Research and analysis

Research to understand customers’ views on tax adviser authorisation

Published 23 April 2026

Quantitative research with customers who use a tax adviser to explore views on the existing authorisation process and potential changes to this process.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Research Report 864.

Quantitative research conducted by Ipsos in August and September 2025.

Prepared by Ipsos (Elena Di Antonio, Jack Watson, Merly Simon) for HMRC.

Disclaimer: The views in this report are the authors’ own and do not necessarily reflect those of HMRC.

1. Glossary

Term	Definition
Authorisation	Authorisation is the process by which a customer gives consent to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) for a tax adviser to access their data and interact with HMRC on their behalf.
Authorised tax adviser	For the purpose of this research, an ‘authorised tax adviser’ is defined as a paid individual or business providing services or advice about tax, external to a customer’s business or different from the customer. The term authorised tax advisers includes tax consultants, accountants, auditors and bookkeepers.
Corporation Tax	A tax a company or association pays to HMRC on profits in an accounting period.
Digital authorisation	The digital process by which customers give consent to HMRC for a tax adviser to access their data and interact with HMRC on their behalf.
Granular permissions	A customer’s ability to specify or restrict what their tax adviser can access and do on their behalf.
Making Tax Digital	A significant HMRC change programme to modernise the UK tax system by requiring businesses and individuals to maintain digital records and use compatible software to submit tax information digitally.
Multiple tax advisers	Two or more tax advisers acting for the same customer within the same tax regime.
Pay as You Earn (PAYE)	The main system used by HMRC to collect Income Tax and National Insurance contributions from employment.
Self Assessment	A system used by HMRC to collect Income Tax from individuals and businesses with income that is not taxed automatically at the source via PAYE.
Tax regime	For the purpose of this research, ‘tax regime’ refers to one of the three taxes (Self Assessment, Corporation Tax, VAT) for which respondents filed a return.
Time-bound authorisation	Tax advisers’ authorisation expiring after a set period, requiring renewal from the customer.
VAT	A tax added to most products and services sold by VAT-registered businesses. Businesses must register for VAT if their taxable turnover is more than £90,000. They can also choose to register if their turnover is less than £90,000.

2. Background and objectives

HMRC commissioned Ipsos to carry out quantitative research to better understand how customers work with tax advisers and view the tax adviser authorisation process. The research examines:

• how customers and tax advisers interact
• customers’ views of the existing authorisation process
• customers’ views on a range of ideas for how authorisation could work in the future

The ideas being explored include:

• allowing customers to have more than one tax adviser within the same tax regime
• customers giving tax advisers time-bound authorisation, which is when tax advisers’ authorisation expires after a set time, requiring renewal from the customer
• making authorisation processes mostly digital
• letting customers give their tax advisers specific permissions over what they can access and do on their behalf

These ideas are exploratory and findings will help HMRC shape its future by thinking about how to improve the authorisation experience for customers and tax advisers.

3. Methodology

Research findings are based on 1,030 responses from customers who use tax advisers who completed an online or telephone survey.

3.1. Sample

The sample is representative of individuals and micro, small or medium sized businesses who file Corporation Tax, Self Assessment and VAT and currently use at least one authorised tax adviser. In this report, we will call those ‘customers’. Large businesses paying Corporation Tax (more than 250 employees or more than £44m turnover) and customers who are only paying tax on their income through PAYE were out of scope.

The findings in this report are based on:

• 334 completes from Self Assessment (SA) customers
• 352 completes from Corporation Tax (CT) customers
• 344 completes from VAT customers

For further detail on the sample see the technical annex at the end of this report.

3.2. Fieldwork

The survey took place between 6 August and 22 September 2025 and was mixed mode. A total of 716 completes were achieved over the phone and 314 online. No incentives were used.

3.3. How to read the findings

Where differences between tax regimes are referenced in the report, these have been tested for statistical significance at the 95% confidence level, up to 4.1% standard error.

Throughout this report, where there are no statistically significant differences between responses given across the 3 tax regimes, percentages are reported as a range (for example, 75-79%). When there are significant differences between tax regimes, percentages are listed individually (for example, 45% CT, 47% VAT, 35% SA).

4. Services provided by authorised tax advisers

Across the 3 tax regimes (Corporation Tax, Self Assessment, VAT) the main services that authorised tax advisers were reported to provide were: preparing and submitting tax returns (95 to 96%), preparing accounts or conducting tax calculations (94% CT, 93% VAT, 79% SA) and checking tax or VAT returns (84% CT, 86% VAT, 70% SA).

