Guidance

Submit returns for Climate Change Levy

If you're an electricity producer or energy supplier, find out how and when to send HMRC your returns.

You must download the Climate Change Levy return, print and fill it in every 3 months.

Send us your return form within 30 days of the period end date.

You must keep records that prove the amounts of levy you declare on your return are right.

Submit your return in the same way for both the main Climate Change Levy rates and the Carbon Price Support rates.

If you find that your returns or records have errors, you must correct them.

Payment and penalties

You must pay the levy you owe within 30 days of the period end date.

HMRC could issue you a penalty if you’re late filing your return. You may also have to submit monthly returns in future.

For returns, payment and penalty queries, contact the Climate Change Levy ‘Registrations, payments and returns’ helpdesk.

Annual returns for small businesses

You’re a small business and can apply to make annual returns instead of quarterly returns, if:

  • you’ve been registered for the levy for at least 12 months and you’ve submitted at least 4 quarterly returns
  • your liability is unlikely to be more than £2,000 for 12 months
  • you’re not registered as a group or a division of a larger business
  • in the 12 months before your application, you’ve not stopped making quarterly returns (including for Carbon Price Support rates of the levy)

To apply, write to HMRC with details of:

  • the date of your registration
  • your registration number
  • your total liability for the past 4 quarters (including any Carbon Price Support rates of levy)
  • your expected total levy liability for the next year
  • the date you want your accounting year to start

If your liability was above £2,000 for the last 4 quarters you should also explain why you think it’ll be lower next year.

Guidance with a force of law

Find out about the force of law for this guidance.

Published 18 December 2014
Last updated 20 July 2023 + show all updates
  1. The link to the Climate Change Levy return has been updated.

  2. A link to Climate Change Levy force of law guidance has been added.

  3. The postal address to send completed Climate Change Levy returns to has changed.

  4. Guidance updated as HMRC no longer sends out Climate Change Levy return forms. You must download the form and print it. The address to send your form to has changed to: HMRC TAPS & CCL, BX9 1XL. Temporary measures and references to coronavirus (COVID-19) have been removed from this guidance.

  5. Due to coronavirus (COVID-19), we have changed the way you send your paper returns. We are also unable to accept cheques at this time.

  6. We have changed the postal address for sending your completed returns.

  7. First published.