Business Expense Guide

Expenses and business costs can be recorded efficiently

This guide aims to clarify the position for businesses on what common expenses are entitled to be claimed before tax on profits, and how to go about claiming these.

Introduction to Expenses

Expenses explained

Throughout its daily existence, all companies will have business costs and expenses that help it to operate. These expenses are taken directly from the business account or from your personal account (to be reimbursed). But expenses and business costs can be recorded efficiently to ensure that your Corporation Tax amount is accurate, and you are not paying additional tax to what you should.

Tax deductible expenses

Before dividends are issued by your company, you are required to apply Corporation Tax on its profits. Tax deductible expenses that are incurred by the company minimise the profit that is liable for Corporation Tax. Therefore, more tax deductible expenses means lower taxable profit.

Understanding the eligibility of expenses to be deducted before tax is important to efficiently manage your companies finances.

Recording expenses

Technology has simplified expense management and here at Next Level Business we are avid supporters of a cloud based method to make your life easier. Our main tool for expense recording is using Receipt Bank or Xero. Take a picture of your receipt/invoice, log the expense against pre-determined accounts, and reconcile within a digital accounting platform such as Xero.

These apps recognise receipts after an initial run through and reconcile automatically in future instances. For convenience, these apps can be found together in the Launchpad.

Office, Property & Equipment

Business Use Of Home

If your main place of work is your home, as the director of a Limited Company you are entitled to £4 per week cover without having to provide proof of calculation to HMRC. If your personal expense is greater than £4, you would need to be able to demonstrate to an inspector of HMRC how you came to this calculation.

The calculation to  determine  cost of working from home  is to make  a genuine and proportionate estimate  to what is used for business purposes. For example, in a 4 room house, in which 1 is designated to your work, 25% of the total relevant expenses can be claimed.

Relevant  expenses  being  gas,  electricity,  insurance.  Mortgage  payments  and  council  tax  payments  cannot  be claimed without paying extra tax. In  order  to  qualify,  a  lease  agreement  between  you  and  your  company  has  to  be  arranged  in  order  for  the company to rent the office from you.

Computer Equipment & Electronics

• For private & business use – If  the  company  gives  you  computer  equipment  that   you  can  use  for  business   and  also  more  than  an “insignificant” amount of private use, the company will have to pay extra National Insurance as this is considered a taxable benefit.
• Private equipment brought into a company – Computers, office chairs, etc. are tax deductible on its market value at the point of bringing it into the company, from your private ownership. If you continue to use this equipment privately, HMRC will consider this a taxable benefit.
• Solely for business use – If the company  gives you computer equipment that you use only  for business purposes  and no more than an “insignificant” amount of private use, the cost of the equipment is a tax deductible expense. HMRC do not consider this to be a taxable benefit.
• Second-hand equipment brought into a company – Equipment purchased by the company is a tax deductible expense (as a capital asset) at the cost it bought it for. The equipment is new to the company, if not new in manufacture.

Internet & Phone

• Personal Phone – If you are using a home or mobile phone for both business and personal calls then you cannot claim for line rental due to dual usage. Claims can be made for the business phone calls made on that line. A second line can be  set up in the company’s name  for business purposes, and line  rental claimed as an expense. Personal calls will be classed as a taxable benefit and you will be taxed accordingly.
• Business Phone – The  company  can  provide  you  with  a  mobile  phone  for  work  use.  Any  personal  calls  would  not  need  to  be recorded as benefits.
• Internet (Broadband) – If you use your personal broadband account for business purposes, line rental cannot be claimed as an expense. A proportionate charge for business usage can be claimed. If the broadband account is set up under the company, the full cost of the line rental and business use is a tax deductible expense.

Accommodation, Meals & Travel

Accommodation Whilst Travelling

Accommodation whilst travelling on business related purposes can be claimed as an expense by the business, providing the expense is reasonable and not excessive.

If you are staying in hotel accommodation during a period at a temporary workplace, you can claim as an ex- pense, on the basis that it is somewhere you expect to be working for less than 40% of your time for the next 24 months.

Hotel accommodation cannot be claimed personally if it is located close to your permanent workplace. If it is, you’ll need to pay tax and National Insurance on the repayment as it is will be considered a taxable benefit.

Meals (Food & Drink)

• At your home or other company offices – If you are the sole director and the company has no other employees, you wouldn’t be able to claim the cost of food and drink you buy to eat whilst at your usual workplace. If the company has other employees it can provide basic food and drink (tea, coffee, biscuits). The company can provide free meals at a canteen without having to pay extra tax and National Insurance, as long as it is available to all employees.
• While travelling – You can claim back the cost of food and drink when travelling for business. The company can also include this in its accounts as tax deductible.

Travel

• Flight, Train, Bus, Car Hire – The company can reimburse expenses for business travel and claim these as tax deductible expenses. The company  cannot  reimburse (without  additional tax  repercussions) for travel to the permanent workplace, and  the  same  applies  for  temporary  workplaces  that  are  known  to  become  permanent.     Same  rules  as accommodation applies.
• Mileage (Car / Van / Bicycle) – If you travel in your own vehicle for business purposes, the company can reimburse each business mile as per HMRC rates (up to 45p per mile). Click to see HMRC rates. Same rules apply as per accommodation.