Table 1: Services provided by an authorised tax adviser

Services provided by an authorised tax adviser	Corporation Tax (%)	VAT (%)	Self Assessment (%)
Preparing and submitting tax returns	96	96	95
Preparing accounts or conducting tax calculations	94	93	79
Checking tax or VAT returns	84	86	70
Interacting with HMRC on tax affairs	75	78	69
Providing tax planning advice or general tax advice	69	69	52
Assisting with HMRC compliance checks	54	56	38
Bookkeeping or day-to-day record keeping	36	60	23
Complying with Making Tax Digital requirements	N/A	73	N/A

Source: Which of the following Self Assessment or Corporation Tax or VAT related services, if any, has the authorised tax adviser(s) provided in the past 2 years? Base:  Corporation Tax (n=352), VAT (n=344), Self Assessment (n=334)

Services provided were fairly consistent across tax regimes. However, there were some significant differences. Self Assessment customers were less likely to say they use authorised advisers to prepare accounts (79% versus 94% CT and 93% VAT) or check tax returns (70% versus 84% CT and 86% VAT). Self Assessment customers were also less likely to get tax planning advice or general tax advice (52% versus 69% CT and 69% VAT), or use advisers to assist with HMRC compliance checks (38% versus 54% CT and 56% VAT).

In comparison, VAT customers (60%) were more likely than Self Assessment (23%) or Corporation Tax customers (36%) to say they use their tax adviser to assist with bookkeeping or day-to-day record keeping. Nearly three-quarters of VAT customers (73%) were also using their tax adviser to help comply with Making Tax Digital requirements.

The answer option related to Making Tax Digital requirements was only shown to VAT customers because these requirements do not currently apply to Corporation Tax or Self Assessment customers. However, some Self Assessment customers, specifically sole traders and landlords with qualifying income, will fall within the scope of Making Tax Digital for Income Tax from April 2026.

Most customers reported using authorised tax advisers for 3 or more services, highlighting the complexity of customers’ tax affairs. The majority (95%) of VAT customers used tax advisers for 3 or more activities, as did 92% of Corporation Tax customers and 79% of Self Assessment customers.

5. Use of multiple tax advisers

The simultaneous use of multiple paid external advisers for dealing with tax affairs within the same tax regime was not common. Only 4% of Corporation Tax customers, 3% of VAT and 2% of Self Assessment customers said they used multiple advisers at the same time.

5.1. Perceived benefits of using multiple tax advisers

Customers were asked what the benefits of using multiple advisers within their tax regime are. In the online version of the survey respondents could see a list, whilst in the telephone version the list was not read out.

More than half (55%) of Corporation Tax customers, 49% of VAT customers and 41% of Self Assessment customers could name or select at least one benefit. The top benefit selected or named was ‘having access to specialist skills and a better quality service’ (42% CT, 33% VAT, 30% SA), followed by ‘having an extra layer of review’ (34% CT, 29% VAT, 21% SA) and ‘having additional support or capacity’ (34% CT, 27% VAT, 19% SA).

However, around a third of VAT customers (35%) and Corporation Tax customers (32%) and around 3 in 10 Self Assessment customers (31%) said there were no benefits to multiple adviser use. In addition to this, notable minorities (27% of Self Assessment, 16% of VAT and 13% of Corporation Tax customers) did not see any benefits.

There were some key differences between tax regimes:

• Self Assessment customers were more likely to say they did not know what the benefits of using more than one tax adviser would be (27% versus 13% CT and 16% VAT)

• Corporation Tax customers were more likely to select or name as benefits ‘having access to specialist skills or better quality service’ (42% versus 30% SA and 33% VAT) and ‘having additional support or capacity’ (34% versus 19% SA and 27% VAT)

• Self Assessment customers were less likely to select or name ‘extra layer of review’ (21% versus 34% CT and 29% VAT), ‘clearer accountability or division of tasks’ (12% versus 23% CT and 22% VAT) and ‘quicker delivery of services’ (10% versus 19% CT and 15% VAT) as benefits

Higher turnover businesses and businesses with more employees were more likely to recognise any benefits of using multiple advisers. For instance, 57% of businesses with turnover of more than £250,000 were able to name or select a benefit (versus 51% with turnover less than £250,000). Furthermore, 56% of businesses with 10 to 49 employees (versus 46% of businesses with 0 to 9 employees) were able to name or select a benefit.

