Guidance

Issue 140 of Agent Update

Published 19 February 2026

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/agent-update-issue-140/issue-140-of-agent-update

Technical updates and reminders

Developments and changes to legislation and allowances relating to UK tax including:

Tax

Making tax Digital

HMRC Agent Services

Agent Engagement

Tax

Submitting your clients’ 2026 to 2027 Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings (ATED) returns

Check to see if your client is required to file a tax return for Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings (ATED).

ATED is a tax on companies and other corporate bodies that own UK residential properties valued more than £500,000.

The next ATED chargeable period is 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027. For properties held on 1 April 2026, returns for this period must be filed and any charge paid by 30 April 2026. 

When preparing to submit your client’s 2026 to 2027 ATED return, you must use the same log in details used to set up your ATED online account. Make sure your clients regularly log in to their Government Gateway account. If they do not sign in for 3 years, their account details will be deleted, and they will not be able to access their account anymore.

You can begin populating an online ATED return for 2026 to 2027 from around mid-March 2026, but you cannot submit it before 1 April 2026.

If you cannot use the ATED online service, you can find further information on how you can submit your return in the Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings: Returns Notice.

ATED returns must be submitted on the correct return form. Returns submitted on out-of-date forms will not be accepted which may result in late filing penalties being charged. 

If your client has disposed of a property, or later disposes of a property, you should submit an amended return or contact us to tell us about this change. You should also contact us if your client has had a change in their circumstances. For example, they no longer need to file a relief return.

Read more information about ATED.

Upcoming State Pension age changes — impact for individuals and payroll

From 6 April 2026, the State Pension age for men and women will increase from 66 to 67 years. 

The increase will be phased in over the course of 2 years, meaning that people born between 6 April 1960 and 5 March 1961 will reach their State Pension age at 66 years and a specified number of months.

You can use the State Pension age calculator to find the date when an individual will reach State Pension age.

Table 4 of the State Pension age timetables provides an overview of the changes. 

Employers with employees born between 6 April 1960 and 5 March 1961 should check the date at which individuals reach State Pension age so they can update their National Insurance rates and categories and issue the category letters at the correct time — the first payment date after they have reached State Pension age. 

Employers must carry on reporting the original category letter year-to-date information separately from the updated category letter information, until the end of the tax year. The same as they would for any other mid-year category letter change.

Read more information on what to do when an employee reaches State Pension age.

Student loans — reminder of new plan 5 for 2026 to 2027 tax year and student loan thresholds

Agents are reminded that from 6 April 2026 a new student loan plan type, Plan 5, will be introduced into repayment for the first time.

Plan 5 will be operated and collected in the same way as plan types 1, 2 and 4. 

Payroll agents or employers will begin receiving student loan start notices in March 2026 for all borrowers due to go into repayment from April 2026, which includes all new Plan 5 borrowers. The start notice will indicate the loan and plan type which should be collected.   

As communicated in the Agent Update: Issue 138 the starter checklist, both online and PDF, will be updated in March 2026 to include Plan 5.   

Read more information on the starter checklist for PAYE.  

Payroll agents and employers are encouraged to advise employees unsure of which student loan plan they are repaying, that they can find out by logging into their online student loan account.

Employees can manage their student loan balance by signing in to their account. 

Where employers are still uncertain what plan to select, use Plan 1 until a start notice is received. This default plan will change to Plan 5 from 6 April 2026 onwards.

 Where employees have selected, or indicate they have, more than one plan type, payroll agents should start deductions using the plan type with the lowest repayment threshold.  

Student and Postgraduate Loan Thresholds 6 April 2026

The student loan guidance will be updated on 6 April, when the changes take effect.

Payroll agents are reminded that the new annual thresholds will be:   

 Plan 1 — £26,900   

 Plan 2 — £29,385  

 Plan 4 — £33,795   

 Plan 5 — £25,000   

 Postgraduate loan — £21,000  

Deductions rates from 6 April 2026 for plans 1, 2, 4 and 5 remain at 9% and postgraduate loan remains at 6% for any earnings above the respective thresholds.

Trusts reporting Capital Gains Tax — process change and GOV.UK guidance updates

We have updated our guidance about the reporting of Capital Gains Tax for Trusts.

Trusts that are required to report Capital Gains Tax (CGT) on UK Property must now be registered with the Trust Registration Service (TRS) before creating a CGT on UK Property Account or submitting a paper return.

