Tax distress + crisis signposting
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If you're in financial distress, in arrears with HMRC, or struggling with the mental-health impact of money worries, none of it has to be navigated alone. This page signposts the UK services + charities that exist for exactly these situations. Most are free, none charge fees, and most are confidential.
TaxKiln publishes editorial guidance under “Guidance, not advice”, the resources below are signposts to specialist services who can give you personalised advice. Phone numbers + URLs listed here are taken from each organisation's published material; we hold no commercial relationship with any organisation listed.
Immediate crisis
If you're in immediate crisis or thinking about harming yourself: 999 (life-threatening) OR Samaritans 116 123 (24/7 confidential listening, free).
Owe HMRC money you can't pay right now
HMRC's Time to Pay (TTP) service can spread a tax bill across instalments, not a loan, not interest-bearing on agreed plans (within reason), available BEFORE the due date OR for arrears. Contact HMRC directly the moment you know you can't pay; ignoring the bill is worse than ringing.
HMRC Time to Pay helpline (Business Payment Support Service)
Free call. Have your UTR + financial position ready. Open BEFORE the deadline if you can, preventive arrangements are easier than recovery.
HMRC online Time to Pay setup (Self Assessment)
Online TTP for SA debts under £30,000 owed within 60 days of the deadline. Faster than calling for straightforward cases.
HMRC Debt Management
If HMRC has already issued debt collection notices or seized assets. Ring this number BEFORE bailiff action; HMRC will normally pause collection while in genuine TTP negotiation.
Time to Pay arrangements are made under HMRC's discretionary collection powers (Taxes Management Act 1970 + Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005). Standard TTP terms vary by circumstance; HMRC publishes no fixed maximum repayment period but practical norms are 6–12 months for individuals and 12–24 months for businesses on larger debts.
Drowning in business or personal debt beyond just tax
If tax debt is part of a wider financial crisis (rent + utility arrears, supplier debts, credit card debt, personal loans), specialist debt charities provide free, regulated debt advice. None of these charge fees; if anyone asks you to pay for debt advice, they aren't on this list.
StepChange Debt Charity
UK's largest free debt advice charity. Online debt advice tool at stepchange.org/debt-info. Specialist business debt team available.
Citizens Advice
In-person + online + phone advice on debt, benefits, employment, housing. Local Citizens Advice offices offer face-to-face appointments. Specialist self-employed advice available.
National Debtline
Run by Money Advice Trust. Free debt advice for individuals. Online webchat + downloadable budget templates.
Business Debtline
Specifically for self-employed people + small business owners. Free advice on business debts including HMRC arrears, supplier debts, commercial leases. Run by Money Advice Trust.
Financial stress affecting your mental health
Money worries are a recognised driver of depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. If financial stress is affecting how you sleep, eat, or feel about the future, please reach out. None of the lines below judge you or require you to have a 'serious enough' problem to call.
Samaritans
Confidential listening service. No judgment, no agenda, no advice unless you ask. Email jo@samaritans.org for non-phone contact.
Mind Infoline
Information + signposting for mental health concerns. Can help you find local mental health services + understand what NHS support is available.
Mental Health & Money Advice Service
Specifically for people whose mental health + money problems are connected. Run by Mental Health UK + Money Advice Trust. Online resources + email advice + signposting to specialist support.
NHS 111
NHS mental health crisis line. If you're in acute crisis or thinking about harming yourself, this is the right call. 999 if there's an immediate risk to life.
Mental health crisis lines do not collect tax-affairs information and are bound by their own confidentiality policies. Nothing you say to a Samaritans volunteer or Mind helpline can be relayed to HMRC.
Sole trader or Ltd Co director in business hardship
If your trading business is in difficulty, professional bodies + trade associations offer hardship support, free advice, and sometimes grant funding. These resources are membership-organisation-based but most accept enquiries from non-members at signposting level.
IPSE (Association of Independent Professionals + the Self-Employed)
Professional body for self-employed contractors + freelancers. Members get free legal + tax helpline access. Non-members can join the free-tier community + access basic resources. Has lobbied for self-employed hardship support during economic crises.
Federation of Small Businesses (FSB)
Trade body for small businesses + sole traders. Members get free legal helpline + business advice. Non-members can access public resources + free 30-minute legal consultation in some circumstances.
Lighthouse Construction Industry Charity
Specifically for construction workers + self-employed builders + tradespeople in financial or emotional crisis. Grant funding available for genuine hardship. Free + confidential.
Hospitality Action
For hospitality workers + small business owners in the hospitality sector. Free advice + grant funding for hardship.
Bereavement + tax obligations of someone who's died
Losing someone is hard enough without HMRC paperwork. Some practical signposting: contact HMRC's Bereavement helpline within reason, they can pause routine demands, advise on the deceased's final tax return + outstanding obligations. Don't ignore HMRC letters that arrive for the deceased; respond once you're able.
HMRC Bereavement helpline
Handles tax affairs of the deceased, final SA return, Inheritance Tax, terminated employment, refund where due.
GOV.UK Tell Us Once service
Single notification to most government departments after a death, DWP, HMRC, DVLA, Passport Office, local council. Saves repeating the same information to each.
Cruse Bereavement Support
Free emotional support for bereaved people. No financial agenda; complementary to the practical signposting above.
Personal representative obligations for the deceased's tax affairs are set out in the Taxes Management Act 1970 + Inheritance Tax Act 1984. HMRC normally accepts reasonable delays during bereavement; document the circumstances when filing late returns for a deceased estate.
Editorial scope
TaxKiln is editorial, guidance, not advice. We don't offer personalised tax advice, debt counselling, or mental health support. The resources signposted above are independent organisations + helplines who DO offer personalised support, regulated by their own professional bodies. We take no commercial fees from any organisation listed; placement on this page reflects editorial judgment of what's most useful for UK self-employed + Ltd Co audiences in distress.