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New look for HMRC's online services

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7th May 2014
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HMRC's Online services have been given a makeover ahead of their migration to the GOV.UK website. 

The changes, introduced following April's system upgrade, are part of a long-term migration to the government's new information hub. 

As with the previous version, the online facilities will allow agents to submit tax returns, view information on clients, apply for agent authorisation and so on. Further online agent facilities are planned under the tax department’s emerging digital strategy.

The changes won’t affect how the HMRC's services operate, nor will the server location change for the time being. But the new look and feel will make HMRC Online fit more with the cross-government branding devised for the GOV.UK website, according to HMRC's tax agent blog.

Other areas of HMRC’s website are continuing their migration to GOV.UK, including guidance on statutory pay and the high income child benefit charge (HICBC). Content for tax credits, child benefit, PAYE and VAT will also be making the move to GOV.UK.

The big challenge facing the tax department is how to handle the 80,000 web pages contained in its extensive library of technical manuals. The Employment Income Manual has been chosen as a test case for the transition. With more than 4.8m weekly page views, its complex structure of 3,000 pages contains all the elements needed to test user requirements.

A pilot version of the new should be available “in coming months”, HMRC said.

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By Charlie Carne
15th May 2014 14:35

Agents' view on HMRC site

I'm not at all concerned whether I go to hmrc.gov.uk or gov.uk, nor in the aesthetics of the web design. My over-riding need is for HMRC to provide agents with the same information that they currently provide the taxpayer. Whilst agents can see SA and CT payments online, we are unable to view VAT or PAYE payments, but this information is available to taxpayers.

My clients have no interest in logging in (even if they remember their login details, which most don't), because that is what they pay me for! I know that all of the fancy new features that will be launched sometime in the next few years will give agents so much more functionality but, until then, how hard can it be for HMRC to offer agents sight of what is already visible on their site to our clients? VAT & PAYE payments etc are in the "customer-facing" part of their site already, so why don't they let agents see it?

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