Any overpayment of CGT after submitting a Self Assessment (SA) return will be automatically offset against other SA charges. Any remaining CGT overpayment will need to be claimed by telephoning HMRC as this will not be repaid automatically.

Once a Self Assessment return has been submitted, there is no need to amend any previous reports for that tax year made using the CGT on UK Property Account.

If you are not a UK resident you must report disposals of UK property or land even if you:

  • have no tax to pay on the disposal
  • have made a loss on the disposal
  • are registered for SA

Disposals should be reported using the online Capital Gains Tax on UK property account.

GOV.UK guidance has been updated to support this change:

Payrolling benefits in kind — important dates

Agents will play an important role in supporting clients to prepare for the move to reporting benefits in kind (BiKs) in real time from April 2027.

HMRC is reminding agents of this important deadline as part of preparations for reporting benefits in kind (BiKs) in real time. They are encouraged to review the interim guidance mandatory payrolling of benefits in kind and expenses.

This guidance, published alongside the Autumn Budget 2025, helps stakeholders understand the upcoming changes and prepare for mandatory payrolling of most BiKs which you must do from April 2027. It will be updated regularly to include further details.

Voluntary payrolling deadline 5 April 2026

The deadline to register for voluntarily payrolling of benefits in kind in the 2026 to 2027 tax year is 5 April 2026. Agents should support their clients wishing to payroll BiKs for the first time to make sure they complete the registration process before the start of the next tax year. Voluntary registration is not possible once the tax year has begun.

From 6 April 2026, the current voluntary registration tool will close. This change reflects the move to mandatory payrolling for most BiKs from the 2027 to 2028 tax year onwards. Under the new process, most employers will not need to register for voluntary payrolling because payrolling will be mandatory for most BiKs.

Mandatory payrolling of benefits in kind and expenses

HMRC continues to work closely and discuss the changes with stakeholders to ensure they are clear, practical, and as easy to implement as possible. Further updates to guidance will be issued based on feedback, and we remain committed to ongoing engagement.

To help businesses get ready, interim guidance and technical specifications have been published much earlier than usual so it is worth noting that more details may evolve as we continue to develop policy and receive feedback.

Agents can view a timeline of future updates and delivery.

Loans and living accommodation

The guidance also sets out additional plans to make payrolling of employment-related beneficial loans and living accommodation a voluntary process in the 2027 to 2028 tax year.

Agents are advised to notify their clients of the forthcoming new registration service, which will be available to employers who choose to voluntarily payroll employment-related beneficial loans and living accommodation.

Registration details will be provided later this financial year. Further updates will be provided in due course.

Gambling Duty Changes for 2026

As announced at Budget 2025 the rate of Remote Gaming Duty will be increased from 21% to 40% from 1 April 2026. Where this date falls part-way through an accounting period, the increased rate will only apply to the profits that arise between 1 April 2026 and the end of that accounting period.

Bingo Duty will be abolished with effect from 1 April 2026. Bingo Duty operators will not need to submit returns for periods on or after 1 April 2026.

Businesses registered for Bingo Duty will continue to be able to submit any outstanding returns online until April 2030 and notify HMRC of any over or under declarations from previous accounting periods.

Relevant guidance will be updated from April 2026.

Read more information on Gambling duty changes.

Changes to the claims process for the Creative Industries tax reliefs and expenditure credits

Starting 6 April 2026, all Creative Industries tax relief or expenditure credit claims must include the new CT600P page with the CT600 Company Tax Return. Companies must complete the CT600P alongside the CT600 and submit them at the same time.

HMRC is aware of a small validation issue affecting some companies filling out the CT600P. It will not affect the validity of companies’ claims. Instructions for resolving this issue will be provided shortly on the CT Service Issues page. We will update the service in April 2027 to fix the issue.

Companies must also complete an additional information form to support their claim for claiming the tax reliefs or expenditure credits in support of their claims, before or on the same day as submitting their tax return.

HMRC will release an updated version of the additional information form on 6 April 2026 to coincide with the introduction of the CT600P and eliminate duplicate information. HMRC’s guidance manuals will be updated on 6 April 2026 to reflect this.

Update on the National Insurance contributions relief for hiring veterans

At Budget 2025, the government announced the final extension of the employers’ National Insurance contributions relief for hiring qualifying veterans.

