What's covered in this guide?:
HMRC Inbox
The HMRC inbox in Workforce Payroll (UK) provides a single place to view and manage notifications sent by HMRC through the Data Provisioning Service (DPS).
The feature allows you to opt in to receive automatic HMRC notices, fetch updates manually and mark notices as read or actioned. Notifications can also be filtered by payroll integration (company file) and notification type.
Key features
Opt in/out of manual updates: Opt into the HMRC inbox or opt out later if you no longer want to receive updates
Manual updates: Manually fetch updates from HMRC whenever you need them
View notifications: Once opted in, notifications from HMRC appear in the list with the newest messages first
Update notification status: Individual notices can be marked as read/unread or actioned/unactioned. Actioning a notice indicates that you have taken any required payroll action (e.g., updating employee details)
Filter by company file or data type: If your organisation uses multiple payroll integrations, you can filter notifications by payroll integration and notification type (such as tax code notices, National Insurance number updates, etc.)
Automatic nightly sync: Workforce will automatically fetch updates from HMRC at midnight without any intervention. A manual sync can be initiated at any time.
Automatic employee matching: When new notifications arrive, Workforce will automatically match them to the relevant employee where possible (using NINO, Pay ID, and Name).
One-click updates: For matched notifications, use Apply changes to employee to update tax details (e.g., tax codes, National Insurance numbers, student loans) in one step.
Bulk apply: Select multiple matched notifications and use Apply changes to update several employees at once.
Automatic status updates: After changes are applied (single or bulk), the notification status updates automatically.
What notifications does HMRC provide?
The HMRC inbox will retrieve various information relating to employees, most of which can impact how they are paid.
P6 & P6(B): Notice to an employer of a change of employee's pay and previous pay and tax
P9: Notice to an employer of a change in employee's tax code
SL1: Notice to start a student loan deduction
SL2: Notice to stop a student loan deduction
NVREP: If sending a National Insurance Number verification request (via the "RTI"), the responses will appear in the HMRC inbox
NOT: If an FPS is sent with the incorrect NINO, HMRC will send a response
AR: Annual Reminders
Generic HMRC messages
Before you opt in
Your Government Gateway log in (user ID and password) must be entered in your company file/s at Payroll > Payroll Settings > Company Set Up:
The HMRC inbox can be accessed at Payroll > RTI> HMRC Inbox:
If your organisation has more than one UK payroll integration, choose the Payroll Integration from the drop‑down to select the company file whose inbox you want to view.
Opting in
To opt in:
Navigate to Payroll > HMRC Inbox and ensure the correct company file is selected
Click Opt in to HMRC inbox
An initial sync of your inbox will run automatically. While the sync is in progress, the page shows a blue information banner indicating that updates are being fetched.
Empty state after opting in
After opting in, there may be no notifications. This is expected as the sync has only just began. The page will display an empty state with a message that the inbox is being initialised.
Sync errors
If the sync fails, an expandable warning appears. The warning lists the data type(s) that failed (for example, tax codes or National Insurance) and provides the error returned by HMRC. You can collapse or expand this warning.
If errors persist, try running a manual sync or contact Workforce support.
Manage Notifications
Once the initial sync completes successfully, the inbox page will show a list of notifications from HMRC. New notices appear at the top.
For each notification from HMRC, you have various options:
1. Mark notices as read or unread
Read: when you open or review a notice, mark it as read to indicate you have seen it.
Unread: mark a notice unread if you want to revisit it later; this also clears any actioned flag on that notice.
2. Mark notices as actioned or unactioned
Some notices, such as changes to tax codes, require you to action these on behalf of staff. Use Action to indicate that you have acted on the notice. If you mark a notice unactioned, it will remain highlighted for follow‑up.
3. Filter notifications
Use the filters above the notification list to narrow the view:
Payroll integration (company file) – choose the company file for which you want to view notices.
Notification type (data type) – filter by specific types of notifications (e.g., tax codes, National Insurance number verifications). Selecting All shows every type.
These filters help you focus on relevant messages when managing multiple payrolls or different types of notices.
4. Fetch new updates manually
Although the system synchronises your HMRC inbox each night, you can manually fetch updates at any time:
On the HMRC inbox page, click Fetch updates or Sync.
Workforce will poll HMRC for any new updates
A success banner will indicate that the job has started. After a short period, refresh the page to see the new notifications.
The nightly sync ensures you receive updates even if you don’t run a manual fetch.
5. Apply changes to a single employee
When a notification is matched to an employee, you’ll see Apply changes to employee in the row or detail panel.
To apply changes:
Open Payroll > RTI > HMRC Inbox
(Optional) Filter by Payroll integration or Notification type
Open a matched notification
Click Apply changes to employee
Confirm if prompted
Workforce updates the employee’s HMRC-related fields (e.g., Tax code, NINO, Student loan, and more).
The notification status updates automatically once applied.
6. Bulk apply changes to multiple employees
Use bulk apply when you have several matched notifications to process.
To bulk apply:
Open Payroll > RTI > HMRC Inbox
(Optional) Filter by Notification type (e.g., Tax code)
Select the checkboxes for the matched notifications you want to apply
Click Apply changes
Review and confirm
Workforce applies the relevant updates to each matched employee and updates notification statuses automatically when processing completes.
Opting out
If you no longer want to receive HMRC inbox notifications for a payroll integration:
Visit Payroll > HMRC Inbox, select the appropriate payroll integration and click Opt out.
The notification configuration will be updated to opted out, and the nightly sync will stop fetching messages for that company file.
To resume receiving notices later, simply opt back in following the steps above.
Email and browser notifications
When the feature is enabled, Workforce will send the organisation admin and payroll officer an email notification whenever new HMRC messages are available.
You can then use the HMRC inbox to view the full details, mark them as read/actioned and handle any required payroll updates. Notifications are delivered automatically after each nightly sync and whenever you perform a manual fetch.
Troubleshooting (matching & bulk apply)
I don’t see “Apply changes to employee” on a notice
I don’t see “Apply changes to employee” on a notice
This button appears when Workforce can match the notice to an employee. If it’s missing, check that the employee’s NINO, Pay ID, and Name are correctly recorded in your payroll system and try again.
Bulk apply skipped some items
Bulk apply skipped some items
Bulk apply only processes matched notifications. Any unmatched notices remain in the list so you can fix identifiers and re-run the bulk apply later.