Survey suggests challenges remain despite improvements being made in tax administration

The Administrative Burdens Advisory Board (ABAB) has recently published the results of its annual survey completed earlier this year by 10,195 businesses and agents.

24 Sep 2026

The Administrative Burdens Advisory Board (ABAB) has recently published the results of its annual survey completed earlier this year by 10,195 businesses and agents.

One of the key topics responded to in the survey was Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax. Whilst there was a reduction in the time and cost expectations for MTD from 2025, the majority of respondents (60.1%) still expect to see no benefits from the introduction of MTD for Income Tax.

In terms of engagement with HMRC, over half (55.5%) rated their experiences with the webchat as 'poor'; this response was also given by 46% of respondents in respect of telephone services and 26.3% in respect of the HMRC app.

Technology remains a focus with 32.4% of respondents using generative AI to seek an answer to a tax query compared to 21.5% for 2025. Other areas of the ABAB survey covered topics such as HMRC correspondence and guidance.

In the foreword to the report, the Chair of the ABAB Dame Teresa Graham DBE stated that:

'The findings will continue to inform, challenge and influence decision-making, with the shared aim of making the tax system easier, quicker and simpler for small businesses and their agents.'

Internet link: ABAB