Wrong HMRC reference may divert APD and fuel-duty payments

HMRC has changed its warning on two excise payment pages: using the wrong payment reference no longer merely delays allocationGOVGOV — the payment may be used to pay a different tax bill the payer owesGOV. Both the Pay Air Passenger Duty page and the Pay duty on biofuels or road fuel gas page now carry the new wordingGOV, each with a remedy: email a helpdesk to have the payment moved.

For Air Passenger Duty, payers need the 15-character reference number starting with X, found on the notice to file (occasional operators contact HMRC for one and reuse it each time). If the wrong reference is used, the payment may be delayed or applied to a different tax bill owedGOV; where it has paid the wrong bill, the payer can email APDHelpdesk@hmrc.gov.ukGOV to ask for the payment to be movedGOV.

For biofuels and road fuel gas duty, payers need the 15-character payment reference, also known as the registration number, starting with X and found on the notice to file reminder. Biofuels and other fuel substitutes registrations start with XMBF followed by 11 digits; gas for use as fuel in a road vehicle starts with XMGR followed by 11 digits. The same consequence and remedy apply: a wrong reference may divert the payment to another tax bill owedGOV, and the payer can email morc.exciseenquiries@hmrc.gov.ukGOV to ask for it to be movedGOV.

The change matters because the old wording implied the money would eventually land in the right place on its own. It will not necessarily do so nowGOV: a misreferenced payment can discharge a different liability, leaving the intended duty unpaidGOV — with the pages' standing warnings that late payment may bring a penalty, interest, or both. Anyone spotting a wrong reference should therefore check where the money actually landed and email the relevant helpdesk promptly rather than waiting for automatic reallocation.

The surrounding payment mechanics are unchanged: APD deadlines come from the notice to file (extended by 7 calendar days for Direct Debit, Faster Payments, CHAPS or Bacs; occasional operators pay within 7 days of the flight), while biofuels and road fuel gas duty is due by the 15th day of the month after each return period. Both pages keep the full menu of payment routes — online bank approval, Direct Debit, bank transfer and cheque.

Source: HMRC payment guidance — Pay Air Passenger Duty and Pay duty on biofuels or road fuel gas.