Claiming work expenses
Check you’re eligible and claim work expenses directly with HMRC for free.
Don’t get caught out by online adverts and tax refund companies who offer to make work expense claims for you so they can claim a commission. If it turns out you aren’t eligible to claim, you’re still responsible for any claims made on your behalf.
We’ll help you understand how to check if you’re eligible to claim, what you can and can’t claim for, and how to claim with HMRC directly. If you’re eligible, you’ll keep 100% of any money that you’re owed.
Check
Find out what you can – and can’t – claim for.
Recognise
Spot the signs of bad tax advice.
Claim
Claim with HMRC directly.
Check what you can and can’t claim for
You can check if you’re eligible to claim a tax refund for things like work uniform, tools and travel expenses on GOV.UK.
It doesn’t take long to check and could save you a lot of time and money later on – so always check your eligibility before you make a claim.
Even if you use a tax refund company or agent, make sure your claims are valid, as you’ll have to repay any incorrect claims to HMRC later.
For most expense claims, apart from ‘uniform, work clothing and tools’ expenses, you will need to provide supporting evidence to show you are eligible.
Top reasons for invalid work expense claims
Take a look at the most common reasons for invalid expense claims. You cannot claim the following (click to expand):
Travel and overnight expenses
- travelling or commuting to and from your normal place of work
- lunch costs when you are travelling to your normal workplace, you can only claim expenses for food and drink when travelling to a temporary place of work
- food you bring from home when travelling to a temporary workplace, you can only claim the cost of food you paid for during your time away
Working from home
- work from home costs when you have an office base but choose not to work there. If your employment contract lets you work from home some or all of the time, for example as part of flexible working arrangements, then you won’t be eligible for this relief
- eligibility for the ‘working from home’ relief changed after the end of the COVID-19 pandemic just because you were eligible to claim back then, don’t assume you’re still eligible
Uniform, work clothing and tools
- expenses for uniform, work clothing or tools that have already been provided by an employer this includes choosing to purchase ‘better quality’ alternatives to those provided by your employer
- uniform washing costs when your employer has a laundry facility that you choose not to use, such as by washing your uniform at home instead
- workwear that doesn’t include a visible logo, for example, if your employer advises you to wear all black clothing this is not an eligible expense
Professional fees and subscriptions
- union fees, unlike certain professional membership fees, these aren’t an allowable expense
- any work expenses that are already covered by your employer
You can find more information on what you can and can’t claim for and how to claim tax relief for your job expenses on GOV.UK.
Recognise the signs of bad advice
If someone promises easy money and it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Handing over your personal information could mean you end up having to pay back the full amount of any invalid claim made on your behalf, including any commission an agent has already taken.
Before using a tax refund company or tax agent for rebates, take your time and do some research. If you choose to use an agent to represent you, you can read more information on GOV.UK about how to choose a tax agent.
Find out what to look out for below (click to expand):
Check reviews from other customers
It’s a good idea to search to see if they are accredited by a professional body such as the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales or Chartered Institute of Taxation.
Check what qualifications they have.
Read the small print
Even if an agent looks legitimate, always read any terms and conditions.
If you are asked to sign a disclaimer, read it carefully, and make sure you fully understand any fees the agent will charge.
Remember, you are still responsible for any claims made on your behalf, even if you choose to use a tax refund company or tax agent.
Watch out for red warning flags
Most importantly, never sign a blank tax return for a tax agent to fill in, and always review a return before approving it.
An agent should always ask for receipts and should never ask you to share your Government Gateway ID.
HMRC will never endorse an agent.
Claim directly with HMRC
It’s free and simple to claim work expenses with us directly via GOV.UK.
You won’t have to pay any agent fees or commission if you do it yourself.
For most expense claims, apart from ‘uniform, work clothing and tools’ expenses, you will need to provide evidence to support your claim by post to HMRC.
The evidence will vary depending on the expense type you are claiming. It’s quick and easy to check what evidence is required using our eligibility checker page.
Five things to keep in mind before claiming
✔ Have you got evidence to back up your expense claim? From 14 October 2024, we will require customers who want to claim work expenses to provide supporting evidence to prove their eligibility before we progress the claim.
✔ Tax relief on expenses won’t necessarily lead to a repayment.Some expenses are automatically coded through to the following year – check your tax code is still correct.
✔ Expenses must be completely work-related and necessary for you to do your job.
✔ If you had an eligible claim in a previous job but the terms are different in a new job, then you may have incorrect items in your tax code
✔ If you pay tax through ‘pay as you earn’, you’re unlikely to need to claim expenses through Self Assessment.
Personal story
This story is hypothetical and created for illustrative purposes but is based on real experiences. Any similarities to an individual are purely coincidental.
Mike is a healthcare worker. A colleague suggests they use a uniform expense refund company to claim some money back from HMRC.
On the company’s website, he uses a refund calculator that suggests he can claim £4,000 back from HMRC in work-related expenses.
The company later takes £1,600 of fees from the £4,000 refund paid by HMRC. Although surprised by the sizable fee, Mike’s still pleased about the extra cash.
A year later, HMRC informs him he wasn’t eligible for the expenses claimed on his behalf – and that he must pay back the full £4,000, plus interest.
Click to read more
Shocked and annoyed, Mike realises he can’t reclaim the £1,600 fee from the company because he signed a ‘third-party agreement’.
Ultimately, he is responsible for his own tax affairs, even though he used a company to claim on his behalf.
After speaking to HMRC, Mike realises there were some red flags that the company just wanted to bag a commission, without checking if he was eligible to make a claim.
For a start, the company never asked him to show any receipts as evidence of work costs. They also never confirmed what expenses they were claiming for on his behalf.
Mike wishes he’d paid closer attention so he didn’t get caught out by bad tax advice.
Mike now reminds colleagues to always check they’re eligible for work-related expenses with HMRC online before claiming anything, even if they use a tax refund company.
Reach out
If you’ve used a tax refund company and think they might have made an ineligible tax refund on your behalf, get in touch so we can help. We will offer extra support to customers who need it.
To correct a tax refund claim, please contact us through the Income Tax: general enquiries page on GOV.UK.
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