National statistics

Corporation Tax statistics commentary 2023

Published 21 September 2023

£84.7 billion total receipts from all Corporation Taxes for 2022 to 2023, up from £67.4 billion in the previous year

£64.5 billion total Corporation Tax and Bank Surcharge liabilities for 2021 to 2022, up from £51.5 billion in the previous year

1. About this release

This annual publication provides a breakdown of receipts and liabilities from Corporation Taxes by number of companies, income, deductions, industry sector, company size and financial year. For the purposes of this publication, Corporation Taxes consist of:

• Corporation Tax (CT) including onshore and offshore
• Bank Surcharge
• Bank Levy
• Residential Property Developer Tax (RPDT)
• Energy Profits Levy (EPL)

The publication includes receipts figures up to financial year 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023, and the first published CT liability estimates for company accounting periods ending between 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022.

This is the first time Corporation Taxes receipts have been published by Standard Industrial Classification of economic activity (SIC).

2. Headline findings

The key findings in this year’s publication are that:

• total CT receipts (including Bank Surcharge, Bank Levy, RPDT and EPL) increased by £17.3 billion (26%) in financial year 2022 to 2023
• Financial and Insurance (including Bank Levy and Bank Surcharge) was the largest contributor to Corporation Taxes receipts in financial year 2022 to 2023, accounting for £18.4 billion or 22%
• the £12.9 billion (25%) growth in CT liabilities was driven by a significant increase in trading profits, rather than a decrease in deductions and losses
• the 20% increase in total capital allowances claims in financial year 2021 to 2022, was partly due to the new super-deduction, which contributed over £30 billion, or 26% of the total
• in financial year 2021 to 2022, approximately 5,400 companies (0.4% of all companies who had an amount of tax to pay) contributed 56%, or £36.4 billion, of total CT liabilities

3. Receipts from all Corporation Taxes

Figure 1: Receipts from all Corporation Taxes between financial year 2016 to 2017 and 2022 to 2023

The data underpinning figure 1 is within table 1A of the Corporation Tax statistics data tables 2023.

Key statistics to note include:

• total receipts increased sharply in financial year 2022 to 2023 to £84.7 billion, an increase of £17.3 billion (26%) on the previous year. This was largely driven by a strong post-pandemic recovery in the economy, a sharp increase in offshore receipts, and the introduction of the EPL
• receipts increased noticeably in 2019 to 2020 mainly as a result of a payment timing change for the largest companies, which brought forward their CT instalment payments
• receipts fell significantly in financial year 2020 to 2021 due to a combination of COVID-19 and the unwinding of the payment timing change
• onshore Corporation Tax receipts were £71.4 billion in financial year 2022 to 2023, an increase of £9.9 billion (16%) on the previous year
• offshore Corporation Tax receipts were £6.6 billion in financial year 2022 to 2023, a sharp increase of £4.6 billion (230%) on the previous year. This was driven by high oil and gas prices, which boosted energy companies’ profits
• Bank Surcharge receipts increased by £0.2 billion (9%) in financial year 2022 to 2023, while Bank Levy receipts decreased by £0.1 billion (9%) over the same period
• Residential Property Developer Tax was introduced in financial year 2022 to 2023 and receipts for this tax were £0.2 billion
• Energy Profits Levy was also introduced in financial year 2022 to 2023 and receipts for this tax were £2.6 billion

4. Receipts from all Corporation Taxes by Standard Industrial Classification of economic activity (SIC)

Figure 2: Receipts from all Corporation Taxes by SIC section, financial year 2022 to 2023

The data underpinning figure 2 is within table 1B of the Corporation Tax statistics data tables 2023.

This is a new and experimental breakdown of the statistics and further detail can be found in the background and guidance to interpreting the Corporation Tax statistics 2023.

Data in table 1B of the Corporation Tax statistics data tables 2023 is presented for both financial years 2021 to 2022 and 2022 to 2023.

Please contact the team if you have any comments or feedback. Contact details are available on the landing page for this statistical publication.

