Expenses if you're self-employed
An overview of the types of business running costs you can and can't claim as a business expense from HMRC.
If you're self-employed, your business will have various running costs. You can deduct some of these costs to work out your taxable profit as long as they're allowable expenses.
For example, if your turnover is 拢40,000, and you claim 拢10,000 in allowable expenses. You only pay tax on the remaining 拢30,000 - known as your taxable profit.
Allowable expenses don't include money taken from your business to pay for private purchases.
This guide gives advice on how to claim business expenses and what kind of costs can be deducted such as office, property and equipment expenses, clothing expenses and legal and financial costs expenses.
If you run your own limited company, you need to follow different rules. You can deduct any business costs from your profits before tax. You must report any item you make personal use of as a .
How to classify business expenses
How to categorise and claim expenses costs as allowable expenses or capital allowances to get the most tax benefits.
Understanding the categories of allowable expenses and capital allowances is important for effective financial management.
Allowable expenses cover many operational costs, such as office supplies, travel, and staff salaries. You can use capital allowances for significant purchases. These include equipment and vehicles used in your business. Categorise and claim these costs to get the most tax benefits.
If you work from home specific rules apply.
Costs you can claim as allowable expenses
These include:
- office costs, eg stationery or phone bills
- travel costs, eg fuel, parking, train or bus fares
- clothing expenses, eg uniforms
- staff costs, eg salaries or subcontractor costs
- things you buy to sell on, eg stock or raw materials
- financial costs, eg insurance or bank charges
- costs of your business premises, eg heating, lighting, business rates
- advertising or marketing, eg website costs
Contact the if you're not sure whether a business cost is an allowable expense.
Costs you can claim as capital allowances
If you use , claim capital allowances when you buy something you keep to use in your business, for example:
- equipment
- machinery
- business vehicles, eg cars, vans, lorries
If you use cash basis
If you use and buy a car for your business, you can claim this as a capital allowance. However, all other items you buy and keep for your business should be claimed as allowable expenses in the normal way.
If you use something for both business and personal reasons
You can only claim allowable expenses for the business costs. For example, your mobile phone bills for the year total 拢200. Of this, you spend 拢130 on personal calls and 拢70 on business. You can claim for 拢70 of business expenses.
If you work from home
You may be able to claim a proportion of your costs for things like:
- heating
- electricity
- rates
- mortgage interest or rent
- internet and telephone use
You'll need to find a reasonable method of dividing your costs. For example, you could do it by the number of rooms you use for business or the amount of time you work from home.
Simplified expenses
You can avoid using complex calculations to work out your business expenses by using . Simplified expenses are flat rates that can be used for:
- vehicles
- working from home
- living on your business premises
Office, property and equipment expenses
How to claim business expenses for your office, property and equipment and an overview of eligible items.
Claim items you'd normally use for less than two years as allowable expenses, for example:
- stationery
- rent, rates, power and insurance costs
For equipment you keep to use in your business, for example computers or printers, claim:
- allowable expenses if you use cash basis accounting
- capital allowances if you use traditional accounting
See guidance on and .
You can't claim for any non-business use of premises, phones or other office resources.
Stationery
You can claim expenses for:
- phone, mobile, fax and internet bills
- postage
- stationery
- printing
- printer ink and cartridges
- computer software your business uses for less than two years
- computer software if your business makes regular payments to renew the license (even if you use it for more than two years)
Claim other software for your business as capital allowances, unless you use cash basis.
Rents, rates, power and insurance costs
You can claim expenses for:
- rent for business premises
- business and water rates
- utility bills
- property insurance
- security
- using your home as an office (only the part that's used for business)
Business premises
You can't claim expenses or allowances for buying building premises.
Claim expenses for repairs and maintenance of business premises and equipment.
For alterations to install or replace equipment, claim:
- allowable expenses if you use cash basis accounting
- capital allowances if you use traditional accounting
You can also claim capital allowances for some integral parts of a building, for example water heating systems.
