Your future starts here
At HMRC, our apprenticeships give you real experience, recognised qualifications, and the chance to earn while you learn. Whether you’re leaving school, changing direction, or looking to enhance your skills, this is your opportunity to be part of something that matters, with a career you’ll be proud of.
What will you make possible?
From technology, policy, finance, to project management, – every day, we make things possible for millions – and our apprentices are no exception.
Apprenticeships at HMRC, a launchpad for your career
Show video transcript
- At HMRC, apprenticeships open doors to more than you might expect. From technology to policy, finance to project management. You'll have a chance to make an impact that matters. Apprentices. What do you make possible?
- [Michael, Policy Apprentice, HMRC] I co-ordinate policy decisions that impact businesses across the UK.
- [Jessica, Project Management Apprentice, HMRC] I manage projects to help our customers be compliant with their taxes.
- [Mo, Chartered Manager Apprentice, HMRC] I turn policy ideas into practical delivery.
- [Rich, Data Analyst Apprentice, HMRC] I turn data into insights and drive smarter decisions and better ways of working.
- [Alan, Facilities Management Apprentice, HMRC] I help make our building safe, comfortable, and enjoyable to work in.
- [Declan, Government Economic Service Apprentice, HMRC] I do economic forecasting that helps feed into government budgets.
- What's your best piece of advice for future apprentices?
- [Abdi, Business Analyst Apprentice, HMRC] I would say go for it because it's one of the best decisions I've ever made.
- [Taibat, Operational Delivery Apprentice, HMRC] There's really a lot to learn. So my advice is go for it.
- [Lucie, Operational Delivery Apprentice, HMRC] Be curious, don't be afraid to ask any questions and be willing to learn. It will really take you far.
- [Rich] Everything may seem new at first, but the more you get involved, the more your confidence grows.
- [Marc, Data Analyst Apprentice, HMRC] Be proactive and engage with your fellow apprentices.
- At HMRC we make things possible for millions. What will you make possible?
- [Text on screen: People. Purpose. Potential.]
Why choose an apprenticeship?
Apprenticeships are a great way to earn while you learn, gaining real-world experience and qualifications that matter. Whether you’re starting out or looking to take your career further, we offer opportunities from Level 3 (A-level equivalent) right up to Level 7 (master’s degree equivalent).
With structured learning, dedicated support, and a clear career pathway, an apprenticeship with HMRC is more than a qualification – it’s a chance to make a real difference.
What we offer
- Level 3: A-level equivalent, providing strong foundations with practical skills and knowledge for entry-level roles.
- Level 4-5: Develop specialist expertise and leadership skills to progress in your profession. Level 4 apprenticeships are the equivalent of Higher National Certificate or first year at university. Level 5 apprenticeships are the equivalent of a Higher National Diploma or foundation degree.
“I’ll be honest, I thought I’d just be doing the boring jobs no one else wanted. But that’s not how it works here. From day one, I’ve been doing real work that matters, work that affects real people. HMRC is one of the largest employers in the UK, so the opportunities are endless, and it really feels like you’re doing a job with purpose.”
Abdirazak, Level 4 Business Analyst Apprentice
- Level 6: Bachelor’s degree equivalent, giving you the opportunity to achieve a degree while working on meaningful projects that impact millions.
- Level 7: Gain a Master’s-level qualification and become an expert in your field.
Meet our apprentices
As an apprentice at HMRC, you’ll work on real projects that impact millions of people across the UK. Hear from some of our team to discover more about the work that they do.
What makes HMRC stand out for apprenticeships?
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- [Text on screen: Apprenticeships with HM Revenue and Customs]
- [Text on screen: What makes HMRC stand out for apprenticeships?]
- [Abdirazak, Business Analyst Apprentice, HMRC] For me, it was the varied opportunities to progress through an apprenticeship and become a subject matter expert. Also, the support and network opportunities here are absolutely amazing.
- [Lucie, Operational Delivery Apprentice, HMRC] At HMRC, you won't just be earning a nationally recognised qualification, you'll also be helping to deliver vital public service to millions of people. During your apprenticeship, you'll have great support from the Central Apprenticeship Service, your line manager, your skills coach and a fantastic network of HMRC apprentices.
- [Jessica, Project Manager Degree Apprentice, HMRC] It helps to open doors to new opportunities and grades within HMRC. I actually managed to get my promotion just before I finished my second year, and I definitely feel the assignments I wrote as part of my apprenticeship helped me with my application process.
- [Declan, Government Economic Service Degree Apprentice, HMRC] There's a real opportunity to gain a recognised qualification from a HMRC apprenticeship, whether that's level 3, level 4 or in my case a level 6 degree apprenticeship, which is HMRC funded, which means I have no student debt. I think the other thing that's great is the work that we do here has impact. So as an apprentice everything I do is meaningful and I can see where that leads to.