Key statistics to note are that:

• Financial and Insurance (including Bank Levy and Bank Surcharge) was the largest contributor, accounting for £18.4 billion or 22% of total receipts in financial year 2022 to 2023, which is an increase of £1.2 billion (7%) on the previous year

• Mining and Quarrying was the second largest contributor, with £10.6 billion or 13% of total receipts in financial year 2022 to 2023. This represents an £8.4 billion (370%) increase on the previous year, largely driven by offshore receipts and the introduction of EPL

• Wholesale and Retail Trade was the third largest contributor, with £8.7 billion or 10% of total receipts in financial year 2022 to 2023. Compared with financial year 2021 to 2022, this industry section increased by £0.8 billion or 11%

5. Corporation Tax liabilities and post-pandemic growth

Figure 3: Corporation Tax liabilities, including Bank Surcharge, between financial year 2016 to 2017 and 2021 to 2022

The data underpinning figure 3 is within table 2A of the Corporation Tax statistics data tables 2023.

The main points to note in figure 3 for CT liabilities are that:

• financial year 2021 to 2022 saw the largest year-on-year increase in CT liabilities for the time period displayed
• liabilities increased by £12.9 billion (25%) in the latest financial year, from £51.5 billion in financial year 2020 to 2021, to £64.5 billion in 2021 to 2022
• liabilities previously plateaued at around £54 billion between financial years 2017 to 2018 and 2019 to 2020, before dropping to £51.5 billion in 2020 to 2021

Following a reduction in financial year 2020 to 2021, CT liabilities increased substantially in financial year 2021 to 2022, to levels significantly above those seen before the COVID-19 pandemic.

CT liabilities, including Bank Surcharge, increased by 20%, or approximately £11 billion, on pre-COVID-19 annual totals, with minimal growth over the 3 years prior to the pandemic.

This recent growth in liabilities can be attributed to the post-pandemic recovery in the economy, where companies have reported an increase in trading profits.

Figure 4 below shows the percentage growth of trading profits, total deductions and CT payable over the last 3 years.

This chart shows that the increase in CT liabilities in financial year 2021 to 2022 was driven by the 23% increase in trading profits, rather than a significant decrease in losses and other deductions, that companies subtract from their profits.

Figure 4: Percentage growth in trading profits, total deductions and CT payable, between financial year 2019 to 2020 and 2021 to 2022

The data underpinning figure 4 is within table 2A of the Corporation Tax statistics data tables 2023.

6. Corporation Tax liabilities by Standard Industrial Classification of economic activity (SIC)

There has been a change to the methodology of assigning SIC codes to companies within the liabilities data. This is detailed within the background and guidance documentation for this publication.

Figure 5: Corporation Tax liabilities by SIC section, financial year 2021 to 2022

The data underpinning figure 5 is within table 6 of the Corporation Tax statistics data tables 2023.

Figure 5 above shows CT liabilities by SIC section for financial year 2021 to 2022, ordered by size of liabilities. Some sections have been combined to protect taxpayer confidentiality.

The main points to note in figure 5 are:

• the largest contributor to CT liabilities was Financial and Insurance, with £15.4 billion or 24% of total liabilities
• Wholesale and Retail Trade, Repairs was the second largest contributor with £7.6 billion or 12% of total CT
• the top 3 sections are completed by Professional, Scientific & Technical. Combined they account for 45% or £29.1 billion of total CT liabilities
• the largest contributing SIC section to CT liabilities (Financial and Insurance) represents only 2.8% of companies who paid CT in financial year 2021 to 2022

Figure 6: Growth in amount of CT liabilities by SIC section, between financial years 2020 to 2021 and 2021 to 2022

The data underpinning figure 6 is within table 6 of the Corporation Tax statistics data tables 2023.

The main points to note in figure 6 are that:

• of the 21 sections represented, all saw a year-on-year increase in CT liabilities and none saw a year-on-year decrease
• the largest increase in total CT liabilities was in the Financial and Insurance section, which saw a £3 billion or 25% increase

Figure 7 below shows the longer-term percentage growth in CT liabilities by SIC section between financial year 2016 to 2017 and 2021 to 2022. Only the 9 sections with the highest percentage growth in 2021 to 2022 are displayed.

Figure 7: Percentage growth of CT liabilities by SIC section between financial 2016 to 2017 and 2021 to 2022

The data underpinning figure 7 is within table 6 of the Corporation Tax statistics data tables 2023.

