Accredited official statistics

Hydrocarbon Oils Bulletin background and references

Updated 31 October 2024

1. Overview

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) presents quarterly provisional National Statistics of receipts and quantities released for consumption for excise duty charged on fuels and oils. National Statistics are accredited official statistics. Duty is charged when motor and heating fuels and oils are produced, imported or used in the UK. These statistics include data for hydrocarbon (mineral) oils, biofuels, fuel substitutes and fuel additives.

Duty is charged at different rates. Most rates are charged per litre but a small amount are charged per kilogram. Go to Excise Duty - Hydrocarbon oils for the latest rates and allowances. Reliefs or repayments of duty are available. Go to Fuel Duty reliefs for guidance on reliefs and repayments.

The Hydrocarbon Oils Bulletin is Crown copyright. The information can be used as long as the source is explained by the user.

2. Fuels and oils

Hydrocarbon (mineral) oils

Hydrocarbon (mineral) oils are any organic compounds consisting of hydrogen and carbon. They are the main components of petroleum and natural gas. They are also used as fuels, lubricants and raw materials for the production of plastics, fibres, rubbers, solvents, explosives and industrial chemicals. 

Biofuels

Biodiesel is liquid fuel produced from biomass or waste cooking oil that can be used in diesel engines.

Bioethanol is liquid fuel containing ethanol produced from biomass which can be used like light oil.

Fuel substitutes

Fuel substitutes are any liquid (except water under certain circumstances) that is not hydrocarbon (mineral) oil, biodiesel, or bioethanol blend that is used to fuel engines, motors or other machinery, or added to motor fuel.

Fuel additives

Fuel additives are liquids added to the fuel supply of vehicles through the filler cap or other parts of the fuel system.

3. When duty is charged on fuels and oils

Oil producers

Taxpayers must account for duty on hydrocarbon (mineral) oils stored on their premises when they leave a registered warehouse for use within the UK, as they become liable for duty at this point. Go to Excise Notice 179 for guidance on the ‘requirements and obligations for warehousekeepers of motor and heating fuels in the UK’.

Biofuel and other fuel substitutes are liable for duty when they are:

• used as a fuel for any engine, motor or other machinery

• used as an additive or extender in fuel

• blended with hydrocarbon (mineral) oil

Taxpayers must register to pay duty on biofuel and other fuel substitutes if any of the following applies:

• the fuel is sent out from registered premises

• the fuel is used as motor fuel

• the decision is made that the fuel will be used as motor fuel (known as being ‘set aside’)

The rate of duty on biofuels, fuel substitutes and fuel additives is worked out using the proposed or actual use of the fuel and the type of engine. For example, if a substitute or additive is to be used as a road fuel in a diesel engine, then the rate for road use diesel will apply.

The way in which importers of hydrocarbon oils or biofuels into the UK account for and make payment of duty depends upon:

• how often they import it

• whether it’s coming from countries inside or outside the EU

• whether duty has already been paid in an EU country

Go to HMRC Fuel Duty guidance for more information on who is required to pay duty.

4. Statistical background

Data Sources

Statistics are based upon administrative data sources which go though detailed internal quality assurance before publication.

Cash receipts statistics, including payments of duty on imports through the Customs Declaration Service, are sourced from HMRC’s Customs and Excise Core Accounting System (CECAS) and Enterprise Tax Management Platform (ETMP) accounting systems. Data within these systems is based upon information submitted by taxpayers.

Quantities released for consumption data is recorded in the same month as cash receipts. The accounting period for liabilities is from the fifteenth of the month to the fourteenth of the following month. Payment is then due on the last working day of the accounting period. Quantities released for consumption statistics are calculated by applying average duty rates across separate fuel types to cash receipts statistics.

Average duty rates are calculated using net cash receipts and net quantities released for consumption data as recorded on HO10 forms. Most quantities released for consumption are recorded on HO10s. Those not recorded are assumed to be equal to the current duty rates.

Average duty rates are used as cash receipts sometimes include late payments and repayments from liabilities accrued in previous months. As these late payments and repayments may be accrued at different rates during time periods including rate changes, average duty rates limit the impact this has upon quantities released for consumption estimates.

Before March 2020, a small scaling factor was used to estimate quantities released for consumption. This was improved by removing the scaling factor to ensure a more accurate reflection of quantities released for consumption during periods of uncertainty where the scaling factor may be subject to volatility.

The bulletin may include negative receipts statistics when claims for repayments are larger than payments. Adjustments are also sometimes made to quantities released for consumption statistics because of reporting errors in previous months. It is not possible to align these to the correct month in which the error was made. Instead, they are made in the month HMRC was informed of the error, which can also cause negative quantities released for consumption and receipts statistics.

Large changes in receipts and quantities released for consumption statistics between different fuel and oil categories can also occur when the structure of duty rates has changed.

Measures of tax revenue

HMRC uses 3 main measures for tax revenue:

1. accruals (when the tax liability occurs)

2. declarations (when HMRC is notified of the liability)

3. cash receipts (when tax is paid to HMRC).

The Hydrocarbon Oils Bulletin reports tax revenue in cash receipts.

Rounding

Cash receipts statistics are rounded to the nearest million pounds. Quantities released for consumption statistics are rounded to the nearest million litres or kilograms.

Totals may be different from the total of their parts due to rounding, or smaller oils not being included in published tables that are included within the overall total. 

Any differences between statistics within the Hydrocarbon Oils Bulletin commentary document and data tables is because calculations used within the commentary document are based upon unrounded statistics.

