Key facts
- GoFile publishes a live service status page at status.gofile.co.uk, updated every two minutes from real filing activity and HMRC's own published availability pages.
- HMRC announces planned maintenance on GOV.UK. Those windows are picked up automatically and shown on the status page; during a window, GoFile pauses VAT and Income Tax submissions and tells you when to try again.
- When HMRC is slow to confirm Corporation Tax filings, your CT600 is still accepted for processing. File as normal; the status updates once HMRC confirms it.
- An external service issue on the status page means HMRC or Companies House is impaired while GoFile itself is working normally.
- You can subscribe to incidents by Atom feed, or read the status as JSON if you build integrations.
Where to look first
status.gofile.co.uk shows, in one place, whether HMRC's Corporation Tax, VAT and Income Tax services are accepting and confirming filings, whether Companies House is answering, and whether GoFile's own app, database, background jobs and email are healthy. It is refreshed every two minutes from real filing activity, GoFile's own checks and HMRC's published availability pages, and it keeps working even if the GoFile app itself is unavailable.
How the status is worked out
GoFile does not rely on HMRC to say when something is wrong. It watches what actually happens to filings: how long HMRC takes to confirm a CT600, whether VAT and Income Tax requests are failing or timing out, and whether Companies House lookups are answering. If HMRC starts holding confirmations, the status page shows it within a few minutes, usually before HMRC updates its own pages.
HMRC's planned maintenance windows are read automatically from GOV.UK and listed under Scheduled maintenance. GoFile support can add a window that HMRC has not published.
What an HMRC service issue means for you
- Corporation Tax (CT600). Your return is lodged with HMRC and stamped with the time of submission as soon as you file, so a deadline is met at that moment. During an HMRC issue the final confirmation can take hours. GoFile keeps checking and emails you when HMRC confirms. File as normal.
- VAT and Income Tax. These services answer immediately, so if HMRC is failing you will see an error when you try to submit. Wait a few minutes and try again; nothing is lost. During planned maintenance GoFile pauses submissions and tells you when to come back.
- Companies House. Company lookups may fail temporarily. Details already saved in GoFile are unaffected.
Reading the page
The headline at the top says what, if anything, is affected, in the same words GoFile shows inside the app. Each service has a one-line explanation, a 90-day history bar and, for Corporation Tax, the share of recent filings that have received an HMRC result. Incidents have their own pages with a timeline of updates, and resolved incidents stay listed for 30 days.
Staying informed
Subscribe to the Atom feed to be told about incidents and maintenance. If you build integrations, the status API offers the same information as JSON, with an OpenAPI description.
Related articles
- Filing VAT Returns via MTD — step-by-step submission guide
- Quarterly Updates Explained — how ITSA submissions work
- How to File a CT600 — the Corporation Tax return, start to finish
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if HMRC is down?
Check status.gofile.co.uk. It shows the live state of HMRC's Corporation Tax, VAT and Income Tax services as seen from real filings, plus any planned downtime HMRC has published. HMRC's own pages are linked from the foot of the status page.
I filed a CT600 and it still says pending. Is something wrong?
Usually not. HMRC acknowledges a CT600 within seconds and normally confirms it within minutes, but during an HMRC service issue confirmations can take hours. Your return is lodged with an HMRC timestamp as soon as you submit, so a deadline is met at that point. GoFile keeps checking with HMRC and emails you when the result arrives. The status page shows the current delay and how many filings are waiting.
What happens during HMRC planned maintenance?
HMRC publishes maintenance windows on GOV.UK, typically overnight or at weekends. GoFile reads those announcements automatically. During a VAT or Income Tax window, submitting and connecting to HMRC is paused and the app tells you when service resumes; you can still view your figures. Corporation Tax filing is not paused, because CT600s are lodged with a timestamp and confirmed later.
What do the colours on the status page mean?
Green is operational. Amber marks a service issue: either an HMRC or Companies House service that is failing or slow to confirm, or a GoFile component that is degraded. Blue marks scheduled maintenance. Red is reserved for a GoFile outage. A large "External service issue" label means HMRC or Companies House is affected and GoFile itself is fine.
Can I get notified about incidents?
Yes. The status page offers an Atom feed at status.gofile.co.uk/feed.atom, which works with feed readers and many team chat tools. Developers can read the same information as JSON; see the API page.
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