HMRC: Officials Clarify 10-Day Window for Tax Refunds to Hit Bank Accounts
Confusion around tax rebate timings prompted HMRC to clarify its official line on how long repayments actually take to reach taxpayers’ accounts.
This comes after a frustrated taxpayer took to social media on Friday, July 25, questioning why their refund, said to have been issued on July 13, had yet to arrive.
The UK tax authority responded promptly: “It normally takes 10 working days to process. We do select repayments for extra security checks. Currently, it can take up to 6 weeks to receive the refund.”
They also asked the taxpayer to check whether the refund still showed as ‘pending’ in their online account.
A day later, the taxpayer replied that the status no longer showed as pending—it was marked as paid on July 13. Still, no funds had landed in their account.
HMRC clarified again: “It can take 10 working days, which excludes Saturday and Sunday, so I’d expect it to be in your bank by Monday.”
For those chasing missing refunds, the Government’s official website offers a tool to guide users through the process of claiming back overpaid tax. It also provides a service to estimate how long you might wait for a response to any HMRC query.
There’s growing interest in this topic, as an estimated one million UK workers could be due money from HMRC based on recent analysis of tax code errors and miscalculations.
Many taxpayers remain unaware they could be entitled to a refund, especially if their employment or financial circumstances have changed in the past year.
As a reminder, if you’ve overpaid or underpaid tax by the end of the financial year, April 5. HMRC will issue either a P800 tax calculation or a simple assessment letter. These are typically sent out between June and March of the following tax year.
Worth noting: these letters are only issued if you’re employed or receiving a pension. Those registered for self-assessment will see their tax bills automatically adjusted based on any discrepancies.
In a broader change that could affect many, HMRC hiked the late payment interest rate to 8.5% from April 6, 2025.
Charlene Young, senior pensions and savings expert at AJ Bell, explained: “In her October Budget, the Chancellor gave the green light for HMRC to up the interest penalty that can be charged from the Bank of England’s base rate plus 2.5 percent to the base rate plus 4 percent, meaning it stands at 8.5 percent from April 6, 2025.
“In contrast, HMRC will continue to only pay base rate minus 1 percent on repayments owed to taxpayers, equivalent to 3.5 percent. HMRC can also give itself more time to pay compared to taxpayers.
“That’s because late interest is chargeable immediately, yet the repayment supplement only kicks in if HMRC are a year late.”
So, if your tax refund seems slow to arrive, remember: the 10-day clock only ticks on weekdays. No movement over the weekend. And in some cases, extra checks can stretch the wait even further.
For now, HMRC advises patience and to check your online tax account before raising the alarm.
