Tax · United Kingdom
Letter about money or assets abroad (HMRC 'nudge letter') — what HMRC knows and what it asks
A 'nudge letter' says HMRC has information suggesting you may have overseas income or gains that were not declared for UK tax. It is not an accusation or a formal enquiry: it asks you to review your tax affairs and either confirm they are correct or make a disclosure.
How serious: needs actionAlso called: Nudge letter, One-to-many letter, Offshore income letter, Worldwide income letter
The letter says HMRC has information suggesting you may have received overseas income or gains — foreign accounts, rental income, dividends, crypto, pensions — that may not have been declared for UK tax. HMRC gets this data automatically from other countries under exchange-of-information agreements.
It is not an accusation and not a formal enquiry. It asks you to check your tax affairs and either confirm they are correct or make a disclosure. These are also called 'one-to-many' letters because the same letter goes to many people whose data matches a pattern.
Foreign residents living in the UK receive these often, simply because their home-country accounts are reported to HMRC. Holding an account abroad is not itself the issue; the question is whether any income or gains from it should have been declared.
Who sends it
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), the UK's tax authority. These letters come from its offshore and risk teams, based on data received from foreign banks and tax authorities.
An HMRC letter referring to 'money or assets abroad', overseas income or gains, and inviting you to check whether you need to make a disclosure. It typically mentions the Worldwide Disclosure Facility and asks for a reply by a stated date. It often encloses a certificate or response form.
The deadline
No statutory deadline for the letter itself — it asks for a reply by the date printed on it. If you disclose: 'Once you have notified us of your intention to make a disclosure, you'll have 90 days to gather the information you need to fill in your disclosure.'
There is no statutory deadline for the letter itself — it asks for a reply by the date printed on it. If you decide to disclose: 'Once you have notified us of your intention to make a disclosure, you'll have 90 days to gather the information you need to fill in your disclosure.' The 90 days run from your notification to HMRC.
If you do nothing
Ignoring the letter carries no automatic penalty, but HMRC already holds the underlying overseas data. If undeclared liabilities surface later, HMRC warns: 'If you fail to make a complete or accurate disclosure or refuse to send in more information, we may apply a higher penalty than we would if you had provided the information.'
How it escalates
- 01Advisers report that HMRC follows up and escalates to a formal compliance check or enquiry into your returns.
- 02HMRC can raise discovery assessments for the tax it believes is due, with penalties calculated on the basis that the disclosure was prompted, not voluntary.
- 03If offshore non-compliance is established, penalties are higher than for voluntary disclosure and, per gov.uk, civil or criminal investigation is possible.
Common questions
Am I being accused of something?
No. The letter is not an accusation or a formal enquiry. It says HMRC holds data that may point to overseas income and asks you to check.
How does HMRC know about my foreign account?
Foreign banks and tax authorities report account data to HMRC automatically under exchange-of-information agreements.
Is there a legal deadline?
Not for the letter itself — it asks for a reply by the printed date. Once you tell HMRC you intend to disclose, you have 90 days to submit the disclosure.
What if I owe nothing?
The letter can be answered by the stated date confirming your affairs are in order. Professional advice is commonly used before signing any enclosed certificate.
Sources
Facts verified against the sources below on 28 August 2026.