Six government departments, their challenges, and how agents change the experience for citizens who need their services.
Each of these departments faces the same structural problem: citizens arrive during difficult moments — bereavement, disability, immigration, financial hardship — and encounter a system that requires them to understand which department does what, which form to fill, and which order things must happen in. The agent removes that burden. It reads the service descriptions each department publishes (identity, eligibility, journey, data sharing) and orchestrates the right services in the right order, across departmental boundaries, in a single conversation.
| Persona | MoJ | DWP | HMRC | DfE | Home Office | DVLA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sarah Okafor Bereaved spouse, 58 |
Online probate as named executor; grant of probate for £645k estate | Stop deceased's State Pension; Bereavement Support Payment | Inheritance tax before probate; survivor's tax code update | — | — | — |
| Amina Hassan New resident, 34 |
— | NI number application; UC claim blocked until NI arrives | New taxpayer registration | In-year school place for Yusuf (age 6) | BRP-to-eVisa transition; right-to-work & right-to-rent verification | — |
| Marcus Taylor Prison leaver, 29 |
Probation compliance — fortnightly reporting, licence conditions | UC claim with temporary hostel address; housing register | — | — | DBS disclosure guidance for spent convictions | Expired licence renewal; needs confirmed address |
| Priya Anand New mum, 31 |
— | UC top-up eligibility; Child Benefit claim | Tax-Free Childcare account; 30-hour code for childcare | Free school meals for Meera; school registration | — | — |
| James Whitfield Disabled appellant, 42 |
PIP tribunal appeal; SEND tribunal if EHCP refused | PIP mandatory reconsideration; ESA support group; Motability at risk | — | EHCP application for Owen (ADHD) — week 18 of 20 | — | Medical fitness notification — MS diagnosis |
| Daniel Obi Self-employed, 37 |
Civil money claim for £4,200 unpaid invoice | UC eligibility during income dips — minimum income floor | MTD compliance; £1,800 tax refund; Self Assessment | — | — | Van taxation and MOT; business vehicle VED |
| Zara Begum First-timer, 18 |
— | NI number trace (never received letter at 16) | Emergency tax code fix; first PAYE explanation | Student finance application — means-tested | First adult passport application | Provisional licence; driving test; first full licence |
The Ministry of Justice oversees the courts, tribunals, probate, and probation services. Citizens arrive at their most vulnerable — bereaved, appealing a benefits decision, recovering from prison. The complexity of the justice system often compounds their distress.
"My husband died three weeks ago. I don't know what to do."
Sarah is a part-time library assistant in Chelmsford earning £18,500 a year. Her husband David (62) died suddenly of a heart attack three weeks ago. David was the main earner (£52,000) and had recently retired. The estate includes a joint property (~£420,000), a pension (£180,000), an ISA (£45,000) and a car. David's will names Sarah as executor.
Sarah has to register the death, notify DWP to stop David's State Pension, apply for Bereavement Support Payment, contact HMRC about David's tax affairs and her changed tax code, apply for probate through HMCTS, pay inheritance tax to HMRC before probate is granted, and notify pension providers, banks, and utility companies. That is six or more departments and organisations, dozens of forms, and a minimum 12-week wait. Paper probate takes 12.3 weeks versus 4.9 online — but Sarah doesn't know this.
Sarah tells the agent: “My husband died three weeks ago. I don't know what to do.” The agent identifies all relevant services across MoJ, DWP, and HMRC. It checks David's estate details, confirms Sarah is named executor, explains probate step by step, files the online application (4.9 weeks vs 12.3), coordinates inheritance tax payment that must happen before probate, applies for Bereavement Support Payment, and updates her tax code. One conversation, every department handled.
Sources
DWP pays £268.5 billion in benefits annually to 7.3 million Universal Credit claimants. It has the highest volume of citizen interactions in government — and some of the deepest cross-departmental dependencies.
"My husband died three weeks ago. I don't know what to do."
Sarah's husband David died three weeks ago. She needs DWP to stop David's State Pension and apply for Bereavement Support Payment (£3,500 lump sum plus 18 monthly payments of £350).
Sarah must notify DWP separately to stop David's pension, research Bereavement Support Payment eligibility (different from the old Bereavement Allowance), find the BSP application form, provide marriage certificate, death certificate, and NI numbers for both — then wait for processing while managing a sudden income drop.
The agent identifies DWP bereavement services from Sarah's situation, stops David's State Pension and applies for BSP in one flow, uses death certificate data already provided for MoJ probate, and flags the income impact to check for additional support.
"My PIP was turned down and my son's EHCP is stuck."
