HMRC - His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs

(The weekly series - Pocket Money - where I explain financial basics in fewer than 200 words. Feel free to make suggestions!)

This is the UK government department responsible for collecting taxes and administering some benefits. They make sure the government gets the tax money it’s owed.  

• They collect income tax, corporation tax, capital gains tax, inheritance tax and VAT.

• They run the PAYE system for employees and self assessment tax returns for the self-employed.

• Employers send income tax and national insurance payments straight to them and the self-employed pay them manually.

• They send tax codes out and handle tax rebates.

• They manage tax credits and child benefit.

• They enforce customs and excise regulations. 

You can ring or email them about any tax problems or questions you have (they’re surprisingly friendly, generally) and they have a really helpful and thorough website. 

Love Eleanor. xxx