In the era of fake news and AI, it’s often hard to know what headlines are accurate and which are providing false disinformation or fake news.

This type of disinformation is often designed as ‘clickbait’ and to cause undue alarm and fear.

Recently, we’ve seen an increasing amount of fake tax news circulating online, and in this blog, I’ll try to dispel the myths, rumours, and fake news that I’ve seen recently online.

Fact-checking charity Full Fact has traced a number of social posts recently on TikTok and has traced them back to one account. Full Fact has checked out many of these posts giving fake tax and financial news and has reported back on their findings.

Enhanced customs monitoring

It’s been reported that the UK government was going to introduce a new system called enhanced customs monitoring.  It was stated that this system would flag if UK residents leave the country more than three times in a 12-month period, so their declared income, employment status and tax residency can be checked.

FALSE! HMRC has confirmed that the information is false and that no such system exists.

Purchases over £1,000 will be automatically reported to HMRC

There was a rumour circulating that from 1 January 2026, purchases made by individuals over £1,000 would be automatically reported to HMRC. It was reported that this measure was designed to crack down on money laundering, benefit fraud and undeclared income.

FALSE! HMRC has confirmed that the information is false and that no plans are in place.

Bank cash withdrawals

Content online has been circulated saying that people have to give HMRC advance notice if they are withdrawing cash of £3,000 from their bank and provide evidence of how it will be spent.

FALSE! While your bank may require some advance notice, proof of ID and further information for large cash withdrawals, HMRC confirmed there is no requirement to notify them of bank cash withdrawals.

UK pension age

Rumours are often circulated about the change in the pension age. Whilst this may be something that does get announced at some point, it traditionally has a long notice period, and the age increases generally by around a year. However, some recent reports have claimed that the Labour government is set to raise the state pension age to 74.

FALSE!  There have been no announcements by the government that the state pension age will be increased to 74. More than a decade ago, there was an announcement and legislation to state that the pension age would increase to 68 by 2046.

Cash withdrawals in Spain

In Spain, you must give 24 hours’ advance notification to the tax agency if you want to withdraw more than €3,000 in cash. Failing to do this may result in fines up to €150,000.

FALSE! The Spanish Ministry of Finance confirmed this is not true. There is no requirement to give advanced notice of cash withdrawals. However, Spanish banks must report withdrawals over €3,000 to the Spanish tax agency. Some banks may require advance warning from customers for large withdrawals to ensure they have enough cash.

 Transfers between bank accounts

From 1 October 2025 any bank transfers over £800 between individuals will be blocked for 24 hours as part of new verification measures set up by banks and HMRC.

FALSE! Banks can already freeze transactions for further verification, but HMRC confirmed these particular claims aren’t true.

Summary

Quite what the motive of such social media posts remains unclear, but whether they just trying to monetise people viewing and sharing, simply wind people up, or this is a deliberate drip, drip, drip of misinformation to make people upset and angry, it remains the fact that many people do get taken in by these posts. Some of these posts have been viewed millions of times.

What all of the above confirms is that you should never believe everything you see on social media. For areas such as tax, finance and accounting, always check anything you find online with regulated accountants such as Barnes Roffe.

Anyone wanting information on rules around UK taxation should go to the relevant HMRC pages on GOV.UK or seek advice from a tax professional. Our tax and accountancy teams at Barnes Roffe keep on top of changing legislation in areas of tax and financial law and compliance. Contact us if you require help and advice.

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