HMRC more than doubles voluntary-sector funding to £11m for taxpayers needing extra help

HMRC has opened bidding for a grant scheme worth more than £11 million to fund organisations that support taxpayers who struggle to deal with the tax system.

The announcement

HM Revenue and Customs has pledged more than £11 million to its Voluntary and Community Sector Grant Funding Scheme, with bids opening on 8 June 2026. The funding supports voluntary and community organisations that give specialist advice to HMRC customers who need extra help with their tax affairs, with interacting with the department's expanding digital services, or with claiming entitlements.

The allocation has been more than doubled, to £11.18 million for the three years starting April 2027, up from the £5.5 million awarded for the previous April 2024 to April 2027 round. The grants are worth £3.73 million a year and will be paid quarterly across the three years to April 2030. Applications can be submitted on GOV.UK until 3 July, and HMRC says successful organisations will be announced later this year.

Who the scheme is intended to help

The funding is aimed at organisations that can offer independent, tailored support to taxpayers who face particular barriers. HMRC lists three groups in particular: people who may struggle to understand their tax obligations, those with complex tax needs, and those who are digitally excluded from accessing HMRC's services. Successful organisations work alongside HMRC's Extra Support Team to help these customers deal with their tax affairs and access the benefits they are entitled to.

The scale of that work is already significant. Between April 2025 and April 2026, more than 43,000 customers were helped by grant-funded organisations working with the Extra Support Team to engage with HMRC in a way that suited them. The department illustrated the impact with an anonymised case study of a self-employed worker who, after falling behind on several years of returns during a period of illness and financial hardship, was helped by a volunteer adviser to file the outstanding returns and have late-filing penalties and associated interest waived.

The official position

Dan Tomlinson, Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, said the latest round builds on a commitment to customers who need the most support and helps voluntary sector partners make a real difference for people struggling with their tax affairs. Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC's Chief Customer Officer, said working with voluntary and community sector partners helps ensure customers who need extra support can access help when they need it most.

HMRC notes that funded organisations are monitored throughout the year, that payments are staged and can be withheld if grant terms are not met, and that a due diligence process applies before any money is paid.

Implications

For a department whose public profile is dominated by enforcement, this is a reminder of the other side of HMRC's remit: making it possible for people to get their tax right in the first place. Doubling the grant allocation suggests HMRC sees independent, face-to-face support as an increasingly important complement to its digital-by-default direction, particularly for taxpayers who would otherwise fall through the cracks as more services move online.

There is a compliance dimension too. The case HMRC highlights, where unfiled returns were brought up to date and penalties removed, points to the link between accessible support and voluntary compliance: customers who can get help are more likely to file and pay, and less likely to accumulate debt and penalties that are costly for everyone to resolve. For advisers and charities working with vulnerable clients, the 3 July application deadline is the immediate action point.