Research and analysis

Datalab announcements

Updated 8 April 2026

1. HMRC Research Future Strategy

HMRC published its HMRC Future Research Strategy report on 7 August 2025. The report, funded by Administrative Data Research (ADR) UK made recommendations on how HMRC should improve access to its data for research purposes, improve the quality of this data, and engage better with external researchers. It contained a commitment by HMRC to retain Datalab as a facility for external researchers to access HMRC data for more complex research focused on tax. You can read ADR UK’s news blog on the report.

If HMRC is successful in its ambition of improving the availability of its data for external research, HMRC expects to face increased demand for expert support for such research. HMRC needs to ensure that this increased demand is met efficiently and sustainably, balancing the needs of both researchers and HMRC.

2. Datalab modernisation programme

In 2025, HMRC undertook a programme of work to support the long-term sustainability and modernisation of Datalab. This programme considered both the contractual arrangements that underpin access to HMRC data and the end-to-end Datalab process through which research projects are delivered.

As part of this work, HMRC undertook a consultation and review of Datalab contracts, with the objective of ensuring that they provide clear and robust expectations for HMRC and Datalab users. The contracts that researchers and their sponsoring institutions sign with HMRC in order to access HMRC data in Datalab are a critical enabler of HMRC and researchers working well together, ensuring that both sides meet the legal conditions for access to the data and understand their respective responsibilities. In addition, the contracts set expectations and enable both researchers and HMRC to prioritise and plan the work they will be doing together.

The contract review took into account the other improvements to researchers’ access to HMRC data recommended in the HMRC Future Research Strategy report. It also considered how well the current contracts introduced in January 2024 have served their purpose, drawing on views expressed by institutions and researchers ahead of their introduction, and continuing feedback from users since then.

Alongside the contract review, Datalab also ran a series of workshops with HMRC colleagues and Datalab researchers to review the existing end-to-end Datalab process. The workshops focused on understanding how the process was operating in practice, what was working well, and where improvements were needed to support clearer expectations and more consistent delivery. Feedback from this engagement informed the design of a revised Datalab process, intended to improve clarity, consistency, and sustainability for both researchers and HMRC.

Following the conclusion of the consultation, a revised Datalab process will be effective from 1 April 2026. HMRC will also implement the revised contracts. Further communications have been sent to existing Datalab researchers and their institutions. The About the HMRC Datalab page has been updated with guidance on the new application process and updated acceptance criteria.

3. Data foundations projects

At present, HMRC Datalab projects must be based on clearly-defined research questions with planned outputs suitable for publication. We are currently unable to accept proposals that are solely focused on data discovery or exploratory analysis.

We recognise that there is an interest in these data foundations projects and will be exploring their potential feasibility over the coming months. However, this work is at an early stage and we cannot guarantee that exploratory projects will become available through the Datalab.