Voice Biometrics Project – Screening Equality Impact Assessment
Published 2 October 2025
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Project objectives
Voice biometrics (VB) records and stores a customer’s voice print, it analyses the unique voice characteristics to verify the customer when they contact HMRC via telephone. This strengthens security, reduces the risk of fraud, and saves time for customers and HMRC.
Advisor led Voice biometrics enrolment will be rolled out across:
- Pay As You Earn (PAYE) from 7 July 2025
- Self-Assessment from 4 August 2025
- Debt Management (Self Assessment) from 18 August 2025
- Child Benefit from 22 October 2025
- National Insurance from 22 November 2025
If the customer chooses not to leave a voice print, they will continue to follow the current identification and verification process.
Customer groups affected
Customers who call Self Assessment, National Insurance, Child Benefit, PAYE & Debt Management Self Assessment phone lines.
What customers will need to do
What customers need to do as a result of the change
The customer will be offered the opportunity to enrol onto VB. If they choose to enrol they will then create a voice print at the end of their call.
If the customer chooses to record a voice print, they won’t, in future have to answer security questions at the start of future calls, they would be able to pass security by saying “my voice is my password” and having their voice print analysed.
How customers will access this service
The advisor will transfer the call to an automated system that will record the customers Voice ID.
When customers need to do this
Once they have recorded their voice print this remains as long as the customer’s consent remains. The voice print is retained for 7 years. We will ask for reconsent every 3 years.
Assessing the impact
We assessed the equality impacts on all the protected characteristic groups in line with the Equality Act and Public Sector Equality Duty and section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act: racial groups, sex, sexual orientation, religion or belief, pregnancy and maternity, marriage and civil partnership, people with dependants and those without (carers), and political opinion (in Northern Ireland only).
There is no evidence to suggest any specific impacts on those customers within any of the protected characteristic groups (listed above).
The following equality impacts were identified:
Disability
Impact on customers
Some customers may not be able to leave a voice print due to a disability.
Proposed mitigation
Customers unable to create a voice print will complete the usual identification and verification process by answering security questions.
Gender reassignment
Impact on customers
The voice print is stored for 7 years before deletion (if no reconsent is provided) there is a possibility the customers personal circumstances may change.
Proposed mitigation
Should a customer wish to re-record their voice print they will need to remove consent (which is logged immediately) and following the overnight deletion, call back to re-record their voice print.
Age
Impact on customers
The customer must be over the age of 18 to be offered VB enrolment. The changes in a persons’ voice from childhood to adulthood can affect biometrics characteristics to create a voice print.
Proposed mitigation
If the customer is under 18, they will complete the usual identification and verification process by answering security questions.
People who use different languages (Including Welsh Language and British Sign Language)
Impact on customers
Voice biometrics is only available in English, therefore there may be an impact on customers within this protected characteristic group.
Proposed mitigation
Customers unable to leave a voice print will complete the usual identification and verification process by answering security questions.
Opportunities to promote equalities
We have considered opportunities to promote equalities and good relations between people in each of the protected characteristic groups and those outside of that group.
We have not identified any opportunities within the scope of this project.
A Full Equality Impact Assessment is not recommended.