The headline figures suggest that HMRC has recovered its performance on post following a disappointing start to 2025-26. However, ICAEW members continue to report long delays in HMRC responding to correspondence.
These reported delays are supported by the HMRC service dashboard which indicates a delayed service in several areas, including the following where HMRC is currently processing postal requests received in March 2025 (ie, almost a year ago):
- Marriage allowance claim.
- Repayment of tax from an employment or pension.
- P85 leaving the UK.
- Tax return amendment.
- Appeal a penalty.
- Claim a self assessment repayment.
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“While the headline figures focus on how much post HMRC is clearing within 15 and 40 days, they hide the true picture for services where these targets are not met. When repayments are not being processed, that can cause real hardship for taxpayers."
Headline performance
Based on the figures for the nine months to 31 December 2025, HMRC is missing its key service targets for overall customer satisfaction, answering the telephone and responding to post. However, HMRC is showing signs of improvement compared to 2024-25, particularly regarding call handling.
| Quarter ended 31 December 2025 | 2025-26 year to date | Comparison: 2024-25 (2) | Target for 2025-26 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Customer Satisfaction | 79.2% | 79.8% | 79.7% | 80% |
| Post: correspondence cleared within 15 working days | 86% | 78.6% | 76.9% | 80% |
| Post: correspondence cleared within 40 working days | 92.6% (1) | 87.9% | 88.2% | 95% |
| Net easy score | +61.3 | +62.6 | +62.2 | +65(3) |
| Telephones: adviser attempts handled | 85% | 84.2% | 71.5% | 85% |
| Telephones: average speed of answer | 13 minutes 59 seconds | 13 minutes 37 seconds | 18 minutes 38 seconds | n/a |
| Telephones: callers waiting for more than 10 minutes | 51.5% | 52.2% | 60.6% | n/a |
| Compliance yield | £8.6bn | £24.2bn | £48bn | £50.4bn |
1. Data provided for October and November 2025 only.
2. Source for figures for 2024-25: HMRC quarterly performance update: January to March 2025 - GOV.UK
3. Per the latest performance update. It was +70 for 2024-25.
Move to digital services
The percentage of interactions with HMRC that were through automated or digital self-serve channels continues to increase as HMRC closes in on its target of 90% by 2029/30. 78.4% of interactions were through automated or digital self-serve channels for the nine months to 31 December 2025, compared to 76.2% for 2024/25.
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