The relief will continue for 2 more years from April 2026 until April 2028. During that time, employers will not pay employer National Insurance contributions on earnings up to the Veterans upper secondary threshold (£50,270) for the first year of a veteran’s civilian employment.

Find out how to claim National Insurance contributions relief for veterans as an employer.

Charity Compliance — changes to charity tax relief rules

From April 2026, the government will introduce changes to the rules on tainted donations, approved charitable investments, and attributable income. These changes will affect all UK charities, Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs), and donors, and the agents and intermediaries who support them.

Tainted donations rules

The tainted donations rules will move from a motivation-based test to an outcome-based test. This will ensure that donors do not receive any financial benefit, direct or indirect, from giving to charities or CASCs. The test of ‘financial advantage’ will change to ‘financial assistance’, lowering the threshold for determining whether a donation is tainted.

Approved charitable investments

The government recognises 12 investment types for charitable tax relief. All 12 will now need to meet a single condition — the charity must make the investments for its own benefit and not for tax avoidance by any party. This update simplifies inconsistencies across the existing rules and prevents misuse of charitable investment reliefs for tax avoidance.

Attributable income changes

The definition of attributable income will now include legacies. As legacies may have already benefited from Inheritance Tax relief, charities and CASCs will need to use legacy funds for charitable purposes to avoid a tax charge. This aligns the treatment of legacies with existing treatment of residual estate income and ensures charities direct legacy funds to their charitable purposes.

Impact for charities, CASCs and agents

These changes aim to prevent misuse of charitable tax reliefs and as such agents and organisations should now:

  • review donation structures and investment arrangements to ensure they meet the new rules
  • identify, monitor and record legacy income and make sure legacy funds are used for charitable purposes
  • prepare for updated guidance that HMRC will publish in April 2026

Read more information on changes to charity compliance in:

Statutory Sick Pay changes — what this means for you

From 6 April 2026, the Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces 2 important changes to Statutory Sick Pay (SSP). These changes may affect the customer queries you handle.

Removal of the Lower Earnings Limit

Eligible employees will be able to get SSP regardless of income. SSP will be paid at 80% of normal weekly earnings or the uprated weekly flat rate of £123.25 whichever is lower.

Removal of the waiting period

SSP will be paid from the first full day of sickness absence, not from day 4.

When the new SSP rules apply

The relevant legislation will apply depending on when the sickness absence took place.

Absences that start before 6 April 2026 will follow the current system to determine eligibility and payment. Absences that start on or after 6 April 2026 will use the new rules, unless otherwise outlined in legislation.  

These changes apply across the United Kingdom, including Northern Ireland.

What agents should do

Be aware that customers may ask about eligibility and payment dates, especially around April 2026.

You should explain that employers are responsible for operating SSP and ensuring their payroll systems are updated. HMRC has already shared technical guidance, including on transitional protections, with software developers and payroll providers to support preparation.

You can advise employers to speak to their payroll provider about readiness for these changes.

Guidance on SSP for employers and employees will be updated in due course. Wider guidance on the Employment Rights Act measures is available.

Where to send queries

If customers have detailed questions about SSP policy changes, they can send them to SSP.Team@DWP.gov.uk

Why this is important

From 6 April 2026, up to 1.3 million more low paid employees will qualify for SSP and all eligible employees will be paid from their first full day of sickness absence, not from day 4. This makes SSP more accessible and removes barriers for lower-paid employees. This is likely to increase customer contact, particularly around eligibility and start dates.

Agents should be aware of the changes and important dates which will be in the new guidance to be released shortly. This will assist with any questions after the guidance becomes effective on 6 April 2026.

Prepare for Vaping Products Duty registration from 1 April 2026

The UK Government is introducing Vaping Products Duty (VPD) and Vaping Duty Stamps (VDS) Schemes from 1 October 2026, with registration opening from 1 April 2026. VPD and VDS are part of the government’s Plan for Change to create a smoke-free generation and tackle youth vaping.

To support impacted businesses in their preparation we have produced a Stakeholder Communications pack. 

Available in English and Welsh, the pack contains:

  • suggested social media posts
  • a one and 2-page leaflet (in digital and print format) highlighting who the impacted audiences are and important dates
  • short article copy for use in newsletters, briefings and external communications
  • important messages for affected audiences
  • our YouTube video
  • signposts to Vaping Duty information

The pack is aimed at trade associations, industry groups, representative bodies and other organisations with links into the vaping sector. You can share these materials on your channels to encourage businesses to understand and prepare for these upcoming changes. This will help businesses understand what they need to do before registration opens on 1 April 2026.

