Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what security checks are undertaken before an address change is accepted on a taxpayer’s Government Gateway account.

When a taxpayer requests an address change on their Government Gateway account, a range of security checks are applied to help protect the account and prevent unauthorised access.

These checks include confirming the user’s identity through their Government Gateway credentials, monitoring for unusual or suspicious activity, and applying additional verification measures where appropriate. HMRC also uses automated controls and risk‑based assessments to help detect and prevent potential fraud.

The precise nature of these checks is kept under review and is not disclosed in detail, as doing so could undermine their effectiveness.