HMRC’s Annual Tax Summary

The Annual Tax Summary is a document provided by HMRC that provides details on the tax you pay and how this is used by government.

The Annual Tax Summary shows:

• your taxable income from all sources that HMRC knew about at the time that it was prepared
• the rates used to calculate your Income Tax and National Insurance contributions
• a breakdown of how the UK government spends your taxes – this makes government spending more transparent

HMRC makes it clear that the tax summaries are for information purposes only and neither taxpayers nor agents should take any action based on the contents of the summary. The summaries are available online via the Government Gateway.

Taxpayers cannot access an Annual Tax Summary if they have paid no Income Tax or if information is outstanding. The Annual Tax Summary might also be different from other HMRC tax calculations because their circumstances have changed, or some sources of income were not included.

HMRC are currently sending email alerts to some taxpayers to say that their annual tax summary is available to view online. These emails are genuine.