AWS Secures Major UK Government Contract to Migrate HMRC from Fujitsu Data Centers

AWS Wins Near £500 Million Contract to Exit HMRC from Fujitsu Data Centers

March 26, 2026

In a significant shift for UK public sector IT, Amazon Web Services has been selected to lead the critical migration of HM Revenue & Customs away from its legacy Fujitsu data center infrastructure. The move underscores a broader governmental trend of reducing reliance on the embattled Japanese technology firm following the Post Office Horizon scandal.

The UK tax authority confirmed the award of a seven-year contract, valued at approximately £472.8 million including VAT, to AWS. The agreement, set to run from April 2026 to April 2033 with a potential three-year extension, tasks the cloud giant with assisting HMRC to exit its three managed Fujitsu data centers and decommission any remaining on-premises infrastructure. According to an official award notice published on March 23, AWS was the sole bidder for the contract, which was submitted by its UK branch.

This contract represents a pivotal step in HMRC's long-delayed cloud transition. The department has historically been a major AWS customer, having spent over £367 million with the provider to date according to UK government procurement data. The new deal includes core migration services but also offers optional work on business transformation, new cloud service design, technical debt reduction, and application modernization, highlighting the strategic depth of the partnership.

The procurement follows a complex backdrop. Despite Fujitsu's stated suspension from bidding on new UK government work, HMRC was compelled to sign a £220 million extension with the company in June 2025 to maintain operations for a "limited time and strict terms." A previous attempt to exit the data centers, contracted to IBM with a target date of June 2022, was unsuccessful. The latest award to AWS aligns with the cloud provider's expanding UK footprint, which includes recent filings for a new London data center and a tape storage facility near Bristol, supplementing its existing 'London' cloud region launched in 2016.

For the UK government, this migration is as much about technological modernization as it is about supplier diversification. The exit from Fujitsu-operated facilities marks a decisive move to distance a key department from a vendor embroiled in major public controversy. For AWS, the high-value, multi-year contract solidifies its position as a preferred strategic cloud partner for the UK state, potentially setting a precedent for other major departments contemplating similar exits.

Source: datacenterdynamics