Research and analysis

HMRC Annual Perceptions Research 2023

Published 28 May 2025

Prepared by Yonder Consulting for HMRC

Authors: Callum Gray, Kaitlyn Mailer, Leo Holker and Simon Taylor

Report Number: 799

January 2024

Disclaimer: The views in this report are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of HM Revenue and Customs. 

1. Introduction

1.1 Background

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) commissioned Yonder Consulting to conduct research in 2023 to better understand public perceptions of the department and track trends over time. This included how HMRC scored against criteria linked to reputational factors such as trust and a good customer experience.

1.2 Research objectives and aims

The Annual Perceptions Research sought to inform HMRC’s communications approach. By understanding where the department was performing well, and in what areas it still had work to do, HMRC could tailor and evaluate its communications strategy as well as specific communications campaigns.

The research aims were to measure how HMRC was perceived by the public on an annual basis to establish trends, including to what extent they understood HMRC’s role and how they perceived HMRC in relation to a range of important values, such as fairness and competence.

The research followed on from Brand Perceptions Research conducted in 2020 that established a core set of measures, and Annual Perceptions Research that, since 2021, have tracked trends over time.

1.3 Method

The Annual Perceptions Research comprised of an online survey that took respondents approximately 15 minutes to complete. The survey consisted of core perceptions questions that were originally developed through the earlier Brand Perceptions Research that Yonder conducted on behalf of HMRC in 2020, as well as questions developed with HMRC in 2021, 2022 and 2023.

1.3.1 Sample and fieldwork

For the 2023 Annual Perceptions Research, Yonder surveyed 3,013 UK adults (16+) online between 15 and 25 September 2023. The survey was conducted using an online research panel and therefore was not a fully randomised probability sample. Quotas and weights ensured the sample reflected the UK adult population in terms of gender, age, government office region, and social grade.

These findings are indicative of the general population’s perceptions, though conclusive inferences about the wider population should not be made.

At some points in this summary, the September 2023 survey is compared to HMRC’s Brand Perceptions Research conducted in July 2020 (3,012 UK Adults, aged 16+) and to HMRC’s Annual Perceptions Research conducted in September 2021 (3,426 UK Adults, aged 16+) and September 2022 (3,049 UK Adults, aged 16+), all undertaken by Yonder. While this is useful in overall tracking of changes over time, caution should be exercised when comparing results due to some methodological differences.

2. Findings

2.1 Knowledge and awareness of HMRC

Nearly a third of respondents said they were extremely or very familiar with HMRC and its services, which is consistent with 2022 research. Two-thirds said they were moderately or slightly familiar. Only 2% claimed to be not at all familiar with HMRC and its services.

Respondents were most likely to receive information about HMRC from the department itself or from another government source such as GOV.UK. Contact with HMRC was predominantly either online or via post, with more than two-fifths reporting some form of online contact with HMRC.

Most respondents could correctly identify that HMRC was responsible for collecting tax, while nearly three fifths were sure, or suspected that, the department supported families and individuals through tax credits or that it was responsible for customs at the border. Two fifths incorrectly believed, or suspected that, HMRC was responsible for tax rules, including setting tax rates.

Respondents were divided when asked to consider the balance that HMRC should strike between ensuring tax compliance and supporting individuals and businesses. Nearly a third thought HMRC got the balance right. Nearly a quarter believed HMRC should prioritise supporting individuals and businesses, over collecting tax and ensuring tax compliance. Less than a fifth thought HMRC should prioritise collecting tax and ensuring tax compliance over its responsibility to support businesses and individuals. Over a quarter did not know.

2.2 HMRC’s reputation

While half of respondents remained neutral towards HMRC, less than a quarter of respondents had a favourable view of HMRC, the lowest proportion since tracking began in 2020. HMRC was more likely to be viewed favourably than the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), but less likely to be viewed more favourably than local councils, Royal Mail, and the NHS.

