Overview
His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC), the UK’s tax authority, processes millions of tax-related documents submitted by citizens facing significant life events. Behind every tax form submitted to a government agency is a citizen navigating a critical life moment—whether it’s recovering work-related expenses, authorizing a representative, or requesting a tax repayment. Traditionally, this document-heavy process was manual, error-prone, and slow, resulting in delayed financial support and growing pressure on HMRC staff.
To overcome these challenges and improve the citizen experience, HMRC partnered with Hyperscience to implement an intelligent automation solution. The result? Document processing times have dropped from up to 45 days to just 1 day in many cases.
Challenge
HMRC receives thousands of handwritten and paper-based tax forms daily—often from digitally averse or vulnerable citizens. Among the most common forms:
- 64-8: Authorizes tax agents to act on a taxpayer’s behalf—delays can block issue resolution.
- R40: Claims tax refunds—often used by retirees or lower-income individuals who rely on timely payouts.
- MATCF: Requests transfer of tax credits—usually tied to financial hardship.
- CT61: Reports tax on interest—delays can lead to compliance penalties.
These forms were manually reviewed and processed, taking over an hour per document in some cases. This led to:
- Processing times stretching to 45 days or more
- Growing backlogs and delayed citizen payouts
- Rising contact center volumes (estimated to consume up to 1.7 million staff hours annually)
- High operational costs and overburdened staff
- Citizen dissatisfaction due to delays and errors
Solution
To modernize its document processing, HMRC implemented Hyperscience’s intelligent automation platform in a secure, on-premises environment that meets UK government standards.
Key solution elements included:
- AI-Powered Data Extraction: Hyperscience uses machine learning models trained specifically on HMRC’s forms to extract structured, high-quality data from handwritten documents.
- Human-in-the-Loop Validation: Only low-confidence fields are flagged for human review, dramatically reducing manual workload while maintaining high accuracy.
- System Integration: Seamless integration with existing infrastructure (e.g., Restore Digital for scanning and NICE for logic processing) created an end-to-end, automated workflow.
- Speed and Scalability: Form processing times dropped from over an hour to under one minute—without compromising on compliance or security.
Benefits and Results
HMRC has realized transformative outcomes since deploying Hyperscience:
| Metric | Before Hyperscience | After Hyperscience |
|---|---|---|
| Processing Time | Up to 45 days | 1 day or less |
| Manual Work | Over 1 hour per document | Under 1 minute per document |
| Citizen Experience | Delayed, error-prone | Fast, reliable, accurate |
| Accuracy Rate | Inconsistent | 99% |
| Employee Impact | Overwhelmed by manual tasks | 300+ staff redeployed to higher-value work |
By reducing processing times and improving data accuracy, HMRC has dramatically enhanced the citizen experience. Financial support now reaches people faster, and internal teams are free to focus on more strategic work. The automation has also reduced pressure on call centers, as fewer citizens need to chase updates on delayed forms.
Conclusion
HMRC’s partnership with Hyperscience has redefined what’s possible in public sector service delivery. By automating the processing of critical, handwritten tax forms, HMRC has shifted from a slow, manual system to a fast, intelligent, and citizen-first approach. With turnaround times reduced from 45 days to just 1, and over 300 employees reassigned to more valuable work, HMRC is delivering better services more efficiently—proving that AI and automation can make a meaningful difference in people’s lives.