Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he has taken to ensure that the HMRC telephone helpline services provide accurate tax codes for residents of devolved nations where income tax codes are divergent.

HMRC staff have access to relevant guidance to produce the right tax codes for people in devolved nations. HMRC also provides a telephone service for people who need help understanding their devolved income tax. This can be accessed by calling the normal telephone number, 0300 200 3300, and then asking for help with Scottish or Welsh income tax.

HMRC determines the residency status of individuals using address data it holds and identifies Scottish and Welsh taxpayers using this data. Special ‘S’ and ‘C’ codes are issued to employers based on the residency status identified. Taxpayers can change their address data using their Personal Tax Account and should contact HMRC if they believe their tax code is wrong. Information on how to contact HMRC can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/contact-hmrc

HMRC regularly checks the accuracy of address data to ensure taxpayers receive the code appropriate to their residency status, and they work with employers to ensure that they are operating the right codes and monitor that this is happening. A full report of HMRC’s activities in this area is published each year. The latest versions are here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/scottish-income-tax-hmrc-annual-report-2021/scottish-income-tax-hmrc-annual-report-2021

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/welsh-rates-of-income-tax-hmrc-annual-report-2021