HMRC letters,
explained.
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HMRC Watch: live now
All of HMRC WatchThe letters HMRC says it is sending right now, from its own published lists. HMRC's lists were last updated on 6 October 2026.
- late September 2026 · letter · bills
Simple Assessment, second batch: bank and building society interest
If you already had one for the year, this one shows the total. HMRC's own guidance is to check the figures against your records; the law gives 60 days from the letter's date, or longer if HMRC allows, to tell HMRC if a figure differs.
The PA302 guide and the figure checker Source: GOV.UK, Agent Update issue 147, 18 Sep 2026 - 7 Oct to 7 Nov 2026 · letter and email
Construction Industry Scheme: incorrect rates on monthly returns
Contractors asked to review deduction rates that do not match HMRC's record.
The Watch entry Source: GOV.UK: Check genuine HMRC contact that uses more than one communication method - 10 Jul 2026 to 31 Mar 2027 · letter
National Insurance paid after State Pension age
A refund invitation, not a bill. HMRC's list says the letter asks you to post the form on its back with your bank details, or to call the National Insurance helpline.
The guide Source: GOV.UK: Check if a letter you've received from HMRC is genuine - 6 Jul to 31 Dec 2026 · letter and text
High Income Child Benefit Charge: check if you need to pay
Asks whether the charge applies to you for the tax years HMRC names.
The guide Source: GOV.UK: Check genuine HMRC contact that uses more than one communication method
- Spot the fake · dailyA new ten every dayCome back and beat your last score. The big Spot the Fake button is further up the page.
- Tax code decoder1257L M1. What is your payslip saying?Type any code. Every letter and number explained, with the GOV.UK page to read if it looks wrong.
- Open it with meOne real HMRC letter, paragraph by paragraphHMRC's words on the left. What they mean on the right.
Or start with a familiar letter
Serious or urgent wording?
If the letter is a penalty, an assessment or says a check has started, it may have a time limit set by law. If it mentions Code of Practice 8, Code of Practice 9 or the Fraud Investigation Service, the checker shows what HMRC's own code says about that investigation.
Got a Simple Assessment?
Around 1.8 million Simple Assessment letters are going out this cycle. For bank and building society interest, HMRC says it started issuing either a P800 or a Simple Assessment from late September 2026, and someone who already had a Simple Assessment for the year may get a second one showing the total. HMRC's own guidance is to check the figures against your records. The checker compares them line by line, in your browser.
- What the letter says. Copy in the figures it printed: income, pension, savings interest, tax paid and the amount HMRC asks for.
- What your documents say. The same lines from your P60, pension statements and bank interest certificates.
- The comparison. Each line comes back as matched, differs (with the difference) or couldn't check. No verdicts.
Checking a parent's letter, together or from afar, works the same way as checking your own.
If a figure differs, the law gives you 60 days from the letter's date to tell HMRC (Taxes Management Act 1970, section 31AA). Sources: GOV.UK press release, 28 Jul 2026; GOV.UK, Agent Update issue 147, 18 Sep 2026.
Understand it, check it, keep it.
Everything here for people with an HMRC letter is free: no account, no trial, no upgrade button. Where a letter really is a job for a professional, we say so, and the free routes are named too.
What you get
- The arithmetic done properly, in your browser
- What each deadline means in law, honestly
- Dated sources beside the facts, so you can check us
- Free routes to help named: HMRC, TaxAid, Citizens Advice
What you don't
- Countdown pressure or frightening language
- Promises about outcomes, refunds or penalties
- A hard sell: paid help is mentioned only where it fits, never in place of a free option
- Advertising trackers on any page
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