How to get authorised to act as a tax agent on behalf of your clients

We use some essential cookies to make this website work. We’d like to set additional cookies to understand how you use GOV.UK, remember your settings and improve government services. We also use cookies set by other sites to help us deliver content from their services. You have accepted additional cookies. You can change your cookie settings at any time. You have rejected additional cookies. You can change your cookie settings at any time. Find out the different ways you can get client authorisation including the digital handshake, Online Agent Authorisation service, paper forms and through your client's business tax account. The 'Find out the different ways to get client authorisation' section has been updated to remove 'Online Tax Registration Service' as a way to get client authorisation. Country-by-country online system has been added to the section 'Find out the different ways to get client authorisation'. The guidance has been updated to explain there are different authorisation methods for Income Record Viewer and to contact HMRC. The Making Tax Digital for Income Tax entry in the ‘Find out the different ways to get client authorisation’ section has been updated. Information has been added about giving an authorisation link to a digitally excluded client, and how to get limited authorisation from a client. Information about getting authorisation when using the Multinational Top-up Tax (MTT) or Domestic Top-up Tax (DTT) service has been added. Information on what to do if your client is digitally excluded and how to get authorised has been updated. The entries for 'Making Tax Digital for VAT' and 'VAT' have been updated to 'VAT (previously Making Tax Digital VAT)' and 'VAT (Legacy)'. The table has been updated to confirm the ways a tax agent can apply for authorisation to transact on behalf of a client for VAT. Information on form FB12 has been removed because you now only need to use form 64-8 to authorise an agent. Once you’ve registered as a tax agent , you must then get authorisation from your client so that you can transact for them. You should not use your client’s HMRC sign in details or access their online tax account. If your client is digitally excluded, give them the authorisation request link and a number to contact HMRC . Your client will be passed through to the Extra Support Team, who will talk them through the process over the phone. Depending on which tax services you will be using, there are different ways to get authorisation from your clients, including: When you (the agent) use the digital handshake for the Income Record Viewer online service, it only authorises you to view income data in the online service. It does not authorise you to speak to HMRC on the client’s behalf. For that, a form 64-8 or Online Agent Authorisation is still needed. Follow these steps to help you get authorised. Use the table to find out the different ways you can get authorised for the tax service you need. Follow the instructions after the table on how to get authorised. If you’re using the Stamp Taxes service, you do not need to get authorisation from your client to submit a return using the online service . Find out how to use the digital handshake to get client authorisation . Find out how to use Online Agent Authorisation to get client authorisation . You can ask your client to authorise you through their own business tax account. They will need your agent Government Gateway Identifier to do so. You can find this by completing the following steps. Sign into your HMRC online services for agents account . Select ‘Authorise client’. Find your identifier on the next screen under the title ‘Agent Identifier’. If you need to get authorised using an online service, online forms or paper forms, you can do this by using the: Contents Related content Is this page useful? Maybe Yes this page is useful No this page is not useful Thank you for your feedback Report a problem with this page Help us improve GOV.UK Do not include perso