Statistics may also show as zero within data tables where there are small negative values because of rounding.

Revisions

The latest 3 months of data are marked as ‘provisional’ within the data tables.

Statistics which have changed since the previous release are marked as ‘revised’ within the data tables. Revisions are only marked when the finalised figure has changed. As statistics are sourced from administrative data, they are subject to some adjustments, particularly during the initial months after publication.

Total cash receipts are aligned with the National Audit Office (NAO) audited ‘HMRC annual report and accounts’. This can result in adjustments to March statistics to ensure consistency between reported financial year totals. As such, March figures are treated as provisional until aligned with the annual report and accounts.                                 

Data limitations

The Hydrocarbon Oils Bulletin does not include geographical data on where liabilities occurred, as HMRC does not collect this data from taxpayers.

The quality of the Hydrocarbon Oils Bulletin statistics depends on the purpose they are used for. For understanding cash receipts and quantities released for consumption for different fuel types, these statistics are effective as they are based upon related data from registered taxpayers. But they may not be as effective for other purposes as the scope of these statistics is defined by tax law.

Total statistics for quantities released for consumption do not include ‘road fuel gases (natural gas/liquefied petroleum gas)’ as these are reported in kilograms rather than litres.

The breakdown of receipts statistics for March 1990 are estimates based on historic quantities released for consumption and duty rates, as only the total receipts figure is available.

Pre-release access to statistics

The Hydrocarbon Oils Bulletin provides no official pre-release access to the statistics. But as these statistics are sourced from administrative data, they may be used within HMRC for operational reasons before publication. HMRC maintains records of those with pre-release access to the department’s National Statistics.

Statistics at HMRC

Go to statistics at HMRC for further information on the department’s National and Official Statistics.

5. Contacts

The Hydrocarbon Oils Bulletin is produced by the Indirect Tax Receipts Monitoring team as part of the Excise duties, VAT and other tax statistics collection.

For statistical enquiries, contact:

revenuemonitoring@hmrc.gov.uk                                                                                                                                                   

HMRC 
Knowledge, Analysis and Intelligence (KAI) 
Floor 2 
Three New Bailey 
Salford 
M3 5FS                                                                         

For media enquiries see HMRC press office.  

For taxpayers with excise enquiries see the Excise Helpline.

6. Publication calendar                                                                                                                                             

The Hydrocarbon Oils Bulletin is published on the last working day of the month in January, April, July and October. It is delayed by one day when the day before the last working day is a non-working day. The bulletin is never published on a Monday.

From 25 September 2020, the bulletin has been published on GOV.UK. Go to the archived Tax and duty bulletins - UK Trade Info website, accessed via the National Archives, for versions of the bulletin since 2008.

Go to Research and statistics for future Hydrocarbon Oils Bulletin release date announcements. Announcements are published no later than 4 weeks before the release date.

7. User engagement

HMRC welcomes user engagement to improve the department’s National and Official Statistics. You can contact statistics producers on GOV.UK.

Our statistical practice is regulated by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR).

OSR sets the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics that all producers of official statistics should adhere to.

You are welcome to contact us directly with any comments about how we meet these standards by emailing revenuemonitoring@hmrc.gov.uk.

Alternatively, you can contact OSR by emailing regulation@statistics.gov.uk or via the OSR website.

We consulted users about indirect tax receipts statistics from 20 November 2015 to 5 February 2016.

There was a consultation on the reduction and consolidation of HMRC statistics publications, which ran between 8 February 2021 and 12 March 2021, this has now closed and as a result the publication dates of the Hydrocarbon Oils Bulletin have been altered to January, April, July, and October.

A consultation on changes to HMRC statistics publications was held between 24 October 2022 and 16 January 2023 and the results of this are being reviewed. No proposed changes to the Hydrocarbon Oils Bulletin have been announced.

8. National Statistics

The United Kingdom Statistics Authority (UKSA) has given these statistics National Statistics status. This means that the statistics comply with the Code of Practice for Statistics as set out within the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007.

The Hydrocarbon Oils Bulletin statistics were independently reviewed by the Office for Statistics Regulation in February/2012. They comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics and should be labelled ‘accredited official statistics’. Accredited official statistics are called National Statistics in the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007.

National Statistics status can generally be interpreted to mean that statistics:

• meet user needs

• are effectively communicated and accessible

• undergo regular quality assurance reviews

• produced professional and according to sound methods

• managed impartially in the public interest and free of political interference                                                                                                                                       

Contact UKSA for queries about National and Official Statistics.

9. Related statistics 

The HMRC tax receipts and National Insurance contributions for the UK National Statistics provide the first provisional snapshot of cash receipts statistics each month.

The HMRC Measuring tax gaps Official Statistics estimate the tax gap for all taxes and duties administered by the department. Tax gaps are the difference between tax collected and that, which in HMRC’s view, should be collected.

HMRC publish the Tax ready reckoner Official Statistics which show the estimated direct impact on HMRC tax revenues if simple changes were made to various taxes. They are intended to assist researchers and policymakers.

The Public sector finances National Statistics bulletin from ONS and HM Treasury (HMT) provides the latest available estimates for key public sector finance statistics each month.

The independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) forecast duty receipts within their economic and fiscal outlook publications.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) brings together all documents relating to the Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics (DUKES).

The closed Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) published energy price statistics.

The Department for Transport (DfT) publishes statistics on renewable fuel statistics.