Warning – VAT registration and Government Gateway fraud

Warning – VAT registration and Government Gateway fraud

What is happening?

The new scam involves scammers fraudulently linking VAT services to a Government Gateway ID they control, before the genuine business owner has the chance to set these up themselves.

The aim of the scam is to submit false VAT returns and divert repayments into their own bank accounts. 

The true business owner then attempts to link a legitimate VAT account to their Government Gateway account, and users receive an error message stating that the VAT account was already assigned to another Government Gateway account. 

This means that legitimate businesses can’t access the VAT account or submit the real returns.  

These accounts are then being used by the scammers to submit fake VAT returns, requesting refunds for small amounts to avoid detection from HMRC. The repayment from HMRC is diverted into the scammers bank account as they control the gateway. 

What to do if this happens to you.

If you discover that the VAT service has already been linked to another account, we recommend you take the following steps: 

• Call HMRC VAT Online Services on 0300 200 3701 

Follow the options given in this sequence: Option 1 – Option 2 – Option 3 

Provide HMRC with your VAT details, which include 

• VAT Registration Number 
• Registration date 
• Postcode associated with the VAT registration 

HMRC will arrange to deregister the VAT service from the fraudulent gateway, which may take up to 7 days. Once that has been done, you will be able to add VAT to your own genuine Government Gateway ID. 

What can I do to avoid becoming a victim of the scam?

After VAT registration, set up your Government Gateway ID promptly and add VAT as a service as soon as possible. 

Stay alert if you have any issues adding VAT to your account, especially if you receive any unexpected messages. 

As of 1 February 2026, HMRC require the VAT registration application number when adding the VAT service line onto the gateway in order to help combat the VAT fraud.

If you are concerned, please get in touch with us here at Kennedys Accounting and we will be pleased to assist.