What is a government gateway account?
Answered 17 March 2026
Based on the retrieved sources, here is a comprehensive answer:
What is a Government Gateway Account?
A Government Gateway account is HMRC's online portal through which taxpayers, businesses, and agents access HMRC's digital tax services.
Key Features
Account Creation & Identity When an applicant registers, they are allocated a Government Gateway ID number (a unique alphanumeric string) and choose a password. As part of the process, HMRC asks several questions to verify the user's identity. Within HMRC's systems, each Government Gateway account is also assigned a unique UserID, to which tax identifiers (such as a PAYE Reference or Agent Code) can be associated.
Three Types of Account There are three types of Government Gateway account:
- Individual
- Organisation
- Agent
Individual and Organisation accounts can only be enrolled for a single tax number for each service.
Security Additional security in the form of 2-step verification was added to online accounts relating to individuals and businesses by HMRC in 2017. Each time a user signs in, an access code is sent to them (e.g., by text message or voice call).
What It Is Used For A Government Gateway user ID is required to access HMRC online services, including:
- Self Assessment
- Corporation Tax
- PAYE
- VAT
- Construction Industry Scheme
- Gambling Tax
- and many other tax services
Activity Logging Access to HMRC's online services via Government Gateway accounts is recorded as a series of events, including metadata about the interaction and the taxpayer's IP address.
Note: A Government Gateway account is distinct from an Agent Services Account (ASA), which is a separate type of account used by tax agents to manage client authorisations.
Citation sources
account as part of the registration process. In this process an applicant is allocated a Government Gateway ID number and chooses a password. At this stage the user has to input a name and e-mail address which is used by Government Gateway. As part of this process HMRC asks several questions to check the identity of the user. When a user creates an account on the HMRC web portal they are identified by a unique alphanumeric string that is referred to as their Government Gateway ID. Within HMRC sy
A trustee can register a trust online by completing the following steps: 1. Select the following link https://www.gov.uk/guidance/register-a-trust-as-a-trustee. Alternatively, go to www.gov.uk and search ‘Register a trust as a trustee’. 2. Read the guidance on the page. This page includes details on what information is required to register a trust. It may be useful to gather this information before continuing. 3. Select the green ‘Register now’ button to access the ‘Sign in using Government Gat
Depending on which tax services you will be using, there are different ways to register and access them online, including: using an agent services account (ASA) using a HMRC online services account directly signing into some services using an agent Government Gateway user ID Check each section to see which type of account you need to create for the tax service you want to register for.
You will need to register for a HMRC online services account if you want to use: Charities Construction Industry Scheme for agents (CIS) Corporation Tax Employment related securities for agents (ERS) Gambling Tax Machine Games Duty Notification of Vehicle Arrivals (NOVA) PAYE Self Assessment VAT VAT EU Refunds for agents VAT Mini One Stop Shop for agents (MOSS) To register for a HMRC online services account you must: Create a Government Gateway user ID to access an HMRC online services account.