James lives in Rotherham with his wife Claire and son Owen (8). He has relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis, diagnosed in 2019. He is a former warehouse supervisor now on ESA (support group). His PIP application for enhanced mobility was scored at 4 points (needs 8). Claire works part-time earning £12,800 a year. Owen has ADHD and is waiting for an EHCP decision.
James must request mandatory reconsideration within one month — phone line average wait is 26 minutes. If reconsideration fails, he must file a tribunal appeal through MoJ, a different system entirely. His Motability car is at risk during the entire process. He also needs to notify DVLA about his MS diagnosis (failure is a £1,000 fine and invalidates insurance). He is doing all this during an MS relapse.
The agent files mandatory reconsideration immediately, reviews the PIP assessment against descriptors, gathers medical evidence, confirms ESA support group is unaffected, explains Motability rules, and if reconsideration fails, transitions seamlessly to tribunal appeal through MoJ. Every interaction documented, every deadline flagged.
"I've just been released from prison and I need to sort everything out."
Marcus was released from HMP Leeds six weeks ago after 18 months for drug supply (non-violent). He is in approved premises in Huddersfield, reports fortnightly to a probation officer at 100%+ caseload, and has six weeks before his approved premises time runs out. He has a daughter Chloe (4) with his ex-partner. No savings, no bank account, driving licence expired.
Marcus needs to sign on for UC (temporary hostel address complicates claims), find employment (needs DBS check revealing his record), renew his driving licence (needs a confirmed address), find permanent housing before the 6-week deadline, and maintain probation compliance. The prison had one DWP Work Coach for the entire facility. Nobody coordinates across departments.
The agent accepts his temporary address for the UC claim, guides bank account opening in parallel, submits the housing register application with the 6-week deadline flagged, coordinates UC work search requirements with probation reporting, and creates a single timeline across housing, benefits, and employment.
When Sarah says “My husband died three weeks ago. I don't know what to do”, the agent identifies a life event that triggers six services across four departments. This is the defining example of why agents matter: not because any single service is hard, but because the sequencing, data sharing, and coordination across departments is impossible for a grieving citizen to manage alone.
Legal registration within 5 days. Unlocks everything else.
Official certificate posted to Sarah's address.
Notify HMRC, DWP, DVLA, Passport Office, council, electoral register in one go.
£3,500 lump sum plus 18 monthly payments of £350.
Grant of probate as named executor of David's will.
IHT400 filed. Estate £645k is below threshold — no tax due.
Each service defines its own field names for the same data. The field merger maps all variants to canonical fields — the agent asks once, fans out to all services.
Without deduplication, Sarah would answer 87 separate questions across 6 services — many asking for the same information in slightly different ways. With the field merger, she confirms 20 pieces of information, and of those, 13 are already in her wallet. She only needs to provide 7 new pieces of data.
Of the 20 canonical fields:
This is the practical meaning of service descriptions: when each department publishes what data it needs and what data it holds, the agent can deduplicate, source from existing records, and ask the citizen only for what is genuinely new.
Sources
HMRC collects £875.9 billion in revenue at 0.5p per pound. Its transformation challenge is clear: 76% of its 37 million annual calls are avoidable — 28 million unnecessary phone calls per year.
"I'm self-employed and I'm confused about my tax and I've got a client who won't pay."
Daniel is a sole-trader plumber in Birmingham, 8 years in business. Turnover £58,000, net profit ~£36,000. He keeps his books on a spreadsheet and files Self Assessment on deadline day. He overpaid £1,800 in tax last year due to a code error, has a client who owes him £4,200 for three months, and has no idea Making Tax Digital applies to him from April 2026.
Daniel faces MTD compliance he doesn't know about, a stuck tax refund (5–6 weeks at peak), a £4,200 unpaid invoice he'd need civil money claims for (MoJ), and he didn't know he could have claimed UC during his winter income dip (DWP). When he calls HMRC, he waits 13.5 minutes on average — 76% of calls are avoidable.
The agent flags the MTD deadline, recommends compatible software, chases the £1,800 refund status, walks through civil money claims for the £4,200 debt (MoJ), proactively flags UC eligibility during future income dips (DWP), and checks his van's VED status (DVLA). It also offers to pre-fill Self Assessment from digital records once MTD is set up.
"My husband died three weeks ago. I don't know what to do."
Sarah needs HMRC to calculate inheritance tax on David's £645,000 estate, settle his final tax affairs, and update her own tax code from married to single. IHT must be paid before probate is granted by MoJ — a critical cross-department dependency.
