If you created a Government Gateway account when you registered for Self Assessment, VAT, or any other HMRC service, your Government Gateway user ID will have been sent to you by email or post at that time. It is a combination of up to 12 numbers, for example, 123123123123.
How to create an HMRC Government Gateway account
Creating and setting up your government gateway account might seem mundane, but ensuring that it is done in the right way will allow you to manage all of your taxes and their associated details as efficiently as possible. This creates head space and reduces unnecessary stress, which meets two of the primary objectives that we constantly strive for as accountants for ecommerce and online businesses.
We have split this guide into two sections – Creating your government gateway account, which should only be completed once (per business) and adding taxes to your government gateway account, which will need to be done a number of times depending on how many taxes that your business is registered for.
Quick Tips
- If you have multiple businesses, create a separate government gateway account for each business so that each businesses details are held in one place
- Add and activate taxes to your government gateway account as soon as you have registered for them
- You do not need to add taxes that you are not registered for
Instructions on how to create government gateway account
- Go to HMRC’s login page.
- Click the GREEN sign in button.
- Click “Create sign in details”
- Enter your email address where asked.
- You will now be emailed a confirmation code. Use this code to confirm your email address.
- You will now be issued with a User ID for your government gateway account.
RECOMMENDED: Print this page to PDF and file it somewhere safe. The user ID is a digital string so not memorable. Losing this ID can create a lot of work in the future (not to mention if you lose it moments before a deadline you may receive a late payment penalty).
IMPORTANT: As the User ID is a digit string it is sometimes confused for your UTR or tax ID. If you are registering for a tax (such as self assessment) please not that you have not yet registered, you have only created your government gateway account. You will still need to complete another step to register with HMRC.
Once you have followed the above steps you will now have created your government gateway account.
Adding taxes to your government gateway account
Now that you have setup your government gateway account, you should need to add each tax that your business has registered for to the account.
The taxes you can add include:
- Corporation Tax
- PAYE for Employers
- VAT
- VAT EC Sales List
To add a service you will need to do the following:
- From the business tax summary page, click “get online access to a tax, duty or scheme”
- Select the tax that you want to add
- Click the GREEN continue button
- Each tax will require specific information relating to that tax (UTR for Corp Tax, VAT certificate and last return filed for VAT, PAYE numbers for PAYE) so ensure that you have any associated information to hand before proceeding.
- After you have added the tax HMRC will then post an activation code to your registered office address.
- Once the code arrives, input this into the account and the tax will (finally) be added onto the account. Please note that you might have to wait 24 hours for the system to update and for it to actually show.
What next?
Now that you have created your government gateway account, you might also be wondering how to pay your VAT bill to HMRC, how to view your VAT certificate online or, since you’re on an accounting website, you might even be asking what are the benefits of being a limited company vs a sole trader? Find out more by clicking one of the links to read about each topic.
What happens if you forgot your Government Gateway ID?
If you still do not have your Government Gateway user ID or password. You will need to create a new Government Gateway account. You can use the same email address for this as before.
Where can I find my Government Gateway user ID?
If you created a Government Gateway account when you registered for Self Assessment, VAT, or any other HMRC service, your Government Gateway user ID will have been sent to you by email or post at that time.Our Complete Package – the perfect way to form a company
It is a combination of up to 12 numbers, for example, 123123123123. If you have forgotten your sign-in details, there are a few ways that you can find your Government Gateway User ID.
1. Search your emails
First, try searching your email inbox and folders using the words ‘Government Gateway user ID’. If this does not produce the required results, there are two other options.
2. Use HMRC’s ‘Problems signing in’ webpage
You can use HMRC’s ‘Problems signing in’ webpage to recover your Government Gateway user ID. You can also reset your password if you have forgotten that as well.
3. Call an HMRC Helpline
You can call an HMRC helpline to recover your user ID. The number you need to call will depend on which service you use with the Government Gateway account you’re trying to access.
Self Assessment Helpline
From the UK: 0300 200 3600
From Abroad: +44 161 930 8445
PAYE for Employers Helpline
From the UK: 0300 200 3200
From Abroad: +44 151 268 0558
VAT Helpline
From the UK: 0300 200 3701
From Abroad: +44 292 050 1261
Corporation Tax Helpline
From the UK: 0300 200 3600
From Abroad: ++44 161 930 8445
Charities Helpline
From the UK: 0300 123 1073
Construction Industry Scheme Helpline
From the UK: 0300 200 3210
From Abroad: +44 161 930 8445
Pension Schemes Helpline
From the UK: 0300 123 1079
From Abroad: +44 (0)300 123 1079
Other taxes
If you require your Government Gateway user ID for any other taxes, you can search the list of HMRC contacts to find the relevant helpline number.
When you call HMRC, you will need to verify your identity. To do this, the agent may ask for your personal Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR), National Insurance Number, date of birth, company UTR, your organisation’s employer PAYE reference, or your VAT Registration Number.
Forgotten your Government Gateway password?
If you know your user ID but have forgotten your password, you can reset your Government Gateway account password. You will need to provide your Government Gateway user ID and the email address you used to create the account.
Depending on which service the account is used for, you will also need to provide certain information to confirm your identity, including:
- Name and address
- Date of birth
- Personal Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR)
- National Insurance Number
- Most recent P60
- Valid UK passport
- Employer’s PAYE reference
- Accounts Office Reference
- VAT Registration Number
- Company UTR
When you have supplied the required information, HMRC will send you an email with a link to reset your password. The link expires after 30 minutes.
Locked out of your Government Gateway account?
If you enter the wrong Government Gateway user ID or password more than 10 times, you will be locked out of your account. If this happens, you will need to wait 2 hours before you can make further attempts to sign in.
After that time, your account will be unlocked and you can try again. Unfortunately, HMRC advisors are unable to unlock your account.