Updated guidance to support Research and Development (R&D) investment in the creative sector

HMRC has updated the Corporate Intangibles Research and Development Manual with illustrative examples on R&D tax relief and conditions to be satisfied to help businesses understand when creative interdisciplinary projects qualify for R&D tax relief. This clarifies that the costs associated with arts related roles and activities may qualify where they directly contribute to resolving scientific or technological uncertainties.

This update does not widen the definition of R&D or expand the scope of eligible activities but will support businesses and advisers to make informed decisions when claiming R&D relief. It reinforces the government’s commitment to confirm certainty and stability in the R&D regime, to unlock innovation funding and support growth.

Deferred remuneration — income tax guidance for internationally or globally mobile employees

HMRC have published new guidance to clarify the tax treatment of individuals in the following circumstances:

  • they earned employment income while resident in the UK for tax purposes
  • a portion of this income related to employment duties performed outside of the UK
  • the income was paid when the employee was no longer resident in the UK
  • the new country of residence has a Double Taxation Agreement with the UK

The HMRC International Manual to clarify the tax treatment of employment income —deferred remuneration contains some examples to explain which country has the right to tax the deferred income and explains how overpaid UK tax can be reclaimed.

HMRC sets out best practice for sharing group structure

A new Guideline for Compliance (GfC) is now available for you to review.

The reason for producing these guidelines

HMRC published Help with sharing group structure information — GfC17, to assist customers with communication of their group structure and transactions to us. Clarity of the group structure and transactions aids in understanding of the UK tax consequences for corporation tax, VAT and custom duties. The aim of the new guidelines is to avoid misunderstandings, saving time and resource as well as supporting collaborative working. 

The guidelines clarify 5 important pieces of information that are needed from our customer to understand group structure:

  • entity type e.g. partnership, company, trust etc
  • name of entity
  • ownership
  • place of tax residence (and place of incorporation where this differs)
  • special characteristics such as, hybrids

How to use these guidelines

The guidelines are not mandatory, and you should seek to use information already available, which can be easily adapted to meet our best practice. The aim of the guideline is to set out our understanding of standard notation and avoid misunderstanding. This approach aims to foster trust in our compliance efforts among our customers.  

If you have feedback about these guidelines, or questions email us at ccgguidelinesforcompliance@hmrc.gov.uk.

Making Tax Digital

Get ready for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax now

Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax represents a transformative step forward for agents and their clients. As we move closer to the 6 April 2026 start date, it is critical that agents take steps to get ready now.

You should review your current clients’ tax affairs and sign up those who will need to use MTD for Income Tax from April 2026 based on their 2024 to 2025 tax return.

Throughout February and March 2026, we will continue to write to customers to inform them that they should use MTD based on the details provided in their 2024 to 2025 tax return. These customer letters include a line asking customers to contact their agent if they have one. 

For detailed guidance on how you should prepare for MTD for Income Tax, visit the MTD agent step by step guide.

Part of being ready is to sign up your clients for MTD but you will need an Agent Services Account (ASA). If you do not currently have one, you can create an ASA account now.

We also provide a video to explain how to add your existing client authorities from Self Assessment to your Agent Services Account.

Get ready for MTD — an agent toolkit

A new MTD agent toolkit has been published to help agents get ready. This toolkit has been developed in partnership with Senga Prior from the Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) during her secondment to HMRC.

The toolkit includes content to help agents understand the changes, advice on preparing their practice and their clients, and links to helpful resources including YouTube videos, the agent outreach support service and a range of MTD webinars. 

HMRC also provides additional resources to help you get ready:

  • Agent tab of the MTD campaign page — agents now have a dedicated tab, giving them a clearer, more streamlined journey and direct access to tailored guidance and resources
  • register for specialist MTD support — these sessions will give you direct access to HMRC specialists for tailored MTD readiness agent support
  • sign up for a webinar — get ready for MTD by joining a webinar. These cover planning steps, actions to take now, how to sign up clients for April 2026 and Q&A. You can also check out recorded HMRC webinars
  • watch our YouTube playlist — the dedicated MTD for Income Tax playlist on YouTube breaks actions down into simple tutorials, including signing up clients and adding client authorities to your Agent Services Account
  • share our communications resources on the Frontify website — align your MTD messaging with what your clients may see from HMRC and share ready-made products

HMRC Agent Services

Protecting contractors from tax avoidance

If your clients are contractors working through umbrella companies, you should share HMRC’s new ‘Don’t Get Caught Out’ campaign to help protect them from tax avoidance schemes.