Sarah must calculate inheritance tax across property, pension, and ISA. She needs to coordinate IHT payment timing with probate (MoJ), update her own tax code, and settle David's partial-year return. Each requires a different HMRC helpline.
The agent calculates IHT using estate details already gathered for probate, identifies nil-rate band and transferable allowance, coordinates payment timing with the probate application, updates Sarah's tax code, and handles David's final return — all in one conversation.
Sources
DfE services are uniquely cross-departmental. Free school meals depend on DWP benefit data. Tax-Free Childcare runs through HMRC. EHCPs need NHS assessments. The data-sharing barriers between departments hit DfE hardest: 2.1 million children are eligible for free school meals and 638,700 have EHCPs.
"I've got a baby and a 4-year-old starting school, and I'm struggling with money."
Priya lives in Slough with her partner Dev (33). They have Arjun (9 months) and Meera (4, starting school in September). Priya is a part-time teaching assistant earning £14,200. Dev is a delivery driver earning £24,500. Combined income: £38,700. They pay £800 a month for Arjun's nursery and have never heard of Tax-Free Childcare.
Priya needs to check UC top-up eligibility (DWP), apply for Tax-Free Childcare (HMRC — saves up to £2,000 a year but she's never heard of it), check 30-hour free childcare for Arjun (DfE, requires HMRC confirmation), apply for free school meals for Meera (DfE, depends on UC status), and register Meera for school. Each entitlement has different eligibility rules across different departments. She doesn't know what she's entitled to.
Priya tells the agent: “I've got a baby and a 4-year-old starting school, and I'm struggling with money.” The agent runs eligibility checks across three departments simultaneously: UC top-up (DWP), Tax-Free Childcare (HMRC), 30-hour free childcare for Arjun (DfE), free school meals for Meera. It finds she's entitled to approximately £5,000 a year in support she's not claiming. One conversation, three departments, every entitlement surfaced proactively.
The Home Office is in the middle of its biggest digital transformation: the eVisa transition. Every physical immigration document is being replaced with a digital record. The £27.8 billion department handles immigration, passports, DBS checks, and settled status — and the cross-departmental friction is where agents add the most value.
"I've just got the right to stay in the UK. What do I need to do to get set up?"
Amina is originally from Sudan, granted the right to remain in January 2025. She lives in dispersal accommodation in Bradford with her son Yusuf (6). She has intermediate English, a pharmacy degree from the University of Khartoum, a Biometric Residence Permit migrating to eVisa in 2026, no driving licence, no UK bank account, and £49.18 a week in asylum support. She has no NI number.
Amina has the right to live and work in the UK, but the real journey is just starting. She needs an NI number (DWP — 6+ week wait), a bank account (needs proof of address and right to work), Universal Credit (requires NI number she doesn't have), her digital status set up (BRP migrating to eVisa), a GP, a school place for Yusuf, and recognition of her pharmacy degree. Each step depends on the previous one — without an NI number she can't claim UC, without a bank account she can't receive it. A dependency chain across three departments.
Amina tells the agent: “I've just got the right to stay in the UK. What do I need to do to get set up?” The agent maps the dependency chain: NI number application first (DWP), bank account guidance in parallel, UC application queued for when NI arrives, eVisa transition explained with her BRP details, school place application for Yusuf (DfE), GP registration by postcode. The agent handles the sequencing — what can happen now, what's blocked, what to expect.
Sources
DVLA handles some of the most routine government transactions — licence renewals, vehicle tax, MOT reminders. But for citizens with complex circumstances (medical conditions, criminal records, foreign licences), these simple transactions become fraught with anxiety and administrative burden.
DVLA appears in nearly every persona's journey. Marcus Taylor needs his expired licence renewed but can't until he has a confirmed address. James Whitfield must disclose his MS diagnosis or face a £1,000 fine. Daniel Obi's van VED needs renewing in the correct business class. Tomasz Nowak must exchange his Polish driving licence under current exchange rules.
Each of these is a separate DVLA interaction, disconnected from the citizen's wider situation. Marcus can't renew without an address (DWP housing). James fears losing his licence during his PIP appeal (DWP/MoJ). Daniel doesn't know if his van is in the right VED class while also wrestling with MTD (HMRC). Tomasz needs to coordinate his licence exchange with his eVisa setup (Home Office). None of these are hard in isolation — but they are hard when piled on top of everything else.
The agent handles DVLA interactions as part of the broader life event, not as standalone transactions. Marcus's licence renewal is queued behind his housing application. James's medical disclosure is explained calmly alongside his PIP appeal. Daniel's VED renewal happens in the same conversation as his HMRC setup. The agent makes routine transactions invisible by weaving them into the citizen's larger journey.