A woman holds up a mobile phone with the date 28 September in bold print

Prepare now for Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

20 August, 2026

Is your firm ready for the introduction of Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) to your agent accounts? 

The two voluntary phases for enabling MFA have now passed, with MFA now successfully switched on for over 20,000 agent accounts .

All remaining agent accounts will now have MFA enabled automatically by HMRC between 28 September 2026 and 15 October 2026. HMRC are unable to give a specific date that MFA will be switched on for agents who are part of this final group. 

In order to ensure that workflows and client service is not disrupted, firms will want to be prepared for this vital security measure by 28 September.

The switch on will happen between 8am to 9am on Mondays to Thursdays over the three week period. Agents will need to check their accounts after 9am to see if MFA has been switched on. If an MFA challenge is not presented on logging in, then the MFA will not be turned on for that account that day. 

Further guidance is available in our guide, which was jointly prepared with CIOT - Multi-Factor Authentication – how can agents prepare?