Later this year, you’ll be able to use your voice as a password when contacting the UK tax authority – meaning you’ll hopefully pass security checks faster and more securely.
This will ideally save time for self-employed people who have issues or queries about their tax return, as the HMRC call line can have long waiting times – and sometimes calls even go unanswered.
HMRC voice recognition – how will it work?
HMRC is testing voice recognition used by banks. According to a BBC report, your voice recording would be converted into encrypted biometric data, and used to clear security checks.
This comes after a report found that in the first 11 months of the 2023-24 financial year, HMRC phone lines cut off on 43,690 customers who had been waiting 70 minutes to reach an adviser. The report found that average call waiting times for the service reached over 23 minutes in 2023/24, up from 16 minutes 24 seconds in 2022/23.
While HMRC claims it reached its target of answering 85 per cent of calls to an adviser in 2023/24, the report found the service had only managed to answer 66.3 per cent.
According to James Murray, Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, this is part of a series of changes that will make HMRC services “”quicker, fairer and more modern”.
“We are going further and faster to overhaul the way HMRC works,” he said.
Why you might need to call HMRC
If you’re self-employed, you can choose to submit your annual Self Assessment tax return by paper or online. Once this is complete, you can now make a Self Assessment payment via the HMRC app, even setting up a payment plan if you’re unable to make the full payment.
However you might need to call HMRC if:
- you need help or advice submitting your tax return or making a payment and you can’t find the information on the government website
- you need to discuss a more complex Time To Pay plan or have missed the deadline for setting this up online (within 60 days of the payment deadline)
- you believe HMRC has made a mistake regarding the amount of tax you need to pay
Other Self Assessment changes from HMRC
HMRC also recently announced plans to triple the income tax Self Assessment reporting threshold from £1,000 to £3,000 by the end of 2029.
While anyone with a side hustle will still need to pay tax if they earn over £1,000, they won’t have to submit a Self Assessment. Instead, you’ll pay through a new ‘simple online service’.
Find out more about the new Self Assessment reporting threshold.
More tax guides for small businesses
- Business tax – a guide for small businesses
- Small business tax relief – a guide to reduce your tax bill
- Self-employed expenses in the UK – what can you claim?
- How to register for VAT
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