How to complete the income belonging to others return (IBO-01) spreadsheet
Updated 24 June 2026
© Crown copyright 2026
This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.
Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.
This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/income-belonging-to-others-statutory-return-ibo-01/how-to-complete-the-income-belonging-to-others-return-ibo-01-spreadsheet
This guidance explains how to enter information into each column of the spreadsheet. You must follow the criteria for each field.
When filling out the spreadsheet you must complete:
- all mandatory fields
- conditional fields where you have the information
The mandatory and conditional fields are shown in the column headings.
You must not:
- change the structure of the spreadsheet
- enter information in row 1 — start at row 3
- copy information into a new spreadsheet — this will cause errors and your submission will fail
- change the format of any fields — for example, amounts must stay as numbers with 2 decimal places
- use unclear entries such as ‘ditto’, ‘not known’ or ‘see above’
If you need to paste information, use the ‘Paste special’ option and select ‘Text’.
Validation
The spreadsheet includes a validation tool to help you find errors.
Checks
The tool:
- highlights information that is missing or incorrectly formatted
- does not check the quality of the information
You may notice a delay when entering or correcting information because of the size of the file.
You must not change the file format as this may stop the validation from working.
Errors
If a column contains errors, row 1 will show:
- as highlighted
- the number of errors in that column
- the total number of affected cells
- the row number of the first error
The highlighting will clear when you fix all errors in the column.
You must fix all errors before submitting your return.
After you submit
HMRC will check your submission using information quality software.
If your file does not meet the required format:
- your return will be rejected
- it will be treated as outstanding
- you may receive a penalty
Payee’s name: column A
This is a mandatory field.
Enter the payee’s full name.
The information must not exceed 250 characters.
Payee’s address: column B to G
For these fields, do not include:
- ‘care of’ addresses
- line breaks
- punctuation or symbols
Column B
This is a mandatory field.
Enter the payee’s permanent residential address. Use columns C to F if you need more space.
For UK addresses do not include the postcode. Enter this in column G
For non-UK addresses:
- include the country at the end
- enter the postcode equivalent if it’s over 8 characters
- postcode equivalent with 8 characters or fewer, enter in column G
The information must not exceed 255 characters.
Column C to F
These are conditional fields.
Complete these fields if the payee has additional lines to their address that you cannot fit into column B. You must not exceed 255 characters per column.
Column G
This is a mandatory field for UK addresses.
Enter the postcode for UK addresses.
For non-UK addresses, enter the postcode equivalent if it is 8 characters or fewer. Otherwise include it in the address fields.
The information must not exceed 8 characters.
Total amount received during year: column H
This is a mandatory field.
Enter the total gross payments received by the payee.
You must:
- use numbers only
- include 2 decimal places (for example, 999.00)
Do not include:
- currency symbols
- spaces or commas
- negative values
The information must not exceed 20 characters.
Currency code: column I
This is a mandatory field.
Enter the 3 letter ISO currency code (for example, GBP).
The information must not exceed 3 characters.
Period end date: column J
This is a mandatory field.
Enter the date as DD/MM/YYYY. For example, 05/04/2025.
The date must:
- be the last day of the tax year the return is for
- be 10 characters long
- only contain numbers and ‘/’
Do not include spaces or other characters.
Payee source reference: column K
This is a conditional field.
Enter a unique reference for the record.
If you do not have one, create a simple reference for example 1, 2, 3.
The information must not exceed 100 characters.
Organisation name: column L
This is a mandatory field.
Enter your organisation’s full name.
It must match the name on your Data Holder Notice.
If the name is wrong, email: DA.enquiries@hmrc.gov.uk.
The information must not exceed 100 characters.
National Insurance number: column M
This is a conditional field.
Enter the payee’s National Insurance number if you have it.
It must:
- be 8 or 9 characters
- follow this format: QQ123456A or QQ123456
Do not include:
- invalid letters or prefixes
- spaces or other characters
Leave this field blank if you do not have it.
The information must not exceed 9 characters.
Unique taxpayer reference: column N
This is a conditional field.
Enter the payee’s unique taxpayer reference. It must:
- be a continuous 10 digit number
- not contain spaces or other characters
Leave this field blank if you do not have it.
The information must not exceed 10 characters.
VAT registration number: column O
This is a conditional field.
Enter the VAT number if known.
Leave blank if not known.
The information must not exceed 12 characters.
Bank details: column P to Q
These are conditional fields. Leave both fields blank if you do not have the bank details.
Column P
Enter the payee’s sort code.
This must:
- be a 6 digit number — for example 123456
- not contain spaces or symbols
The information must not exceed 6 characters.
Column Q
Enter the payee’s account number.
This is usually an 8 digit number.
The information must not exceed 25 characters.
Email address: column R
This is a conditional field.
Enter the payee’s email address if you have it.
The information must not exceed 100 characters.
Telephone number: column S
This is a conditional field.
Enter the payee’s telephone number if you have it.
The information must not exceed 20 characters.
Free format fields: column T to V
This is a conditional field.
Only complete these if your Data Holder Notice tells you to.
The information must not exceed 100 characters per column.