{"id":34138,"date":"2025-03-26T14:45:14","date_gmt":"2025-03-26T14:45:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.simplybusiness.co.uk\/?post_type=knowledge&p=34138"},"modified":"2025-05-22T13:03:09","modified_gmt":"2025-05-22T13:03:09","slug":"hmrc-voice-recognition","status":"publish","type":"knowledge","link":"https:\/\/www.simplybusiness.co.uk\/knowledge\/business-tax\/hmrc-voice-recognition\/","title":{"rendered":"HMRC to speed up call times with voice recognition\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Later this year, you\u2019ll be able to use your voice as a password when contacting the UK tax authority \u2013 meaning you\u2019ll hopefully pass security checks faster and more securely. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This will ideally save time for self-employed people who have issues or queries about their tax return, as the HMRC call line can have long waiting times \u2013 and sometimes calls even go unanswered. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

HMRC voice recognition \u2013 how will it work?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

HMRC is testing voice recognition used by banks. According to a BBC report<\/a>, your voice recording would be converted into encrypted biometric data, and used to clear security checks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This comes after a report found that in the first 11 months of the 2023-24 financial year, HMRC phone lines cut off on 43,690 customers who had been waiting 70 minutes to reach an adviser. The report found that average call waiting times for the service reached over 23 minutes in 2023\/24, up from 16 minutes 24 seconds in 2022\/23. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While HMRC claims it reached its target of answering 85 per cent of calls to an adviser in 2023\/24, the report found the service had only managed to answer 66.3 per cent. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to James Murray, Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, this is part of a series of changes that will make HMRC services \u201c”quicker, fairer and more modern”. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We are going further and faster to overhaul the way HMRC works,” he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Why you might need to call HMRC <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re self-employed, you can choose to submit your annual Self Assessment tax return by paper or online. Once this is complete, you can now make a Self Assessment payment via the HMRC app<\/a>, even setting up a payment plan if you\u2019re unable to make the full payment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However you might need to call HMRC if: <\/p>\n\n\n\n