Hmrc apologises for error affecting 1.7 million pensioners
hmrc has apologised after a tax charge calculation error affected an estimated 1.7 million state pensioners who complete self-assessment forms. The mistake came from online systems that automatically inserted state pension income based on 52 weeks at the new state pension rate.
In most cases, HMRC said the difference in tax owed was around £5. State pensioners who submitted returns without spotting the issue and correcting it themselves could have paid slightly more tax than needed.
Steve Webb on HMRC
Steve Webb, a partner at pension consultants LCP, said: “The way the state pension is taxed is a regular source of confusion, but it is worrying that HMRC seem to have been getting it wrong themselves.” His criticism focused on the calculation itself, not on the tax return process.
The error arose because the Department for Work and Pensions supplied data in a form that did not match HMRC’s legal requirement for self-reporting tax. HMRC guidance said state pensioners should submit 51 weeks at the new pension rate and one week at the old rate, not a full 52 weeks at the new rate.
April 2026 tax year
The new tax year 2026-27 began in April 2026, after the previous tax year 25-26 ended that same month. HMRC also said people who need to submit a self-assessment tax return online will have to do so by January 31, 2027.
That leaves affected pensioners with a practical check to make before filing: compare the state pension figures already inserted in the online form with HMRC guidance, because the error could still feed into a return unless the amount is corrected manually.
HMRC self-assessment
HMRC said the issue was limited in cash terms even though it reached a large group. An HMRC spokesman said: “We apologise to those affected by this calculation error, although the impact is small with the difference in tax owed being around £5 in most cases.”
The fact that the mistake spread across an estimated 1.7 million state pensioners while usually changing the bill by only a small amount is what makes the error unusual: it was broad in reach, but modest for most individual returns.
