HMRC told us that VAT is a particular target for organised crime as it can involve HMRC repaying large amounts to taxpayers. HMRC described it as an ‘arms race’, with HMRC constantly changing its processes and risk assessment to prevent criminals from abusing the tax registration process, and criminals constantly finding new ways around them. HMRC felt it was effective at identifying these attempts at fraud early and adjusting to them. It said it needs to balance making the system secure with making it as quick and easy as possible for legitimate companies to register. HMRC said it had put in extra steps to verify the identification of individuals and companies, which has meant it has been able to reject a large number of VAT registrations. However, the extra steps have also meant that there had been delays in legitimate applications for VAT registration in the last year.18 17 Q 9 18 Qq 9–10 HMRC performance in 2021–22 13 2 Supporting taxpayers Customer service