Table 2: Perceived benefits of using multiple tax advisers

Perceived benefits of using multiple tax advisers	Corporation Tax (%)	VAT (%)	Self Assessment (%)
Access to specialist skills or better quality service	42	33	30
Extra layer of review or reducing mistakes	34	29	21
Additional support or capacity	34	27	19
Clearer accountability or division of tasks	23	22	12
Quicker delivery of services	19	15	10
Cost-effectiveness	15	12	9
No benefits	32	35	31
Don’t know	13	16	27

Source: What do you think the benefits are, if any, of using multiple paid external tax advisers for your Self Assessment or business’ Corporation Tax or VAT or business’ VAT affairs? Base: Corporation Tax (n=352), VAT (n=344), Self Assessment (n=334)

5.2. Perceived drawbacks of using multiple tax advisers

More customers across all 3 tax regimes were able to name or select drawbacks of using multiple advisers, compared to benefits. The majority of Corporation Tax customers (82%), VAT customers (80%) and Self Assessment customers (72%) named or selected at least one disadvantage. A minority of customers in each tax regime selected ‘don’t know’ (13%-20%).

The most common drawback for customers in all 3 tax regimes was increased costs and it being a waste of money (72% CT, 62% VAT, 53% SA). One of the least cited drawbacks across all 3 tax regimes was current HMRC system limitations (25% of CT and VAT customers versus 12% of SA customers).

There were some key differences between tax regimes. As with benefits, Self Assessment customers were the most likely to say they did not know what the drawbacks of using multiple advisers would be (20% compared to 14% of VAT and 13% of CT customers saying or selecting ‘don’t know’).

Self Assessment customers were also less likely to select or name ‘confusing or complex communication with HMRC’ (37% versus 50% CT and 45% VAT) as drawbacks. They were also less likely to select ‘lack of centralised tax affairs tracking’ (27% versus 45% CT and 39% VAT) and ‘potential for conflicting advice or difficulty consolidation information’ (44% versus 61% CT and 54% VAT) as drawbacks.

Table 3: Perceived drawbacks of using multiple tax advisers

Perceived drawbacks of using multiple tax advisers	Corporation Tax (%)	VAT (%)	Self Assessment (%)
Increased costs or waste of money	72	62	53
Potential for conflicting advice or difficulty consolidating information	61	54	44
Time-consuming management or increased admin	59	50	38
Confusing or complex communication with HMRC	50	45	37
Difficulty establishing accountability	52	42	30
Lack of centralised tax affairs tracking	45	39	27
HMRC system limitations	25	25	12
No drawbacks	5	6	8

Source: What do you think the drawbacks are, if any, of using multiple paid external tax advisers for your Self Assessment or business’ Corporation Tax or VAT or business’ VAT affairs? Base: Corporation Tax (n=352), VAT (n=344), Self Assessment (n=334)

5.3. Multiple advisers across tax regimes

In addition to asking about multiple tax advisers within one regime, we also enquired about using different tax advisers across multiple regimes. Specifically, we asked those that had indicated that they had used an authorised adviser for their Corporation Tax and VAT (n=364) or their Self Assessment and VAT (n=104) affairs whether those services were provided by the same adviser or by different advisers. The majority of customers reported using the same tax adviser, and there were no differences by tax regimes, number of employees or turnover:

• the great majority (93%) of those customers using authorised advisers for both Corporation Tax and VAT regimes said they used the same adviser compared to 7% who said different advisers
• similarly, 90% of those using authorised advisers for both Self Assessment and VAT regimes said they used the same adviser, 8% said different, 2% preferred not to answer

6. Views on the authorisation process

6.1. Perceived knowledge of the current authorisation process

Customers were asked how much they knew about different aspects of the current authorisation process. Across the 3 tax regimes, there was little perceived knowledge of the different aspects of the current process of authorisation, although this varied widely depending on the aspect (ranging from 8% to 47%).

Across the 3 tax regimes, more customers reported knowing about what type of information can be accessed and tasks performed (40% to 47% said they knew at least a moderate amount about this), compared to how the authorisation ends (24% to 34%) and how HMRC handles communications with the tax adviser (21% to 31%). Customers reported knowing little about how many tax advisers can be authorised within one regime (8% to 17% said they knew at least a moderate amount about this).

Perceived knowledge was the highest amongst Corporation Tax customers across the board. For instance, Corporation Tax customers reported knowing the most about the type of information the authorised tax adviser can access from HMRC and what tasks they can perform on their behalf (47% knew at least a moderate amount versus 45% VAT and 40% SA).