Perceptions of HMRC’s performance on its other main reputation metrics — including trust, confidence, and ‘being easy to deal with’— declined this year. Less than a third of respondents rated the department highly for its performance as an organisation they trust, and a quarter rated its performance highly as an organisation they have confidence in. While all comparator organisations tested saw similar declines in favourability this year, the decrease in both respondents’ favourability towards HMRC, and their views of its performance on important reputation metrics, shows that public views towards HMRC have shifted over the past year.

Associations with HMRC were consistent with 2022. When prompted, most respondents said that the words ‘complicated’, ‘impersonal’ and ‘intimidating’ described HMRC to some extent. More positively, most also indicated that the words ‘trustworthy’, ‘consistent’ and ‘fair’ described the department.

Respondents’ favourability towards HMRC increased with higher levels of familiarity and online contact, however, those that contacted the department by phone were less likely to be favourable. These respondents were also more likely to have negative perceptions of HMRC’s customer service, reliability, and competence.

The research also suggested a difference in perceptions between those that perceived their tax affairs to have become more or less complex over the last 12 months. Respondents who felt their tax affairs had become more complex were less positive about HMRC on important metrics than those who felt their affairs were either no more complex or less complex than usual.

2.3 HMRC’s performance

Perceptions of HMRC’s underlying performance metrics, including customer service, reliability, and competence declined this year — a continuation of a downward trend seen since 2021.

This year less than a quarter of respondents agreed ‘HMRC provides good customer service’, just below a third disagreed, and nearly half expressed a neutral view or were not sure. Negative perceptions of HMRC’s customer service rose to nearly half of those that have had telephone contact. Additionally, those who reported having more complex tax affairs than usual, tended to disagree more than agree with the statement.

When accounting for the proportion of respondents who were either neutral or didn’t know, HMRC performed relatively well in several areas. Two fifths of respondents agreed that ‘HMRC makes it easy for people to pay the right amount of tax’, while just over one sixth disagreed with this statement. Furthermore, a similar proportion also agreed that ‘HMRC provides useful guidance’ with only one sixth disagreeing with this statement. Additionally, half of those that have had online contact with HMRC agreed its digital services are easy to use.

Respondents were generally more positive than negative when it came to HMRC’s performance on compliance issues. Although many did not know or were neutral, a third agreed that HMRC helped people identify scams so they could protect themselves and three-in-ten also thought HMRC is effective in tackling fraudulent behaviour. The only metric where there was a higher proportion of negative than positive views was with regard to HMRC ‘collecting the right tax from large businesses’.

2.4 HMRC’s competence

Just over a third of respondents agreed that ‘HMRC is competent’, while slightly over a fifth disagreed, and two-fifths either expressed a neutral view or did not know enough to comment. This represents a continued decline in perceptions from 2020 where half of respondents considered HMRC competent.

Respondents that reported having had online contact were more likely than the overall average to agree HMRC was competent, while those that reported telephone contact were more likely than the overall average to disagree. Similarly, respondents who perceived their tax affairs to have become more complex over the last 12 months were more likely to disagree that HMRC is competent than those who felt their tax affairs had either become no more complex or less complex than usual.

A statistical technique called key driver analysis was used to understand which factors were most important in driving perceptions of HMRC’s competence, and it identified the extent to which HMRC ‘gets tax right’ as the most important driver. This related to perceptions of HMRC collecting the right amount of tax, making it easy to pay the right amount of tax and treating customers fairly.

The research found that HMRC’s performance on getting tax right was mixed; HMRC’s relative strengths within this driver were ‘collecting the right amount of tax’ and ‘making it easy to pay the right amount of tax’, but more work is needed to improve perceptions that HMRC ‘is fair in the way it operates’ and ‘is reliable’. Respondents’ perceptions of how reliable HMRC is, strongly correlate with perceptions of competence; just over a third of respondents agreed HMRC is reliable.

Three other themes correlated with perceptions of competence, but to a lesser extent. Firstly, customer experience (for example, HMRC being perceived to ‘provide good customer service’, being ‘easy to deal.