Figure 7 shows that those industry sections that experienced the largest percentage decline during COVID-19, reported the largest percentage increases in the most recent year.

The industry sections that experienced the largest percentage growth in CT liabilities post-pandemic in financial year 2021 to 2022 were:

• Mining and Quarrying, which decreased by 48% in financial year 2020 to 2021 and increased by 177% in 2021 to 2022
• Accommodation and Food, which decreased by 29% in 2020 to 2021 and increased by 87% in 2021 to 2022
• Arts, Entertainment and Recreation, which decreased by 22% in 2020 to 2021 and increased by 48% in 2021 to 2022

7. Corporation Tax liabilities by ‘size’ of company

Figure 8 below groups CT liabilities, including Bank Surcharge, into bands £0 to £9,999; £10,000 to £49,999; £50,000 to £999,999; and above £1 million for the financial year 2021 to 2022. It shows the number of companies and the total liability in each band.

The figure illustrates how the majority of CT liabilities are accrued from a relatively small number of companies.

In financial year 2021 to 2022, approximately 5,400 companies (0.4% of all companies who had an amount of tax to pay) had liabilities over £1 million, yet these contributed 56%, or £36.4 billion, of total CT liabilities.

In contrast, approximately 1 million companies (66% of all companies who had an amount of tax to pay) had liabilities of less than £10,000 and these contributed just 5%, or £3.3 billion, of the CT liability total.

The number of companies with zero CT liabilities increased in financial year 2021 to 2022 by 5% or approximately 72,000. They represented 19% of all companies who submitted a CT return compared to 18% in financial year 2020 to 2021.

Figure 8: Number of companies and their CT liabilities by liability band, financial year 2021 to 2022

The data underpinning figure 8 is within table 9 of the Corporation Tax statistics data tables 2023.

8. Capital allowances and the super-deduction

Capital allowances are a type of tax relief for businesses. They allow a company to deduct some or all of the value of an item from their profits before they pay tax.

In financial year 2021 to 2022 a new type of capital allowance was introduced called the super-deduction.

The super-deduction allows eligible investment incurred from the 1 April 2021 to receive more generous capital allowances than it would otherwise. Such investment can receive a 130% rate in the first year, compared to either 100% through the Annual Investment Allowance or 18% Writing-Down Allowance that had been available before.

The special rate first year allowance was also introduced in financial year 2021 to 2022, allowing companies to deduct 50% of the cost of investment from their profits before tax.

Figure 9 below shows the value of capital allowances from financial year 2016 to 2017 to financial year 2021 to 2022, by type of allowance.

Figure 9: Value of capital allowance claims minus balancing charges between financial year 2016 to 2017 and 2021 to 2022

The data underpinning figure 9 can be found in table 11 of the Corporation Tax statistics data tables 2023.

The main points to note in figure 9 are that:

• total capital allowances claims minus balancing charges, were £121 billion in financial year 2021 to 2022, an increase of over £21 billion (22%) on the previous year
• capital allowances claims in financial year 2021 to 2022 were £13 billion, or 12%, higher than the pre-pandemic levels of 2019 to 2020
• the increase in total capital allowances claims in financial year 2021 to 2022, was partly driven by the new super-deduction, which contributed over £30 billion, 26% of the total
• although the largest capital allowance category, Machinery and plant - main pool, decreased by approximately £10 billion in the most recent financial year, this is likely due to the introduction of the super-deduction

It is important to note that the value of super-deductions shown for the latest year will only represent a partial year of super-deduction claims. This is due to the timing of company accounting period end dates which can be at any point during the financial year.

The figures shown for financial year 2021 to 2022 represent data from company accounting periods ending between 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022.

As such, a significant amount of investment shown in financial year 2021 to 2022 would have been reported by companies prior to the introduction of the super-deduction in April 2021 and therefore would not have been eligible.

9. Publication information

This is an annual publication published on 21 September 2023. The next release is scheduled for autumn 2024.

For press queries, please contact:

HMRC Press Office
Telephone: 03000 585 018

For statistical queries or feedback on this publication, please contact:

D Pritchard on CT receipts or P Riley on CT liabilities
ct.statistics@hmrc.gov.uk