How to Change Address with HMRC UK 2026
When you move house, you need to tell HMRC (HM Revenue & Customs) about your new address. HMRC handles your tax records, and if they don’t have your current address, important letters about your tax, benefits, and refunds could go to your old home.
In this guide, we’ll explain everything you need to know about changing your address with HMRC in 2026, including what happens if you don’t update, where you can make the change, and how long it takes!
Understanding HMRC and Your Tax Records
HMRC is the UK government department responsible for managing taxes and benefits. When you update your address with HMRC, you’re updating your records across multiple services in one go.
One HMRC address change covers:
- Income Tax – Your personal tax records.
- Self-Assessment – If you’re self-employed or have income from other sources.
- National Insurance – Your NI contributions and records.
- Tax Credits – Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit.
- Child Benefit – If you receive this payment.
This is different from updating your driving licence or vehicle logbook, where you need to update each one separately. With HMRC, one address update keeps all your tax and benefit records current.
HMRC uses your address to send important letters, including tax codes, Self-Assessment reminders, payment notices, and tax refunds. If your address is out of date, these letters go to your old home, and you might miss critical deadlines or
payments owed to you.
What Happens If You Don’t Update Your HMRC Address?
Failing to update your HMRC address isn’t just inconvenient. It can lead to serious consequences, including missed deadlines, lost refunds, financial penalties, and increased risk of fraud.
Missing Important Tax Letters
When HMRC sends letters to your old address and you don’t receive them, problems pile up quickly. You might miss:
- Your tax code – HMRC sends your tax code each year. If you miss it, your employer or pension provider might use the wrong code, and you could overpay tax or underpay it.
- Self-Assessment reminders – If you’re self-employed, HMRC sends reminders about your tax return deadline (usually 31 January). Missing this reminder could mean missing the deadline.
- Payment notices – If you owe tax, HMRC sends payment notices. Missing these can lead to additional charges and interest.
- Tax refunds – If HMRC owes you money, they’ll send it to your registered address. If you’ve moved, you might never receive your refund.
Fraud and Identity Theft Risk
One of the biggest risks of not updating your HMRC address is leaving yourself vulnerable to fraud and identity theft.
When you move house, your old address becomes a security weak point. If someone intercepts your HMRC mail at your old address, they could claim benefits in your name, file false tax returns, or use your tax information to commit identity fraud.
By updating your address promptly, you ensure that only you receive your HMRC correspondence. This protects your tax records and prevents fraudsters from intercepting letters meant for you.
Penalties and Interest Charges
If you miss a Self-Assessment deadline because you didn’t receive the reminder, HMRC can charge penalties for late submission. If you owe tax and miss a payment deadline, HMRC charges interest on the unpaid amount. These charges
In our experience helping thousands of UK movers update their tax records since 2019, we’ve seen customers miss Self-Assessment deadlines, discover they’ve overpaid tax for months, miss tax refunds worth hundreds of pounds, and face penalty notices they didn’t know about until HMRC took action.
The bottom line: updating your HMRC address quickly protects you from missed deadlines, lost refunds, financial penalties, and the risk of fraud.
Where You Can Update Your HMRC Address?
Option 1: SlothMove (The Stress-Free Solution)
When you move home, updating your HMRC address is just one item on a long list. You also need to notify your driving licence, V5C, GP, dentist, council, utilities, bank, insurance, and dozens more
SlothMove takes care of all of it in one go.
Instead of spending hours on multiple websites and phone calls, SlothMove lets you update your address across multiple of organisations (including your HMRC records) through a single 15-minute form.
Here’s why over 75,000 people have chosen SlothMove:
Save 14+ hours of admin time: based on data from over 75,000 completed moves
- One form updates everything: DVLA, NHS, HMRC, councils, utilities, and more
- Cheaper than mail redirection: Just £30 versus up to £87 for mail forwarding
- Secure and trusted: ICO-registered, GDPR compliant, with 256-bit SSL encryption, backed by Taylor Rose MW (one of the UK’s largest conveyancing firms)
SlothMove handles the entire change address on driving licence online process for you, along with all your other essential updates. No chasing, no forgotten providers, no stress.
Option 2: Update Through HMRC Online (Personal Tax Account)
You can update your HMRC address for free through your Personal Tax Account on gov.uk. However, the process requires several steps that add time and complexity.
You’ll need to sign in with your Government Gateway ID (or create one if you don’t have it). HMRC may ask you to prove your identity using photo ID like a passport or driving licence, and you’ll need to answer security questions about your tax history.
Once you’ve verified your identity and logged in, you can update your address. HMRC typically processes the change within a few working days, though this can take longer during busy periods like January’s Self-Assessment deadline.
The catch: This only updates HMRC. You still need to separately update your driving licence, V5C, GP, dentist, council tax, utilities, bank, insurance, employer, electoral register, and 20+ other organisations. Even if each update only takes 10 minutes, you’re looking at 14+ hours of admin work spread across multiple websites, phone calls, and forms.
Option 3: Update by Phone or Post
You can also tell HMRC about your address change by phone or post, though these are the slowest methods. Call HMRC’s helpline (wait times can be long during tax season) or write to HMRC with your new address. Postal updates can
take 2-4 weeks to process.
When to Update Your HMRC Address?
The Legal Requirement:
You must tell HMRC about your address change. There’s no specific grace period, so you should update it as soon as possible after you move.
Best practice: Update your HMRC address before you move or on moving day itself. Here’s why:
1) Avoid missed correspondence – You don’t want tax letters, payment
notices, or refunds going to your old address.
2) Protect Self-Assessment deadlines – If you’re self-employed, HMRC sends
reminders about your tax return deadline (31 January). If you’ve moved
and haven’t updated your address, you might miss it.
3) Keep your tax code current – Your tax code is sent each year. An outdated
address means you might not receive it, leading to overpayment or
underpayment of tax.
4) Prevent fraud risk – Updating your address promptly ensures only you
receive your HMRC correspondence and protects you from identity theft.
How long does it take to change address with the HMRC?
If you update through your Personal Tax Account, HMRC typically processes the change within a few working days. However, processing times can be longer during peak periods, especially in January around the Self-Assessment deadline.
We recommend:
1) Starting your address changes 1-2 weeks before moving.
2) Submitting your HMRC address update at least one week before your move date.
3) Checking your Personal Tax Account within 5-10 working days to confirm your address has been updated.
4) Updating your other essential organisations (driving licence, V5C, GP, council, utilities) within the same timeframe.
Making Your Move Stress-Free
Updating your address with the HMRC in 2026 doesn’t have to be complicated. Whether you choose to update through gov.uk directly or use SlothMove to handle all your address changes in one go, the important thing is getting it done quickly to avoid fines and complications.
The SlothMove difference: While updating your HMRC address alone is free through gov.uk, you’ll still face hours of work updating everywhere else. For only £30, SlothMove bundles your essential address updates and send them off so you can relax! We cover updates like HMRC records (covering tax, National Insurance, tax credits, and Child Benefit), your driving licence, V5C, GP, dentist, council, utilities, electoral register, and more, all from one simple form
Over 75,000 people have already made their moves stress-free with SlothMove.
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