what can i write off as expenses?

fenwick458

it's my first year self employed, so could you lot please confirm what i can/can't claim for.
so far i have:

• work clothes
• tools
• car maintenance(parts, MOT, insurance, tax)
• fuel
• college courses, books for the college courses and exams

is it possible to claim for my mobile phone bill?

and do i have to apply a percentage to some of these as they are not soley for business use?

no-oneknowsme

fenwick458 wrote: »

is it possible to claim for my mobile phone bill?

If you use your mobile phone to make business calls then yes , you could claim a percentage of the bill back as a business expense.

and do i have to apply a percentage to some of these as they are not soley for business use

Again , Yes , you will have to calculate how much you use each item for business/personal use.

So , if for example the items are used for business use 50% of the time then you can only claim 50% on your tax return as an expense.

HappyMJ

They don't usually allow work clothes especially for self employed. The clothes need to be related to safety eg. hi-viz vest, thick gloves, helmet would be OK. http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/incometax/relief-tools.htm

no-oneknowsme

HappyMJ - that link you posted is regarding tax relief for employees . It may cover the self employed too , im not sure but just wanted to point that out to you.

OP-My Husband is self employed but wears clothing with his business logo on them and he claimed relief on the cost of these clothes.

nottseagull

How do you expect people to advise what you can claim for when you don't even state your occupation?

ceeforcat

The cost/ value of vehicle itself by way of capital Allowances? Use of home as office.

Pennywise

fenwick458 wrote: »

[*]college courses, books for the college courses and exams
[/LIST]

No, you can only claim the costs for ongoing training of keeping yourself up to date. You can't claim for the initial training costs. So, say, you're training to be an accountant, you can't claim the costs of the initial accountancy qualification course/exams, but once you've qualified, you can claim the ongoing training courses/costs of keeping yourself up to date with new developments, etc. Same with driving instructors - you can't claim the costs incurred in training and obtaining qualification to be an instructor, but once you are one, you can claim training costs as may be need to keep up to date with new rules etc.

taxing

fenwick458 wrote: »

it's my first year self employed, so could you lot please confirm what i can/can't claim for.
so far i have:

• work clothes
• tools
• car maintenance(parts, MOT, insurance, tax)
• fuel
• college courses, books for the college courses and exams

is it possible to claim for my mobile phone bill?

and do i have to apply a percentage to some of these as they are not soley for business use?

What is the nature of your self employment??
Any reply is generalised without that basic information.

Regards.

fenwick458

taxing wrote: »

What is the nature of your self employment??
Any reply is generalised without that basic information.

Regards.

i'm a self employed electrician

John_Pierpoint

Your transport could be an area for discussion?
You refer to "a car" is this "your private car" or is it a van that is more or less dedicated to the business in addition to your "private" means of transport?
What sort of capital investment are we talking about here? Are we talking about brand new - sign written etc. or are we talking old banger at the other extreme? How far do you travel?
(We had an example on here a few days ago of a joiner who was travelling the whole country to get work).

chrismac1

If you are a Domestic Installer or similar, the costs required to maintain that qualification are fine.