Form

Tax credits: dispute recovery of an overpayment (TC846)

Use the online form if HMRC has paid you too much tax credits and you think you should not have to pay it back.

From:
HM Revenue & Customs
Published
4 April 2014
Last updated
6 April 2023 — See all updates

Documents

Tell HMRC online (sign in using Government Gateway)

https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/digital-forms/form/Tax-credits-overpayment/draft/guide

Tell HMRC by post (use this form if you’re an agent or if you cannot use the online form)

Ref: TC846

https://public-online.hmrc.gov.uk/lc/content/xfaforms/profiles/forms.html?contentRoot=repository:///Applications/BandC_A/1.0/TC846&template=TC846.xdp

Details

Tell HMRC if you’ve received too much tax credits and do not think you should have to pay it back because you met your responsibilities and they did not meet theirs.

You must be able to show that HMRC made a mistake, or gave you incorrect advice, and it was reasonable for you to think your payments were right.

Before you start

Read Tax credits: appeals and complaints before filling in the form to make sure you can dispute your tax credit overpayment.

You’ll need the following information to fill in the form:

  • why you’re disputing the overpayment
  • your National Insurance number (you can find this on your payslip, P60 or tax return)
  • your partner’s National Insurance number, if the overpayment was made on a joint claim

You should also include details of when you contacted us, and what happened if you told HMRC:

  • your personal circumstances on your award notice were wrong or incomplete
  • your payments did not match your award notice

Phone the Tax Credit Payment Helpline if you need more time to pay a Tax Credit overpayment.

Applying online

To tell HMRC online, you need a Government Gateway user ID and password. If you do not have a user ID, you can create one when you tell us.

If you use the online form, you’ll get a reference number that you can use to track the progress of your form.

Applying by post

You’ll need to fill in the form fully before you can print and post it. You cannot save a partly completed form so you should gather all your information together before you start.

If you are using an older browser, for example Internet Explorer 8, you’ll need to update it or use a different browser. Find out more about browsers.

Tax credits overpayments
How overpayments of tax credits can happen, repaying overpayments and disputes.

Tax credits: what happens if you’ve been paid too much (COP26)
This leaflet explains why overpayments happen and how to pay them back. It also tells you when you do not have to pay them back and how to dispute an overpayment.

Updates to this page

Published 4 April 2014
Last updated 6 April 2023 + show all updates

  1. The form has been updated for the 2023 to 2024 tax year.

  2. The form to tell HMRC about a tax credit overpayment by post has been updated for 2020 to 2021.

  3. The form to tell HMRC about a tax credit overpayment by post has been updated for 2019 to 2020.

  4. The form to tell HMRC about a tax credit overpayment by post has been updated for 2018 to 2019.

  5. The Welsh version of this page has been updated.

  6. Rates, allowances and duties have been updated for the tax year 2018 to 2019.

  7. New forms published for 2017 to 2018

  8. An online forms service is now available.

  9. A new version of the form is now available.

  10. The 2015 to 2016 form has been added to this page.

  11. Added translation

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