If you take a closer look, you will notice that our campaign creatures are not what they appear to be at first glance. Like tax avoidance schemes that claim lower taxes, these can result in unexpected bills upon closer scrutiny.

Clients can make informed and compliant choices by using our: 

  • online guides to learn how to spot tax avoidance schemes

  • interactive tools to check payslips and contracts to confirm the right amount of tax is being paid

  • real-life stories of people caught out by tax avoidance

  • explainer You Tube video on umbrella companies on how umbrella companies work and the risks to contractors

  • signposts for how to get help and support to report or leave a scheme

Contractors can also review our published list of named tax avoidance schemes and their promoters. It is important to note that this is not a comprehensive list, and HMRC does not endorse these schemes regardless of any claims made by certain promoters.

Use our campaign resources on the Frontify website in your newsletters, websites, and social media channels.

Enhance the visibility of the message by interacting with HMRC’s posts on Facebook, LinkedIn, and X previously known as Twitter.

Every share helps protect more people from bad tax advice.

Closure of the service to file company accounts and tax return

The online filing service used to file company accounts and tax returns will close on 31 March 2026. The service can still be used to file and amend Company Tax Returns with HMRC, and accounts with Companies House up to and including 31 March 2026.

From 1 April 2026 businesses will need to use commercial software to file annual accounts and Company Tax returns with HMRC. Find more guidance and options available about how to file your Companies House accounts.

Reason the service is closing

The service to support small, unrepresented businesses with simple tax affairs with their online filing does not meet modern digital standards, or recent changes to UK company law. Since online filing for Corporation Tax was introduced in 2011, the market has matured and grown. Commercial products can offer much more than the current service, such as improved validation and tax support and reminders.

What the closure means for tax agents

Closure of the service will not directly impact tax agents, as the service is specifically for unrepresented businesses. However, closure of the service may prompt impacted businesses to seek professional advice on how to meet their Corporation Tax obligations.

Important points for agents to know

  • Filing exemptions — some businesses may be eligible to apply for a Corporation Tax filing exemption 

  • Alternative filing routes — a paper Corporation Tax return may be submitted where a customer has a reasonable excuse or chooses to file in Welsh. In all other cases, businesses must file online

  • Commercial software — HMRC publishes a list of commercial software suppliers that can produce one or more elements of a Company Tax Return. HMRC accepts returns filed using any of the suppliers listed

You can find further guidance about the closure of the service and the steps businesses have been advised to take on our closure of the service to file your company accounts and tax return. 

Bereavement-related contacts — a reminder

If you need to contact HMRC regarding a deceased customer’s Self-Assessment, Pay as You Earn, or Child Benefit matter, you can call the Bereavement Helpline at 0300 322 9620.

Do not use the Agents’ Dedicated Line (ADL) for these matters, as all calls will be directed to the Bereavement Helpline. This process may result in delays in addressing your inquiry and inconvenience for both agents and advisers.

We appreciate your assistance in ensuring that these sensitive cases are appropriately routed through the designated channels.

Tax code changes for Winter Fuel Payment recovery

Individuals in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland receiving Winter Fuel Payments, or in Scotland receiving the Pension Age Winter Heating Payment, with income over £35,000 will have their payment recovered by HMRC through the tax system. Recovery for payments made during 2025 to 2026 tax year will start in April 2026.

Recovery for PAYE customers

From April 2026, HMRC will automatically collect payment by adjusting your client’s tax code, unless they currently file a Self Assessment tax return. No further action or contact with HMRC is required on their part.

Be aware that in February 2026, your clients may receive a tax code notification for the 2026 to 2027 tax year which will not reflect adjustments for their winter payment. No action or contact with HMRC is required. An updated tax code reflecting recovery of their winter fuel payment will be sent in early April 2026.

Recovery for Self Assessment customers

HMRC will collect their payment through their Self Assessment tax return for 2025 to 2026. 

For online filers, where possible HMRC will include the winter 2025 payment on their Self Assessment return which is due by 31 January 2027. Customers should check their winter payment is on their online return and include it themselves if not. 

Paper filers will need to include it on their return, which is due by 31 October 2026. 

