14 December 2011
Agent authorisation for tax credits
If you are a professional agent (such as a solicitor, accountant or tax adviser) acting on behalf of a tax credits claimant, you may need to obtain authorisation to deal with HMRC as an agent. This is different from being an intermediary or an appointee. The agent is usually appointed to act on an ongoing basis, as opposed to the short-term involvement of an intermediary.
Some agents have reported examples where HMRC has refused to deal with them, on behalf of their clients, in relation to tax credits. This follows the announcement in 2010 that HMRC's contact centres would no longer confirm the authorisation of an agent to deal with tax credits through the Self Assessment system, instead requiring a separate authorisation.
Agents must use form 64-8 in order to obtain authorisation to act behalf of their client. HMRC have been looking at how they can improve the situation for agents and have published new guidance intended to explain the process around the use of form 64-8 for tax credits. This new guidance can be found in our tax credits agents section