Call HMRC: Phone Numbers, Opening Hours, and Costs

To call HMRC, dial the helpline that matches your tax area: 0300 200 3300 for Income Tax and PAYE, 0300 200 3310 for Self Assessment, 0300 200 3500 for National Insurance, 0300 200 3700 for VAT, 0300 200 3410 for Corporation Tax, 0300 200 3100 for Child Benefit, and 0300 123 1072 for Inheritance Tax. Most lines run Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, and are closed on bank holidays. Have your National Insurance number in front of you before you dial; without it, the agent cannot verify who you are and will not discuss your account.

The Number for Your Tax Area

HMRC does not operate a single switchboard. Each tax has its own specialist line, and calling the right one from the start saves a transfer.

Income Tax and PAYE

For employment income questions, tax code queries, Marriage Allowance, or a P800 calculation, call 0300 200 3300, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. Relay UK users dial 18001 then 0300 200 3300.¹

Self Assessment

Returns, payments, and notices go to 0300 200 3310, or +44 161 931 9070 from outside the UK, same weekday hours.² A separate technical support line handles login problems, submission errors, and online account issues.³

National Insurance

Class 1, 2, and 3 queries, including contribution rates, record gaps, carer credits, refunds, and certificate of coverage questions for working abroad, go to 0300 200 3500. Class 4 enquiries use the Self Assessment line, 0300 200 3310. Both operate Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm.⁴

VAT

VAT registration changes, Making Tax Digital, and general VAT questions go to 0300 200 3700.⁵

Corporation Tax

Call 0300 200 3410, or +44 151 268 0571 from outside the UK, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. Large businesses with an assigned Customer Compliance Manager should contact that manager directly rather than use the general line.⁶

Child Benefit

Dial 0300 200 3100, or +44 161 210 3086 from abroad, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm.⁷

Inheritance Tax

For obligations arising after a death, including which forms to file, call 0300 123 1072, or +44 300 123 1072 internationally. Hours are shorter here: Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. This line does not cover estate planning advice.⁸

Have This Ready Before You Dial

Every helpline opens with identity verification. If you cannot pass it, the agent cannot look at your account, and you will have to call back.

Your National Insurance number. The Income Tax helpline specifically asks for it, and most other lines rely on it too. If you have lost yours, the HMRC app can show it before you call.¹⁹
Your full legal name, date of birth, and current address, which the agent checks against HMRC’s record.
Your Unique Taxpayer Reference if the call concerns Self Assessment, Corporation Tax, or a partnership. A UTR is 10 or 13 digits.¹⁰
The reference number from any HMRC letter you are calling about. For a P800 refund, HMRC asks for both the P800 reference and your National Insurance number.¹¹

Keep a recent payslip or your last P60 within reach as well. Agents sometimes ask about recent income figures as an extra check. The agent will not discuss anything on your record until the full verification is done, so wait for them to finish their questions before launching into your issue.

When to Call

The first hour after lines open, 8am to 9am, is consistently the quietest. Thursdays tend to be the easiest day of the week. Mondays are the busiest, and waits typically spike again after 4pm, with calls sometimes dropping altogether when lines overload. Lunchtime between 12pm and 2pm is also slow.

Call volumes climb sharply around Self Assessment deadlines. The online return and payment deadline is 31 January 2026, and the preceding weeks are the worst time of year to ring if your query can wait.¹² The 5 October deadline for notifying a new Self Assessment obligation and the 31 October paper return deadline also drive heavy traffic.

What a Call Costs

HMRC uses 0300 numbers for its main helplines. Under Ofcom rules, a call to any 03 number costs no more than a call to a standard UK landline. If your phone plan includes landline minutes, which most modern contracts do, HMRC calls come out of those minutes at no extra charge. Pay-as-you-go users without a bundle pay their network’s standard out-of-bundle rate, which varies widely between providers.

Calling From Abroad

Most helplines publish a +44 number alongside the 0300 line. Self Assessment is +44 161 931 9070.² Corporation Tax is +44 151 268 0571.⁶ Non-UK residents with Income Tax or Capital Gains Tax questions have their own line at +44 135 535 9022, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm UK time.¹³

From the US, HMRC’s 8am opening is 3am Eastern or midnight Pacific, so the UK early-bird trick does not work. Mid-morning UK time, around 10am to 11am, lands at 5am to 6am Eastern and still catches lighter traffic. International calls bill at your carrier’s usual overseas rate.

If You Can’t Use a Standard Phone Call

If you cannot hear or speak on the phone, Relay UK works with any HMRC line: dial 18001 then the full number. HMRC also accepts contact through a British Sign Language interpreter.¹⁴ If a health condition, financial hardship, or difficult personal circumstance makes dealing with HMRC harder, ask any helpline adviser to pass you to the extra support team, or use the extra support webchat instead. The service covers cognitive and mental health conditions, hardship, and situations such as domestic abuse.¹⁵

Letting Someone Else Call for You

If you want a spouse, relative, or friend to speak to HMRC about your affairs on a one-off basis, you need to be on the call too. HMRC will verify your identity, confirm you are happy for them to represent you, and then speak with them.¹⁶ For an ongoing arrangement with an accountant or tax adviser, Form 64-8 is the formal authorization and can cover specified tax areas such as Self Assessment, PAYE, or VAT.¹⁷

Skipping the Call Entirely

For a lot of routine tasks, the digital options are faster than queuing on the phone.

The HMRC app shows your tax code, National Insurance number, UTR, and five years of employment and income history. You can also make Self Assessment or Simple Assessment payments, claim a tax refund, track forms and letters, update your name or address, check for National Insurance gaps, and in some cases pay to fill them.⁹

Your Personal Tax Account handles Income Tax estimates and tax codes, Self Assessment returns, National Insurance records, and address changes.¹⁸ The Business Tax Account does the equivalent for business taxes, including returns, payments, tax registrations, and agent access.¹⁹

Webchat is available mainly for technical support with online services. A digital assistant answers first and transfers you to a live adviser if needed, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. HMRC sometimes extends webchat for Self Assessment peaks, including Saturday 31 January 2026 from 8am to 4pm.²⁰

1
GOV.UK. Income Tax: Enquiries
2
GOV.UK. Self Assessment: General Enquiries
3
GOV.UK. Self Assessment: Online Technical Support
4
GOV.UK. National Insurance: Enquiries
5
GOV.UK. VAT: General Enquiries
6
GOV.UK. Corporation Tax: General Enquiries
7
GOV.UK. Child Benefit: Enquiries
8
GOV.UK. Inheritance Tax: General Enquiries
9
GOV.UK. Download the HMRC App
10
GOV.UK. Unique Taxpayer Reference – HMRC Patterns for Services
11
GOV.UK. Tax Overpayments and Underpayments – If Youre Due a Refund
12
GOV.UK. Self Assessment Tax Returns: Deadlines
13
GOV.UK. Non-UK Residents Income Tax and Capital Gains: Enquiries
14
GOV.UK. Telephone Contact: Sensitive Call Handling: Profoundly Deaf, Hard of Hearing
15
GOV.UK. Get Help From HMRC if You Need Extra Support
16
GOV.UK. Appoint Someone to Deal With HMRC on Your Behalf
17
GOV.UK. Authorising an Agent to Deal With Your Tax Affairs
18
GOV.UK. Personal Tax Account: Sign in or Set Up
19
GOV.UK. Sign in to Your HMRC Business Tax Account
20
GOV.UK. Technical Support With HMRC Online Services