- [Text on screen: Explore apprenticeships at HMRC on the Civil Service Careers site] Ready to start your journey? Explore apprenticeships at HMRC.
- [Text on screen: People. Purpose. Potential.]
What makes a great HMRC apprentice?
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- [Text on screen: Apprenticeships with HM Revenue and Customs]
- [Text on screen: What makes a great HMRC apprentice?]
- [Michael, Policy Apprentice, HMRC] I think a great HMRC apprentice is someone who's able to adapt to change, as things can be so fast paced and changing constantly. In my role, I've been through change in government, various budgets and policy changes too, and also whilst trying to balance my apprenticeship work on the side. I think being able to adapt and to kind of like embrace those areas as well is probably the makings of a great apprentice.
- [Alan, Facilities Manager Apprentice, HMRC] Someone who's willing to network can really benefit from an apprenticeship at HMRC. For example, as a facilities management apprentice, I learned a lot from networking with people from the construction industry and other areas that really helped to develop my skills whilst on the job.
- [Jessica, Project Management Degree Apprentice, HMRC] Someone that strives for continuous development and loves to learn. You definitely get the opportunity to meet different people across the department. When you're doing your assignments that have the expertise and skills and knowledge that can help you with your modules, and it gives you the confidence to ask those questions.
- [Rich, Data Analyst Apprentice, HMRC] A great HMRC apprentice is someone who really wants to progress in their career. You don't have to be perfect, you just have to turn up, do your best and keep improving.
- [Text on screen: Apply for an HMRC apprenticeship on Civil Service Jobs] Think you’ve got what it takes? Apply for an HMRC apprenticeship today.
- [Text on screen: People. Purpose. Potential.]
Apprenticeships on offer at HMRC
Each year, we recruit for a wide range of apprenticeships across different business areas. Discover some of the exciting opportunities we offer below.
The Finance Foundation Scheme is offered at Level 3 and Level 4 at AO grade. The Finance Graduate Scheme is offered at Level 7 and at HO grade.
On both schemes, you will carry out work placements across a range of Finance teams, which will give you a unique experience of how finance works within HMRC, while also studying for your qualification.
The Level 4 Policy Apprenticeship is a learning programme that equips those new to policy with the behaviours, skills and knowledge required to be a policy professional.
Watch our video below to learn more about Joseph’s experience as a Policy Apprentice at HMRC.
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- [Text on screen: Joseph, Senior Strategy Advisor, Surprise in your opportunities]
- [Joseph, Senior Strategy Advisor] I'm Joseph, the Senior Strategy Advisor based in our Stratford Regional Centre. I joined HMRC straight out of sixth form in 2019 at the age of 18, a couple of days before my 19th birthday. Starting as a policy apprentice, I delved into VAT policy, and I was both surprised and proud to gain a promotion after just one year in the role. I was given the opportunity to lead on some interesting and high-profile pieces of work, mainly around the Brexit transitional period, and I also contributed to the Chancellor's policy request on energy saving materials, something I never thought I would get the opportunity to do as an apprentice. After completing my apprenticeship scheme in 2022, I was lucky enough to secure another promotion, shaping our organisations strategy as a Senior Strategy Advisor. Outside of my day-to-day role is where my passion really lies. I spearhead initiatives like supporting the Young Asian Woman and Young Black Man Projects, which help tackle unemployment in the areas and also encourage people like me to join HMRC. All this hard work has led to incredible recognition, in which I was named HMRC Apprentice Ambassador of the Year and clinched The Apprentice of the Year award at the Multicultural Apprenticeship Awards 2023. Choosing an apprenticeship scheme and joining HMRC straight out of sixth form was one of the best decisions I ever made, and I can't wait to see what other diverse opportunities the future holds for me within HMRC.
- [Text on screen: People. Purpose. Potential.]
The Level 4 Project Manager Apprenticeship is aimed at those involved in all levels of project management, enabling them to work effectively and efficiently to ensure their organisation operates successfully.
The Level 6 Project Management Degree Apprenticeship is designed to support you in gaining valuable skills and knowledge in Project Delivery Profession and offers great prospects for colleagues progressing in their Project Delivery journey.
Watch our video below to learn more about Josh and Emilia’s experience of a Project Delivery Apprenticeship at HMRC.
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- [Text on screen: HMRC logo. Josh and Amelia Talk Project Delivery Apprenticeships at HMRC. People. Purpose. Potential.]
- [Josh, Apprentice at HMRC] Hi, I’m Josh.
