"What you can claim tax relief on", simple guide?

UpToMyNeckInIt

purdyoaten wrote: »

Are you suggesting that 75% is the maximum claim? I think not.

Food bought at work - I somehow doubt it!

I've only been self employed for 8 years, passing on what I have been professionally advised by a chartered accountant, so doubt all you want, or seek professional advice. So I do know.

Can even find all this stuff on HMRCs website.

UpToMyNeckInIt

trailingspouse wrote: »

We do a lot of business with Germany, and once a week I go to a Language Cafe to keep my language skills current. Simply, you buy a coffee and join the group, and talk about anything and everything in German (or French, but I go there to speak German).

After doing this for 2 years I suddenly wondered if it would be deductible (after all, other sorts of training/education would be). £1.35 a pop for a coffee, plus mileage. I called the accountant and he confirmed - not only deductible, but backdate-able too!!

However - buying appropriate clothing for a black-tie dinner following a conference we attended wasn't. Duality of purpose - like we spend a lot of time going to black-tie dinners outside of work!!

Agree totally.

The only clothing you can claim tax relief against, is 'work' related clothing, eg: safety clothing, not a shirt, suit and tie though.

UpToMyNeckInIt

OK,

Anyone VAT registered?

Worth doing if you buy a lot of equipment for work, as you only effectively pay the 'excluding vat'price. Same applies to VATable food, bills etc.

Put my new pc and camera through, no bother, and you can claim a certain amount of corporation/income tax relief on the net amount as well.

Even though I don't turn over quite enough to have to be VAT registered, just doing so has made me £1,500 p/a better off.

Can be a bit of an issue if you charge members of the public directly, as suddenly you have to add 20%to the bill.

UpToMyNeckInIt

hunnie wrote: »

Well I (sole trader) claim the full monthly cost of my mobile contract but not any excess if I go over the monthly allowance.


I never claim 'food at work' as this isn't wholly and exclusively for business purposes - I would have to eat anyway!

As a sole trader, you can claim 100% of your mobile, it's a bit different when working as a limited company.

Yes, you do have to eat anyway, but usually at home. Thus anything you consume at work is tax deductible. Particularly if it would not be reasonable to expect you to travel home for lunch etc.

Nobody is forcing you to claim though, and if you feel that not doing so is fair, then nobody will argue with that.

justjohn

Accountants often work on what is justifiable. if challenged then fight it out with hmrc.


Some things there have already been legal rulings on so are 100% ok.

TheCyclingProgrammer

UpToMyNeckInIt wrote: »

As a sole trader, you can claim 100% of your mobile, it's a bit different when working as a limited company.

Yes, you do have to eat anyway, but usually at home. Thus anything you consume at work is tax deductible. Particularly if it would not be reasonable to expect you to travel home for lunch etc.

Nobody is forcing you to claim though, and if you feel that not doing so is fair, then nobody will argue with that.

Be careful. The rules for self employed traders claiming tax relief for food are very restricted. Generally, it's not allowable as there is duality of purpose and the fact you have to eat while away from home is irrelevant.

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/bimmanual/bim47705.
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/bimmanual/BIM37665.htm

If you are an employee, then you can usually claim for subsistence whilst travelling on business or whilst working at a temporary workplace subject to the numerous rules covering temporary workplaces.

TheCyclingProgrammer

To answer the OP, HMRC have a high level overview to what you can claim here:

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/incometax/relief-self-emp.htm

If you want to dig deeper, you can scour the Business Information manual. It covers allowable expenses for all types of business but also has specific parts that cover the self employed.

It's quite technical in parts though so probably the best advice is to get an accountant whose job it is to figure this out for you. But by all means try and do your own research:

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/bimmanual/BIM40000.htm

booksurr

UpToMyNeckInIt wrote: »

I've only been self employed for 8 years, passing on what I have been professionally advised by a chartered accountant, so doubt all you want, or seek professional advice. So I do know.

Can even find all this stuff on HMRCs website.

given purdyoaken is ex HMRC I would be careful playing who doubts what games !

justjohn

I thought SE could claim for food, if he/she was outwith there normally workplace and away from it for X hours. inc breakfast if it was a start time before X. (assuming normally work place is a bricks and mortar single building and that's his normal place of work)

Pennywise

I think this thread demonstrates that there is "no simple guide".

The rules for claiming meals are different whether you're self employed (sole trader) or a limited company (employee/director).

The rules revolve around whether you're working at a temporary workplace or not, or whether your trade is "itinerant". Some HMRC examples highlight the importance of whether you work all over the country or whether you work in the rough same geographic area.

Then there's the 24 month rule for directors/employees which prevents meals and travel being claimed.

I'd say that all the above posters are right in accordance with their circumstances, but it does highlight that claiming for meals is acceptable for person A but not person B.

With tax, the devil is in the detail.