Table 4: Perceived knowledge of different aspects of the current authorisation process. Proportion answering that they knew ‘A great deal or quite a bit or moderate amount’ displayed in the table

Area of knowledge	Corporation Tax (%)	VAT (%)	Self Assessment (%)
What type of information can be accessed and tasks performed	47	45	40
How the authorisation ends	34	27	24
How HMRC handles communications with the tax adviser	31	25	21
How many tax advisers can be authorised within one regime	17	11	8

Source: How much do you know about each of the following aspects of the current authorisation process? Base: Corporation Tax (n=352), VAT (n=344), Self Assessment (n=334)

6.2. Perceived importance of different aspects of the authorisation process

Customers were presented with a range of ideas for how authorisation could potentially work in future and were asked how important they thought the different aspects of the authorisation process were. Whilst perceived knowledge of these aspects was low, when presented with a brief description of the potential changes, majorities of customers felt each aspect would be ‘very’ or ‘fairly’ important (73% to 84% across aspects tested and tax regimes).

Notably, there was little variation in perceived importance across the aspects tested. Also, there were no statistically significant differences in perceived importance across regimes.

Table 5: Importance of different aspects of the authorisation process. Proportion answering ‘Very’ and ‘Fairly’ important displayed in the table

Importance of different aspects of the authorisation process	Corporation Tax (%)	VAT (%)	Self Assessment (%)
Being able to complete the authorisation online	84	82	77
Being able to review and renew the adviser’s authorisation	79	76	76
The ability to specify the tasks which tax advisers can perform	77	77	74
The ability to control what data the tax advisers can access	73	74	73

Source: How important is each of the following to you when thinking about the authorisation process? Base: Corporation Tax (n=352), VAT (n=344), Self Assessment (n=334)

7. Views on potential changes to the authorisation process

Customers were presented with a range of ideas for how authorisation could work in the future, to understand their views towards these. These ideas are exploratory and findings will help HMRC shape its future by thinking about how to improve the authorisation experience for customers and tax advisers.

7.1. Allowing customers to appoint more than one adviser within the same tax regime

Only a minority of customers said they would be likely to use more than one tax adviser within the same tax regime to interact with HMRC on their behalf if it were possible, and there were not statistically significant differences by tax regimes, number of employees or turnover. One in ten Corporation Tax customers (10%) said they were ‘very’ or ‘fairly likely’ to authorise multiple advisers if it were possible, as well as 7% of VAT and 6% of Self Assessment customers.

7.2. Time-bound authorisation

More than half of customers wanted authorisation to remain active unless revoked, surpassing those who preferred expiration due to time-lapse or account inactivity. Specifically, 53% to 58% of customers across tax regimes selected authorisation ‘should remain active indefinitely unless you or your business revoke it’. Around a quarter (23% to 27%) selected ‘it should expire after a set period, requiring renewal’. A minority (14% to 18%) selected ‘it should expire automatically if there is no activity on the account for a certain period’.

7.3. Digital authorisation

Customers’ preferences on how to authorise a tax adviser to interact with HMRC on their or their business’ behalf were varied and no single option was overwhelmingly preferred. The most preferred option was clicking on a link emailed by the tax adviser (27 to 34%). Looking at preferences within each tax regime:

• Corporation Tax customers’ opinions were split, over a quarter (27%) preferred clicking on a link emailed by the tax adviser but the same percentage (27%) preferred to share with the tax adviser a code posted by HMRC

• similarly, 28% of Self Assessment customers preferred clicking on a link emailed by the tax adviser and a close proportion (25%) preferred sharing with the tax adviser a code posted by HMRC

• for VAT customers clicking on a link emailed by the tax adviser was the clear preference (34% versus 21% for their joint second choice, sharing a code posted by HMRC or adding the tax adviser to their tax account)

There were some key differences in preferences based on tax regime:

• Self Assessment customers were more likely than Corporation Tax or VAT customers to prefer to authorise by signing and returning a paper form pre-filled by the tax adviser (20%), and less likely to prefer adding the tax adviser to their tax account (13%)

• VAT customers were more likely than Self Assessment or Corporation Tax customers to prefer clicking on a link emailed by the tax adviser (34%)

Table 6: Customers’ preferences on how to authorise a tax adviser displayed in the table

Ways of authorising tax adviser	Corporation Tax (%)	VAT (%)	Self Assessment (%)
Clicking on a link emailed by the tax adviser	27	34	28
Sharing with the tax adviser a code posted by HMRC	27	21	25
Adding the tax adviser to my (business’) tax account	23	21	13
Signing and returning a paper form pre-filled by the tax adviser	11	10	20

Source: How would you prefer to authorise the tax adviser to interact with HMRC on your behalf or your business’ behalf? Base: Corporation Tax (n=352), VAT (n=344), Self Assessment (n=334)

Those who selected a preferred method were asked why that was. This was an open-ended question that was asked to 87% of the sample and was later coded. Customers mentioned a range of reasons, the most popular being because the preferred method was easy and straightforward (24%), provided better security and prevented fraud (13%) or because it was a fast process (10%).

