self-employed car/mileage allowances

Nimbus

Got my tax return form yesterday. It says I can claime 40p per mile for the first 10,000 miles - I understand this. But it says that I can only claim this for business trips or to temporary places of work. I am a private tutor (I only have 5 clients) and all my work places are temporary as I genrally only tutor for a few months per client and then they move on. So, can I claim the 40p per mile to cover the distance between my home and their house? And if so, do I have to keep petrol receipts? Thanks, this is all so confusing to me!

fengirl_2

Your business is based at your home, so any miles travelled between home and clients homes will be business mileage. The whole idea behind the 40p per mile allowance is that you don't have to keep motor related receipts, but you must keep a record of your miles - a book kept in the car would be a good idea.
Don't forget to include a deduction in your accounts for the use of your home as an office.

Nimbus

Thank you so much! I don't understand this tax stuff at all and the IR helpline seems to be a call-centre staffed by non-tax experts?! How much can I claim for using my home as an office then? I only earnt about £3000 last year for my self-employed work so not a lot I assume.

fengirl_2

You are not claiming anything - you are putting a deduction in your accounts for the use of a room at home. I think you would be safe with £2 a week - although there is no statutory basis for this, I think any HMIT would call that reasonable.
Sadly, the people in the call centres have about 10 weeks training and are then let loose on the public. When I was a baby Inspector, over 30 yrs ago, we got 18mths basic training. All the experineced,dedicated staff were let go when the call centres were set up and they took on the minimum of young experienced workers. Its called cost cutting, as Im sure you know.

Doh

i'm in a similar position, i claim 40p from my home when visiting customers etc and i also claim £2 per week for home office costs i'm sure i could claim more but don't want to be involved in CGT come selling time

Nimbus

Thanks Doh. So you agree that you don't have to keep receipts? I guess it is to do with wear and tear on the car and not just how much petrol you have used?

Doh

Nimbus wrote: »

Thanks Doh. So you agree that you don't have to keep receipts? I guess it is to do with wear and tear on the car and not just how much petrol you have used?

yeas no reciepts , i just keep a record of where i've been and how how many miles i did. I'm not sure if it affects you, but those trips to the bank and post office count too.