- [Amelia, Apprentice at HMRC] and I’m Amelia.
- [Josh] and we’re here today to answer some questions about project delivery apprenticeships with HMRC.
- [Text on screen: Why did you apply for a Project Delivery Apprenticeship?]
- [Josh] So what made you apply for a project delivery apprenticeship and did you ever consider other options like university?
- [Amelia] Yes, I definitely considered university. In fact, I planned to go there before applying for the apprenticeship scheme. So after completing my A-levels, I decided that I wanted a break from studying. I found them quite intense, so I deferred the uni offers that I'd had and got a job in a customer service role where I got lots of work experience and valuable insights and I liked earning money. So I thought, how can I do that whilst getting a qualification? And that's where I stumbled across apprenticeships. So I applied for a variety of different ones, if I'm honest, because I had no idea what I wanted to do. I felt a bit overwhelmed at the time, but I came across project management and project delivery and I thought it really suited my skill set. I thought it was quite a transferable skill, and I liked the idea of being able to do different professions and experience different professions, but also deliver different things. And I think that's what really engaged me, is that the role wouldn't be the same day to day. How about you?
- [Josh] Yeah, my story is actually somewhat similar. So, when I left school, I actually studied carpentry for a year. I thought about becoming a carpenter and I kind of had a period where I wasn't too sure what I wanted to do with myself, but I just landed in a customer service environment, really, you know, doing a few office jobs in a customer service type setting. And eventually I realised that wasn't what I wanted to do long term. I also heard about how great of a place the Civil Service was to work. So I just had having a look on Civil Service Jobs, when I saw the advert for the apprenticeship to do the project management scheme, so I decided to apply for that and went through the application process. And here I am, you know.
- [Amelia] Amazing! I think the Civil Service offers a great and competitive pay when you look at different apprenticeship schemes. I think that was one of the reasons I really applied for it.
- [Josh] Yeah, absolutely, I think it's great that you, you get the full wage for the job that you're doing while also being given 20% of your time to study. It's so much better than having to go through student finance and take on lots of debt to actually be getting paid to do a full job and get to study something at the same time.
- [Text on screen: What kinds of things did you get up to during your apprenticeship?]
- [Amelia] What kind of stuff did you get up to during your apprenticeship?
- [Josh] So when I started my apprenticeship, I was actually on the Making Tax digital programme. While I was working on that programme, I was doing the project support role, which meant that I was doing a lot of the work to support the project manager. So, you know, managing the risks and issues, dealing with the project plans, a bit of finance work, a bit of everything really. So it's quite a varied role and I was really getting exposed to all of the various different strands of project management. And at the same time as that, I was also doing my apprenticeship work, which involved, you know, doing a portfolio of evidence. So that was basically looking at the work that I'd done and then mapping that into essays and things, you know, to just give an example-based portfolio to demonstrate my own skills. I was also going through the APM PMQ, which is one of the core certifications that we do, and that's something that's industry standard as well. So it's also recognised outside of HMRC. And the thing that I really liked about it was that because I was very new to project work, it gave me a lot of the foundational knowledge that would help me in the future to actually deal with some of those kinds of tasks on projects. So there was a lot of information around, say, risk management and you know, how do you properly manage your risk and how do you consider the different stakeholders needs within that risk? And there were a lot of things that I just hadn't been exposed to in my day-to-day work. So that qualification helped me understand that I then subsequently had to actually apply to future roles. So yeah, it was quite a varied experience really. What about yourself?
- [Amelia] Yeah, my experience was exactly the same. So 20% of the time to do all of the study side of things. So I also did the Association of Project Management’s Project Management Qualification, which is the APM PMQ and I got a lot of time to kind of prepare for that and a lot of support with the kind of mock questions and mock essays. It’s a great qualification to have because it is recognised in multiple industries in public and private sector. And it's also with the Association of Project Management, which is the chartered profession for project management. So you can also get a student membership and go along and attend their events too, which I definitely took advantage of. Work wise, I got to do a lot of different types of projects, which was really interesting. So I started off doing some kind of HR based projects, which is like looking at kind of our corporate values and looking at different development programmes for managers. And I then moved into the EU Exit space and then I've worked on operational change projects. So transformation, so looking at how we're structured, what kind of capabilities we want to build, and my most recent one is a cross government policy programme, which I've really enjoyed. So yeah, there's a lot of different types of projects that you can get involved in and you meet lots of different professions along the way.
- [Text on screen: What’s it really like working for HMRC? Is there anything that surprised you?]
- [Josh] What's it really like working for HMRC and was there anything that surprised you about it?
