This can vary depending on the office dealing with an enquiry, however now HMRC has an online tool that can be used to give an idea of roughly how long it is likely to take.

The ‘where’s my reply’ tracker can only be used in a limited number of situations, telling you how long:

– it will take to pay an income tax refund (for employees or pensioners only)

– to reply to a general tax enquiry

– to provide a copy of individual information requested

– to send HMRC forms

As we are agents, there are a few additional items that can be checked by ourselves such as checking on the processing of an authority form for a new client.

If your query isn’t one of the ones listed above, then unfortunately the tool can’t be used. The tool itself is fairly simple but it is a step in the right direction and shows how HMRC are adapting.

You can access the HMRC time to reply tool here.