What customers valued most in terms of authorisation varied depending on their preferred authorisation method:

• those who preferred clicking on a link emailed by the tax adviser chose this method because it was easy (34%) and a fast process (23%)

• those who preferred adding the adviser to their (business’) tax account chose this method because it was easy (27%) and allowed them to maintain control over their business (21%)

• those who preferred sharing with the tax advisor a code posted by HMRC chose this method because it added an additional layer of security (25%) and was easy (18%)

• those who preferred signing and returning a paper form pre-filled by the tax adviser chose this method because they valued having physical copies of documents (19%), found it easy (12%) and secure (11%)

7.4. Introducing granular permissions

We asked customers what, if anything, they would want to restrict tax advisers from being able to see or do on their behalf.  A majority indicated they would like to set some restrictions (64%).

The most common things customers wanted to restrict included the adviser being able to change repayment account details (43-50%), followed by the adviser being able to make payments to HMRC on their behalf (40% CT versus 32% VAT and 33% SA), changing their registered address or contact information (30-37%), or setting up new online services or accounts with HMRC (29% CT versus 22% VAT and 22% SA). Fewer customers felt it was necessary to restrict things such as ‘making repayment claims’, ‘viewing financial details’, ‘accessing specific tax years’, ‘communicating with HMRC’ or ‘filing tax returns’.

There were few differences between tax regimes overall, but Corporation Tax customers were more likely to select a greater number of tasks they wanted to restrict. They were also more likely than VAT and Self Assessment customers to want to restrict ‘making payments to HMRC on your or your business’ behalf’ (40% versus 32% VAT and 33% SA) and ‘setting up new online services or accounts with HMRC’ (29% versus 22% VAT and SA).

Table 7: Customers’ preferences on tasks tax advisers should be restricted from accessing or performing

Tasks tax advisors should be restricted from accessing or performing	Corporation Tax (%)	VAT (%)	Self Assessment (%)
Changing your or your business’ repayment bank account details	50	43	45
Making payments to HMRC on your or your business’ behalf	40	32	33
Changing your or your business’ registered address or contact information	37	32	30
Setting up new online services or accounts with HMRC	29	22	22
Making repayment claims on your or your business’ behalf	17	14	11
Viewing financial details	15	9	9
Accessing specific tax years or types of taxes	13	11	9
Communicating with HMRC on your or your business’ behalf	12	10	8
Filing tax returns on your or your business’ behalf	11	8	5
No restriction is necessary	31	37	37

Source: Which of the following, if any, would you like to be able to restrict the tax adviser(s) from accessing or performing within your or your business’ HMRC account?  Base: Corporation Tax (n=352), VAT (n=344), Self Assessment (n=334)

8. Technical annex

8.1. Recruitment 

The sample was drawn randomly from HMRC administrative data. After data cleaning, there were 11,278 Corporation Tax contacts, 6,853 Self Assessment contacts and 9,496 VAT contacts.

All contacts without an email address were sent a physical opt out letter via the post, informing them that they had one week to opt out of the research, otherwise they may be contacted by phone to take part in the research. This letter also contained a QR code and a URL to encourage recipients to take part online.

All contacts with an email address were invited to take part online. After one week, those who did not complete the survey online and who had a telephone number available were added to the list of contacts to be contacted by phone.

We sent 3 reminders via email over the course of fieldwork.

8.2. Allocation to a tax regime 

At the set-up stage, we anticipated that a notable number of customers would have filed multiple tax regimes, each with its own specific challenges and complexities. Therefore, unless otherwise specified, the survey questions concentrated on the customers’ primary tax regime where they employed an authorised tax adviser. This was determined using a combination of sample data and survey information. If the respondent said in the survey that they used an authorised tax adviser for the tax regime outlined in the sample, this became their ‘primary’ regime.

The survey questions reported on throughout this report were concentrated on the customers’ primary tax regime.

8.3. Weighting

For the purpose of this report, we applied a unique weighting scheme to customers within each tax regime to ensure each regime is representative of its population:

• for Self Assessment, we have weighted on customer type (such as landlords, sole traders) and income

• for Corporation Tax, we have weighted on number of employees and turnover

• for VAT, we have weighted responses on whether they are an individual or a business

We also applied an overall weight to adjust for the incidence of regime among the broader population of HMRC customers.