You’re here because you have a tax problem or you want to clarify one of the many confusing elements of our tax system. And you hope you’ll be able to find free tax advice online.
Our website is focused on helping you secure tax advice worth paying for, but we know this isn’t what everyone wants. So on this page we have summarised 4 ways you can get answers or tax advice for free:
1 – Contact HMRC direct
If you have something to hide or that you fear you may have done wrong, you may choose to skip this option.
Otherwise you may find what you’re looking for if you either:
- Check out HMRC’s website http://www.hmrc.gov.uk ; or
- Contact one of HMRC’s telephone helplines. You can find the most common ones by following the ‘Contact us’ link at the top of the home page of HMRC’s website.
Please note that although HMRC staff may try to be helpful they are very busy and have other priorities. The staff who answer the phones are rarely experts in all areas of tax so may not be able to provide you with definitive advice. And of course you may find them very defensive if your problem is a result of errors or poor advice provided by HMRC.
HMRC’s website has loads of very useful information and will often let you know what you can expect from them. Do note though that HMRC’s interpretation of the law is not always correct and they will rarely help you find ways to keep your tax bills to a legal minimum.
But, even if HMRC’s tax advice is not always in your favour, at least it’s free!
2 – Tax Charities
You may be entitled to get free tax advice from one of these highly rated and well established tax charities:
i
The TaxAid website contains loads of free tax advice especially to help those on low incomes. The charity also runs a helpline and provides free, confidential advice about tax matters to help those on low incomes.
Tax Help for Older People is a charity service providing free, independent and expert help and advice for older people on lower incomes who cannot afford to pay for professional tax advice. With over 420 volunteers and a national call centre, they can help you, wherever you are in the UK.
3 – Ask your question in an online forum
If you are a member of an online networking group or are part of a club or association, other members may be willing to help you.
Do be aware though that the answers you get will often be from enthusiastic amateurs. They could be out of date. And, in any event, the approach or solution that worked for one person may not be right for you and your situation.
4 – Use Google to get an answer online
This may be how you found our website.
The harder you try to find answers online the more confused you may become as what you find can be out of date or written in hard to follow jargon.
Our tax system changes every year – sometimes more often. So do beware that the popular pages you find may no longer be correct.
Also bear in mind that there is a limit as to the level of knowledge you can expect to find shared freely on the web. Good quality professional advice rarely comes free.
As with online forums (see above) you should treat the generic advice you find online with caution.
Tax Advice Network
Whilst we do share some free tax information and insights on our website, our main objective is to make it really easy to find a specialist tax consultant.
If you need tax advice worth paying for please return to the home page and you’ll quickly be able to reach someone with the expertise you need.
Please note that the UK tax system is very complex. You should not expect even tax specialists to know all the answers you need off the top of their head.
Please do not expect to get any tax advice for free from our tax advisers. It costs nothing to speak with them initially as they are generally happy to have a short informal chat to explore the scope of your issue. They will then provide an estimate of their fees or, in many cases, quote a fixed fee for specific work or to provide you with tax advice worth paying for.