MYSTERY SHOPPING THREAD XII - ** New people please read posts 1 & 2 **

St00zer

Hi Timmne,

Glad to hear from you. Apparently you are the tax expert?

I appreciate the following :

What expenses can I claim against my income?

Claiming expenses other than the direct costs incurred in the job (meals etc) can be a bit of a minefield, and requires a bit of educated guestimating sometimes! with MSing, the usual, more obvious costs are:

• Paper & printer ink OR a cost per page (usually 6p for most people)
• Postage
• Files, dividers, folders etc
• Mileage costs (anything up to 40p per mile is acceptable)

But what if someone travelled 10 miles on a bus that cost them £1? Would they be able to claim 40p * 10 miles?

Or what if someone paid a flat £30 a month Bus passes but travelled say 500 miles in that month at 40p that would mean they can claim back £200.

I am trying to be absolutely clear and was hoping someone could help.

TractorGirl327

Timmne wrote: »

You're joking aren't you? I don't get out of bed for less than 10 per day and I've stopped logging on to the sites now, they all ring me with the specific rule that the job pays more than £10 and they explain how to do every shop, line by line, every time they ring.

Well, they don't even call me to do the job anymore, they just do it for me, and pay a premium fee, money for old rope really!!!

TractorGirl327

St00zer wrote: »

Hi Timmne,

Glad to hear from you. Apparently you are the tax expert?

I appreciate the following :

What expenses can I claim against my income?

Claiming expenses other than the direct costs incurred in the job (meals etc) can be a bit of a minefield, and requires a bit of educated guestimating sometimes! with MSing, the usual, more obvious costs are:

• Paper & printer ink OR a cost per page (usually 6p for most people)
• Postage
• Files, dividers, folders etc
• Mileage costs (anything up to 40p per mile is acceptable)

But what if someone travelled 10 miles on a bus that cost them £1? Would they be able to claim 40p * 10 miles?

Or what if someone paid a flat £30 a month Bus passes but travelled say 500 miles in that month at 40p that would mean they can claim back £200.

I am trying to be absolutely clear and was hoping someone could help.

You'll find the answers to all your questions, and loads more besides, HERE

St00zer

Thanks Timmne.

Question 1 - no. you need to be doing the mileage to claim for it, so you'd claim the buss fare (but see part 2).

Question 2 - no, for the same reason. Expenditure needs to be wholly exclusively and necessarily for the purpose of carrying out your business so if you had the bus pass already, there is no further cost in your using it for MSing so therefore nothing further to claim for.

Does this mean I can claim up to a max of £30 as I have bought the bus pass purely for MS?

What if I used the bus pass for other personal reasons would that mean I can only claim a portion of it back ?

hornetgirl

St00zer wrote: »

But what if someone travelled 10 miles on a bus that cost them £1? Would they be able to claim 40p * 10 miles?

.[/QUOTE

No. 40p is a mileage allowance if you use your own vehicle. It covers things like maintenance and depreciation as well as petrol.

If you travel 10 miles on a bus and it costs £1 - you claim £1.

St00zer

Thanks TractorGirl327

I have read the HMRC website but it is also down to ones interpretation on what is said for one to fully understand what is being said.

Therefore I am asking on these threads as there are individuals who have done tax returns etc and will know how to deal with certain questions pretty well.

TractorGirl327

St00zer wrote: »

Thanks TractorGirl327

I have read the HMRC website but it is also down to ones interpretation on what is said for one to fully understand what is being said.

Therefore I am asking on these threads as there are individuals who have done tax returns etc and will know how to deal with certain questions pretty well.

So why not ring the IR, explain your circumstances, then they can give you the correct answers in your particular case?

Instead of filling this thread up with your DRIVEL that is driving me (and no doubt everyone else) to despair?????????

St00zer

hornetgirl

If you travel 10 miles on a bus and it costs £1 - you claim £1.

Thank you. That is very clear.

What about if I bought a bus pass for say £30 for MS but I also used it for personal use? Can I claim back the full £30? If not how would I calculate what proportion of costs I can claim back?

St00zer

Instead of filling this thread up with your DRIVEL that is driving me (and no doubt everyone else) to despair?????????

Sorry you feel this way. I won't ask anymore questions as you are not appreciating it.

TractorGirl327

AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRHHHHHHHHHHHHH



This is quite a useful link : http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/profile.html?do=addlist&userlist=ignore&u=944161