Further support and information

A video outlining the recovery of Winter Fuel Payments or Pension Age Winter Heating Payments is available on HMRC’s YouTube channel .

Further information on HMRC’s recovery approach of Winter Fuel Payment is available.

Opting out of future payments

If your clients expect their individual total income from their private pension, state pension and any other sources to be over £35,000 they can opt out of future payments rather than HMRC take them back.

Customers in England Wales and Northern Ireland can read more information on opting out of future payments. Customers in Scotland can read further information on the mygov.scot website about the Pension Age Winter Heating Payment.

Self Assessment — thank you and well done

A huge thank you to tax agents for your hard work throughout the Self Assessment period. Your support has once again enabled millions of customers meet their tax obligations.

This year, 11.48 million customers filed their tax return by the 31 January deadline, with agents submitting over 6.5 million of these. This is a fantastic achievement that reflects the vital role you play in guiding and supporting taxpayers.

Highlights from this year include:

  • 167 agent webchats handled on deadline day, with an average connection time of just 6 minutes
  • the average wait time on the Agent Dedicated Line fell to 15 minutes in January, down from 24 minutes at the same time last year
  • voluntary tax returns reduced by 90,000 which was supported by agents registering and reactivating client accounts, helping ensure smoother and quicker processing

For customers who did not meet the deadline, continue to encourage your clients to file their returns and make payments as soon as possible to reduce potential penalties and interest. We appreciate your assistance in this matter.

You can read more in our press release on how 11.48 million beat the Self Assessment deadline.

Upcoming Changes to Country-by-Country reporting

We will be making some changes to Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting in the coming weeks. This will include introducing a new authorisation requirement for agents and a small update to the interpretation of the Organisation of Economic Co-operation Development (OECD) business rules for CbC reporting. 

If you are due to submit returns in the next few weeks you should submit them as normal. You do not need to wait for these changes to go live.

New authorisation requirement for agents

If you are an agent with an Agent Services Account, you will now need to be authorised by each client to act on their behalf for CbC reporting. This uses the ‘digital handshake’ process. You can find out how to use the digital handshake to get authorised as an agent.

Changes to OECD business rules interpretation

We will shortly be updating our interpretation of the OECD business rules for CbC Reporting, as part of wider system improvements. If you would like early sight of the updated rules before they go live, email the CbC Project Team aeoipmo@hmrc.gov.uk

We will keep you updated on the introduction of these changes and improvements to the CbC reporting system, so that everyone experiences a seamless transition.

Additional information for VAT service enrolment

As part of our enhanced security controls for VAT, some customers are now required to provide additional information when enrolling the VAT service in their Business Tax Account. Customers may be asked for their application reference number which they receive during the VAT registration process.

To help protect against fraud, we strongly advise that all businesses registering for VAT should enrol the VAT service onto their Business Tax Account as soon they receive their VAT registration number.

Providing feedback on HMRC Manuals

HMRC manuals contain technical guidance for HMRC staff and tax professionals. Their primary purpose is to explain HMRC’s interpretation of relevant legislation, which is the basis on which the department makes decisions.

All pages on GOV.UK contain feedback options in the footer of each page as well as the contact GOV.UK form that allows you to tell us whether a page is useful, suggest improvements or report a problem with a page.

The HMRC Manuals Team review all items of feedback on our manuals from internal and external users.

We received 1,732 feedback comments within the last 12 months and 61% led to guidance improvements. However, the volume is still low compared to the overall usage so help us improve the content by providing feedback, even if it is to indicate a page is useful.

HMRC guidance on new tax adviser registration rules — an update

HMRC published guidance earlier this week on the new registration requirement for tax advisers who interact with HMRC in relation to their clients’ tax affairs. 

Most tax advisers will need to register from 18 May 2026, although some businesses will be given more time. 

The new guidance explains who must register, when they need to register, and what information they must provide. 

Tax advisers who register will need to meet HMRC’s registration conditions set out in the linked guidance.

Registration will be completed through a new digital process to simplify and reduce the administrative burden of registration. 

The new requirement will raise standards for tax advisers who interact with HMRC on behalf of their clients. 

This will help protect taxpayers from advisers who are not fit to act and supports a fairer market for taxpayers and advisers who play by the rules.

HMRC will continue to engage with stakeholders and further guidance will be published ahead of 18 May 2026.

Voluntary National Insurance contributions for periods abroad  

At Budget 2025 the government announced there would be changes to Voluntary National Insurance contributions for periods abroad.    

