Growing confidence in managing tax digitally

19 Feb 2026

More people are taking greater control of their tax affairs as usage of HMRC's app continues to rise. Around seven million taxpayers used the app in 2025, representing a 40% increase compared with the previous year.

Key areas

There are three key areas of the app which users are finding increasingly useful:

• State Pension forecast: This service shows how much State Pension you could get, the exact date when you will be entitled to your pension, whether you can increase your entitlement, and how much the increase will be if contribution gaps are filled.
• Child Benefit: You can apply for child benefit using the app, and thereafter view your payment history, update bank details, and let HMRC know if a child is staying in full-time education past the age of 16. If liable for the high income child benefit charge, the app can be used to arrange for the charge to be collected through your PAYE tax code.
• National Insurance (NI): The app can store your NI number in a digital wallet, so it is conveniently available when needed. This feature is particularly useful for employees, because obtaining a confirmation letter from HMRC can take at least two weeks.

A helpful new feature allows a taxpayer to tell HMRC that they no longer need to submit a self assessment tax return.

Set up

The HMRC app can be downloaded from either the App Store (Apple devices) or the Google Play Store (Android devices). It is then just a matter of using your Government Gateway user ID and password to sign in for the first time. Thereafter, the app can be accessed with a 6-digit PIN, fingerprint or facial recognition.

The HMRC app currently seems to work much better on Apple devices (4.8 rating) than on Android devices (3.9 rating). Many Android users are encountering access issues.

The HMRC app can be found here and here.

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