Car, van and travel expenses
What you can claim as business expenses for your company car, van and travel expenses and what you can鈥檛 claim for.
You can claim allowable business expenses for:
- vehicle insurance
- repairs and servicing
- fuel
- parking
- hire charges
- vehicle licence fees
- breakdown cover
- train, bus, air and taxi fares
- hotel rooms
- meals on overnight business trips
You can't claim for:
- non-business driving or travel costs
- fines
- travel between home and work
You may be able to calculate your car, van or motorcycle expenses using a flat rate (known as simplified expenses) for mileage instead of the actual costs of buying and running your vehicle.
Buying vehicles
If you use and buy a vehicle for your business, you can claim this as a .
If you use and buy a car for your business, claim this as a capital allowance as long as you're not using .
For all other types of vehicles, claim them as allowable expenses.
Clothing expenses
What clothing items are classed as allowable business expenses that you can claim as expenses for your business.
You can claim allowable business expenses for:
- uniforms
- protective clothing needed for your work
- costumes for actors or entertainers
You can't claim for everyday clothing (even if you wear it for work).
Staff expenses
The types of allowable business expenses which you can claim for staff, and what you can't claim for.
You can claim allowable business expenses for:
- employee and staff salaries
- bonuses
- pensions
- benefits
- agency fees
- subcontractors
- employer's National Insurance
You can't claim for carers or domestic help, eg nannies.
Reselling goods expenses
Details of some allowable business expenses self-employed persons can claim for when reselling goods.
You can claim allowable business expenses for:
- goods for resale (stock)
- raw materials
- direct costs from producing goods
You can't claim for:
- any goods or materials bought for private use
- depreciation of equipment
Marketing, entertainment and subscriptions expenses
What types of marketing, entertainment and subscriptions your business can claim as business expenses.
You can claim allowable business expenses for:
- advertising in newspapers or directories
- bulk mail advertising (mailshots)
- free samples
- website costs
You can't claim for:
- entertaining clients, suppliers and customers
- event hospitality
Subscriptions
You can claim for:
- trade or professional journals
- trade body or professional organisation membership if related to your business
You can't claim for:
- payments to political parties
- gym membership fees
- donations to charity - but you may be able to claim for
Legal and financial costs expenses
What you can claim for accountancy, legal and other professional fees and information on how to write off bad debts.
Accountancy, legal and other professional fees can count as allowable business expenses.
You can claim costs for:
- hiring of accountants, solicitors, surveyors and architects for business reasons
- professional indemnity insurance premiums
You can't claim for:
- legal costs of buying property and machinery - if you use traditional accounting, claim for these costs as
- fines for breaking the law
Bank, credit card and other financial charges
You can claim business costs for:
- bank, overdraft and credit card charges
- interest on bank and business loans
- hire purchase interest
- leasing payments
- alternative finance payments, eg Islamic finance
If you're using you can only claim up to 拢500 in interest and bank charges.
You can't claim for repayments of loans, overdrafts or finance arrangements.
Insurance policies
You can claim for any insurance policy for your business, eg public liability insurance.
When your customer doesn't pay you
If you're using , you can claim for amounts of money you include in your turnover but won't ever receive ('bad debts'). However, you can only write off these debts if you're sure they won't be recovered from your customer in the future.
You can't claim for:
- debts not included in turnover
- debts related to the disposal of fixed assets, eg land, buildings, machinery
- bad debts that aren't properly calculated, eg you can't just estimate that your debts are equal to five per cent of your turnover
Bad debts can't be claimed if you use because you've not received the money from your debtors. With cash basis, you only record income on your return that you've actually received.
How to claim business expenses
How to keep on top of your business records in order to claim your business allowable expenses with HMRC.
Keep records of all your business expenses as proof of your costs. GOV.UK provides information on .
Add up all your allowable expenses for the tax year and put the total amount on your Self Assessment tax return. GOV.UK provides further guidance on .
You don't need to send in proof of expenses when you submit your tax return. But you should keep proof and records so you can show them to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) if asked.
You must make sure your records are accurate.