From April 2026, for tax years 2026 to 2027 onwards, the option to pay voluntary Class 2 National Insurance contributions for periods abroad will be removed. New Class 3 National Insurance contributions applications for periods abroad will require 10 years’ continuous UK residency or National Insurance contributions.

 If you have clients who work abroad, inform them of the changes coming into effect from April 2026 and equip them with the knowledge they need to make informed decisions.

If your clients currently pay Class 2 National Insurance contributions abroad:

  • HMRC will write to them from July 2026 if they are affected

  • if they pay by Direct Debit, they should not cancel it — HMRC will collect their final payment for the 2025 to 2026 tax year on 10 July 2026

The changes do not affect the ability of anyone to purchase voluntary National Insurance contributions for tax years prior to 2026 to 2027.

HMRC encourages agents to review the latest guidance on Voluntary National Insurance contributions for periods abroad from April 2026.

In addition, further details and guidance will be published later.

These changes aim to make sure that people building a State Pension from outside the UK have a strong enough connection to the UK and are paying an appropriate, fair price. There is also a broader review of voluntary National Insurance contributions policy planned to ensure the system remains fair and fit for purpose.

Agent Engagement

Webinar Recording — Transfer of Assets Abroad, HMRCs approach to the Motive Defence 

The webinar offers an overview of the Transfer of Assets Abroad (ToAA) exemptions, commonly referred to collectively as the ‘Motive Defence’ and provides:

  • a brief background on the ToAA legislation
  • an overview of the various exemption provisions, highlighting common misconceptions
  • HMRC’s approach to the exemptions
  • examples of the exemptions
  • guidance on how to apply for an exemption from a ToAA charge

The webinar assumes that you have a reasonable working knowledge of Transfer of Assets Abroad legislation (ToAA) in broad terms, as it only covers the exemptions and not the conditions that must be present for a ToAA charge to arise.

Read more on HMRC email updates, videos and webinars for tax agents and advisers.

Consultation on Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) draft secondary legislation

The government published the draft secondary legislation on Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism for technical consultation on 10 February 2026, alongside supporting force of law notices. This aims to ensure the primary legislation delivers the policy correctly and effectively but is not a further consultation on the policy design.

The consultation will be open for 6 weeks and invites views from interested parties, including importers and their agents, other businesses, individuals, tax advisors, trade and professional bodies and other interested parties, including those overseas. Feedback on the draft secondary legislation should be emailed to cbampolicyteam@hmrc.gov.uk by 11:59pm on 24 March 2026, using the subject line ‘CBAM technical consultation response’ and clearly referencing the relevant part of the legislation.

A CBAM Policy Summary has also been published to provide an overview of CBAM for impacted businesses.

If you are not already on the CBAM mailing list and would like to receive updates on the latest developments, contact cbampolicyteam@hmrc.gov.uk

Efficient processing of 64-8 Forms — updating your tax agent contact details with HMRC

The processing of a 64-8 may be delayed if there are inconsistencies in the details provided. Agents are reminded to check their Agent Services Account for designatory detail updates, before submitting a 64-8 for processing. Agents should use ‘Check when you can expect a reply’ from HMRC to find out the anticipated response times for their enquiries or requests.

Further information regarding updating of tax agent contact details (including updating PAYE agent codes, Employer payroll clients and Individual PAYE-only clients) is available.

Preventing loss of access to HMRC online services when an account administrator leaves

 When an administrator is leaving the business, it is best practice for the remaining administrator to log into the account, select your account, then select manage team access. This will give them the option to both remove a team member and add a new one.

If the only administrator on the account is leaving, they should log in before they leave and add a new administrator first, then the new administrator can remove the departing administrator once they are sure they have access. In situations where this is not possible the agent should contact our online services helpdesk who will treat it as an absent administrator and reset access after security checks.

Another benefit of multiple administrators on the account is that they can reset other users access if the login details or phones are lost. Agents are reminded to keep an accessible record of the administrators appointed, as this will be required to reset the account.

Guidance on how to give staff access to your HMRC online tax agent accounts is also available.

Service Updates

This is a correction to the article in Issue 138 of Agent Update relating to service updates.

Correction — If agents want to receive regular service updates on HMRC service availability, they should select the option add email alerts once signed into the HMRC service availability page on GOV.UK. An option to select the type of updates you want to receive is also available there.

Contact Information for professional and representative bodies

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