- [Amelia] Ermm, I’m not going to lie, when I found out that I was going to be placed in HMRC, I was like, Oh, I don't know. I don't know how I feel about this. Tax didn't really interest me that much. I didn't know that much about it, I found it quite a scary topic. And yeah, I think my biggest surprise was coming in and seeing the different job roles that are available, the different professions that are here as well, the type of like varied experiences that you get. So I think that was the, the biggest part of this surprised me when I joined.
- [Josh] Yeah, I'd really echo a lot of what you said there. And I think for me, one of the things that really surprised me is how flexible HMRC is. So we actually get flexi time, which means that you can start a little bit later on a certain day and maybe finish earlier on another day. And you know, you can just build the schedule around your life a little bit sometimes. We also give volunteering opportunities so you can take up to five days each year, paid volunteering time, at an organisation of your own choice, right? So I think that's really great because it shows HMRC commitment to giving people flexibility to build things around their own lives.
- [Text on screen: People. Purpose. Potential. HMRC logo]
Our Customer Service Apprenticeships teach high quality professional customer service and how to escalate complex or technical requests, complaints and queries. The modules also cover working collaboratively with other departments and colleagues to share their expert knowledge.
Watch our video below to learn more about Chanice’s journey as a Customer Service Apprentice.
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- [Text on screen: It’s developed my skills and my confidence has really grown too – Chanice, Customer Service Officer]
- [Chanice, Customer Service Officer] I entered the world of Estates through a Customer Service Apprenticeship which gave me the opportunity to earn whilst I learn. But on top of that it developed my skills, and my confidence has really grown too. I've been able to get stuck into some real hands-on pieces of work and trusted to deliver small projects. I even led an Estates Customer Service drop-in surgery which allowed me to network with other colleagues to understand their needs and feedback any issues to the rest of my team. My 18 month apprenticeship is coming to an end and I'm proud to say that I've already secured a full-time contract in the team. I'm excited to see what the future holds and I'm really happy with the career path that I have chosen.
- [Text on screen: Discover skills for life. Apply for an HMRC Apprenticeship today.]
The Counter Fraud Investigator Level 4 Apprenticeship is the standard entry point for any new recruits to Fraud Investigation Service (FIS) Criminal at EO level. The programme is taught via classroom session, then scenario-based training and progressing into FIS Criminal to perform those duties in the ‘real’ environment with a support network.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the eligibility criteria to start an apprenticeship at HMRC?
To start an apprenticeship with us, you’ll need to:
- Be 16 or over.
- Have the right to live and work in the UK, with valid ID (passport or birth certificate) and a National Insurance number.
- Have lived in the UK or EEA for at least 3 years prior to starting.
- Have a visa which covers for the entire duration of the apprenticeship.
- Be out of full-time education (or finishing this academic year).
- Not be enrolled in another apprenticeship or receiving DfE funding for another course.
- Be able to work at least 30 hours per week (or follow an extended apprenticeship if part-time).
- Not already hold similar/equivalent qualifications or extensive experience in the apprenticeship occupational field.
You can apply for an apprenticeship while you’re still at school but you’ll need to be 16 or over by the end of the summer holidays to start the apprenticeship.
Are apprenticeships only for young people?
No! Apprenticeships are for anyone aged 16 and over, with no upper age limit. You just need to have completed Year 11 and be 16 years or older when you start.
Do apprentices earn a basic salary?
Not at HMRC. Our apprentices are paid the same as others at the same grade. For example, an Administrative Officer (AO) grade apprentice would start on a salary of £28,000 plus.
Will an apprenticeship lead to a full-time job?
In most cases at HMRC, yes! Apprentices usually move into a permanent role after passing probation. Or you’re welcome to apply for other roles across the Civil Service if you see an opportunity you would like to go for.
How can apprenticeships help me build my career?
Apprenticeships are open to everyone and offer fantastic opportunities to progress your career – from A-level to Masters Degree. They’re a great alternative to university: you’ll earn while you learn, gain valuable experience, and avoid student debt.
What kind of roles can I do through an apprenticeship?
Apprenticeships cover a huge range of careers! At HMRC, we offer over 30 apprenticeships across 16 standard professions – from Digital and Finance to Project Management. All of our apprenticeship opportunities are available to apply for on Civil Service Jobs. You can find our live opportunities here Civil Service Jobs HMRC Apprenticeships
What kind of work will I do as an apprentice?
Apprenticeships are full-time paid jobs with real responsibilities. At HMRC, you’ll work in a role that makes a difference to the people we serve.
Start your HMRC journey today by looking at the vacancies we have available.
Discover more about what we do, our business areas and life at HMRC.
Ask our employees questions for an insight into what it’s like to work at HMRC.