Contact HMRC for Death of Family Member

[gerson]

Hi CAG,

 

Hope someone can help me

My wife sadly passed away recently and I have been trying to contact HMRC for the last week

Online website just sends me in circles

I cannot use 'Report Once' since we lived outside UK for many years

Phone lines to HMRC are either busy or they cut-off (Sorry we are too busy, Goodbye --> and that was the bereavement one)

So any suggestions gratefully received

Note: No problems with bank/insurance companies or even Easyjet/Ryanair

Gerson

[AndyOrch]

Please accept our sincere condolences gerson.

Have you tried the following ?

Verify Identity on Government Gateway from abroad - Community Forum - GOV.UK

COMMUNITY.HMRC.GOV.UK

Andy

 

 

.

[gerson]

Thanks Andyorch,

We did have a Gateway ID but it expired as indicated

Trying the 'create new account' only works if you only have a UK address using option 2

Option 1 is not viable due to circumstances

Gerson 

[honeybee13]

Hi. I'm very sorry about your wife and hope you're bearing up.

Are you in the UK now or still abroad?

HB

[gerson]

Hi HB,

Still working/living in the sunshine of Malta

Been trying to contact DWP or HMRC for over a week now

G

[honeybee13]

I can see your problem and I don't know the answer to a phone line you can't contact. Otherwise I was going to suggest the CAB.

Are there any forums for expats that you could try for help?

I suppose your query can't be sent as a letter?

HB

[gerson]

Hi HB,

I have sent the DWP a message via their 'contact us' webform - let's see if they respond

I have the local Public Notary to attend next week, maybe they know how best to proceed regarding contacting other countries governmental departments (e.g. pension)

Will keep thread updated as information may help others later as well

G

 

[honeybee13]

I'm not sure if it's the tax people or the pension and benefits people you want to tell.

HB

[Ethel Street]

If it's about state pension or other benefits it's DWP you need to tell.   HMRC are not involved except to the extent any of the benefits received are taxable. All the information about how much state pension/benfits are paid get given to HMRC by the DWP.  If your late wife was paying tax though then that is a matter for HMRC.

Is this the contact info for HMRC you have been using? Bereavement and deceased estate - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)  It does include a postal address but I'd avoid that if possible. I've heard (may not be literally true) that HMRC have everything internally focussed on online/phone contact and they have months worth of unopened post sitting in warehouses.

Did you find this page? Was it any help?  What to do after someone dies: Report the death without a Tell Us Once reference number - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

 

 

 

[gerson]

Hi Ethel,

Yes I tried going through all the possible links to get to either HMRC or DWP - post is not something I trust internationally unless via secured messenger (pigeon )

Those web pages do end sending you in circles if the death is overseas AND non-resident for UK purposes

I am sure it will get sorted soon, even if I have to visit the UK to do it

G

[honeybee13]

Could you tell us what you're trying to talk to the UK government department/s about please?

HB

[gerson]

My wife would have been due the state pension within the next 4 years - if the age does not change again

As a UK citizen I thought it was necessary to contact GOV.UK to ensure that her passport/ID/pension, etc could be correctly 'closed'

She also held various accounts in the UK - these I have managed to contact and arrange for their closure

[honeybee13]

So you need the DWP. This link has phone details for them.

What to do after someone dies: Report the death without a Tell Us Once reference number - GOV.UK

WWW.GOV.UK

---

The steps you must take when someone dies - register a death, report a death with Tell Us Once, coroners, funerals and death abroad.

Then you need the DWP. You might want to try the DWP International Pension Centre who are very helpful. This link also has a landline number for them.

HB

[gerson]

Thanks HB

I have sent them a message

G

[Ethel Street]

You mention passports and ID. When I was sorting out my mother's affairs after she died I didn't use the 'Tell us once' service (didn't know it existed) and simply wrote to all the separate government departments she had dealings with sending a photcopy of her death certificate and her passport etc. That was all that was needed. You can ask for the passport to be returned to you if you want to keep it, although they may only send to a UK address. Even with DWP that's all I did, it was just HMRC that was a bit more convoluted. 

If someone dies in the UK then DWP and the NHS get notified automatically by the Registrar of Deaths but presumably that doesn't happen if the person died outside the UK.

I hope you get it sorted without too much hassle. Bureaucratic hurdles are the last thing you need at a sad time like this.

[gerson]

Hi All,

So DWP got back to me and basically since she was under the state pension age (66) all records are with HMRC

So I now need to contact them

HMRC – 03002003500

Wish me luck

G

[honeybee13]

Good luck, fingers crossed here.

HB

[gerson]

Update:

Phoning HMRC is a waste of time and effort - keeps disconnecting and queues are at least 30 mins minimal

Managed to get an adviser via the 'Chat' function and the adviser was very helpful and registered the details needed by HMRC (P1000 being sent out)

I still need to contact the other departments (passport, benefits, etc.) so he gave me a link to 'Tell Us Once' and got an e-mail address from that - 'tellusonce.communications@dwp.gov.uk'

I cannot use the online service since I do not have a UK reference number for the death

So have sent details to them as well, so will wait to see what reply I get

G  

[Ethel Street]

According to this article HMRC's cunning plan to avoid long waits to get through to them by phone is that they are going to close down the phonelines!

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/hmrc-to-close-phone-lines-over-summer-permanently/ar-BB1k9jw2

 

[honeybee13]

That's awful, Ethel, how are people meant to get help?

HB

[Ethel Street]

They have form for this HB. A few years ago there were lots of complaints about phone waiting times and the Parliament committee reviewing them told them they needed to dramatically reduce the number of callers waiting more than 20 minutes. HMRC were proud that a year later they had achieved this - by changing their phone system so that after 20 minutes callers just got cut off!

Ultimately though this is all the result of years of government cuts to public services and a government obsession since 2010 with everything being "digital" irrespective of whether that is actually more efficient or whether people would in fact rather talk to a human being. HMRC have been forced to shed staff, or redirect them away from helping people, because of reduced funding. Real people on telephone helplines are expensive, chatbots are cheap.

I appreciate none of this directly helps the OP @gerson  but the background might be useful for others in the future.

[gerson]

Hi All,

Got feedback from DWP - I need to contact the International Pension Service(IPS)

International Pension Service on 0044 191 218 7777 (open 8am – 6pm GMT Monday – Friday). https://www.gov.uk/international-pension-centre

Will let you know how it goes

G

[honeybee13]

I did mention that in post #13   I hope they can help.

HB

[gerson]

Update

Got the paperwork request from IPS in the post - now just need to send back certified copies of everything

All flight, hotel and holiday bookings have been cancelled and monies refunded --> excluding BA

BA only refunded the taxes/fees but not the flight costs - purchased as non-refundable booking

Even after sending them the death certificate they would not budge!!

Will let you know how I manage with IPS - looks fairly straight forward

G

[Nicky Boy]

1 hour ago, gerson said:

All flight, hotel and holiday bookings have been cancelled and monies refunded --> excluding BA

BA only refunded the taxes/fees but not the flight costs - purchased as non-refundable booking

You didn't have travel insurance?