How the scam works
A text or email claims HMRC has calculated a tax refund for you — typically a specific figure like £342 or £517, large enough to want, small enough to believe. The link leads to a cloned GOV.UK-style page that asks for your Government Gateway login, bank details, or passport information. HMRC scams are among the UK's most reported fraud type, with well over 100,000 reports in the past year, spiking hard around the January Self Assessment deadline.
The newer, nastier variant is the AI voice-cloned phone call: a natural-sounding recorded "HMRC officer" claims unpaid tax, a suspended National Insurance number, or imminent legal action, and asks you to press 1 to speak to a caseworker. The technology has improved to the point where these no longer sound robotic.
What the scam looks like
The rules that settle it
- HMRC never tells you about a refund by text, email or WhatsApp. Any WhatsApp message claiming to be HMRC is automatically a scam.
- HMRC never threatens arrest by phone. Threat of immediate legal action or a "suspended NI number" is the scammer's script, not HMRC's.
- Genuine refunds are claimed through your own account at gov.uk or the free HMRC app — never through a link sent to you.
How to report it (free, and it helps)
Forward scam texts to 60599 (free) and scam emails to phishing@hmrc.gov.uk, then delete. Scam calls can be reported via the form on GOV.UK. If you've entered bank details on a fake page, contact your bank immediately; if you've shared Government Gateway credentials, change the password now and watch the account.
Got one of these messages?
Don't guess. Paste it into the free Scam-Less checker and get a verdict with a plain-English explanation in seconds.
Check it now — freeCommon questions
Does HMRC ever contact people by text?
HMRC does send some service texts, but it never notifies you of a refund or penalty by text, email or WhatsApp, and never asks for bank details or personal information through a link. Refunds are claimed only through your own account on gov.uk or the HMRC app.
I got a call threatening arrest over unpaid tax. Is that real?
No. HMRC never threatens arrest or immediate legal action by phone, and recorded press-1 calls about tax are scams — increasingly made with AI-cloned voices. Hang up and report via GOV.UK.
How do I check if a refund is genuinely due?
Log in to your personal tax account at gov.uk (type the address yourself) or use the official HMRC app. If a refund is real, it appears there. You can also paste any message into the free Scam-Less checker for an instant verdict.