please contact either K Mason or L Suckling at crosscuttingstatistics@hmrc.gov.uk.

For media enquiries, see HMRC press office.