Salaries, Pensions & Childcare

Salaries

A salary paid to you as an employee or as the director of your company is regarded as an allowable expense, as are any National Insurance contributions.

Provided you fall outside of IR35 legislation (company—client employment relationship), and have no contract of employment between yourself as the director and your company, you may choose the level of your salary.

Pensions

When the company makes pension contributions to  its  own  pension  scheme  (e.g.  contract  with  a  pension provider) it can claim tax relief on the cost of these contributions in its accounts.

There is no tax relief cap to how much you can contribute to pensions through your company.

Childcare

The company can provide childcare vouchers to employees of the business. The cost of the vouchers is based on a salary sacrifice and is therefore deducted from the employee’s salary before taxation.

If  the  employee  falls  within  the  ‘Basic’  tax  rate,  the  company  can  provide  up  to  £243  per  month  in  childcare vouchers. ‘Higher’ rate earners, up to £124 per month. ‘Additional’ tax rate earners may receive £110 per month.

The childcare voucher scheme can allocate payment through:

• Direct agreement with a registered childcare provider. A letter between you and the provider confirming the amount must be present.
• Through an official voucher scheme.

A child/stepchild is eligible on the following conditions being met:

• Is between 0 & 15 (15th birthday)
• Is living with the employee
• The employee is providing maintenance cost for the child

Health, Wellbeing & Medical Treatment

Eyesight Test & Glasses

Eye tests are tax deductible for companies when provided for those employees using visual display equipment (monitors etc.). If glasses or contact lenses are provided for employees in order to use monitors and other screens, these are also eligible for tax relief.

Medical & Dental

• Personal Insurance – Medical  and  dental  insurance  is  tax  deductible  if  the  company  arrange  and  pay  the  provider  directly  for treatment or insurance, and the employee earns  at  a  rate  of less than £8,500 a year. ‘At a rate’ being the nominal earnings, plus benefits, at the full year equivalent if worked less than.
• Work Only Insurance – Only treatment or insurance related to injuries or diseases that result from your employee’s work is exempt.
• Return To Work Treatment – Exempt up to £500 for costs of an employee returning to work, providing they have been absent for at least 28 days.
• Periodic Medical Checks / Health Screening – One check a year is tax deductible.

Entertainment, Events & Gifts

Entertainment & Events

• Entertaining Clients – Unfortunately, the company can’t claim tax relief for entertaining clients. The company can still cover the costs but this will be added back to its profits before Corporation Tax is applied.
• Entertaining employees – Entertaining employees is in some situations tax deductible prior to Corporation Tax, but be careful, it could also be a taxable benefit to employees on which they have to pay additional tax.

In order for an event to meet HMRC’s ‘qualifying’ criteria (not a taxable event on employees):

1. It is an annual event (e.g. Christmas party)
2. It is open to all employees
3. It costs less than £150 per guest present

If one of these criteria is not met, the whole cost of the event becomes a taxable benefit.

Gifts

• Gifts to Employees – Gifts  to  employees  could  constitute  a  taxable  benefit  to  employees  and  subject  to  an  increase  in  tax  for  the employee. HMRC has an A to Z of items and their tax status. Click to view for clarity. If the gift is small that celebrates a personal event, e.g. flowers for a recent marriage etc. then HMRC class this as a ‘trivial benefit’ and you can apply to not pay National Insurance or tax on that gift.
• Gifts to A N Other – Gifts  to  someone  not  an  employee  of  the  company  are  limited  to  £50  per  recipient  per  year  and  are  tax deductible.  The  gift  must  not  be  food,  drink,  alcohol,  tobacco  or  vouchers  and  the  gift  must  be  prominently marked with the company name.

Charity Donations

Companies making Gift Aid donations to charity can usually claim tax relief on the cost of these. For other charitable donations, it gets a bit more complex, speak to an accountant for more guidance.

Legal, Financial & Professional

Speeding & Parking Fines

Speeding tickets and parking fines are not tax deductible.

Legal Fees

Legal fees incurred by the company are tax deductible, except in specific situations. As expected this is a highly complex area and it is recommended to get advice.

Accountancy Fees

Accountancy fees are tax deductible against its full cost where their professional time is spent on the company’s accounts and not your own personal accounts. If they do provide advice or time working on your personal accounts this will be classed as a taxable benefit by HMRC.

Professional Subscriptions

The  company  can  cover  the  cost  of  an  individuals  subscription  to  a  professional    body  with  no  extra  tax  or National Insurance required to be paid. The list of HMRC approved professional bodies can be found here. If the professional body is not listed above, the subscription is not tax deductible and will be classed as a taxable benefit to the employee.

Be careful, the subscription payment must be made directly from the company to the professional body. If a personal expense is reimbursed it will be classed as part of your salary and you’ll have to pay PAYE (no National Insurance if it is a listed professional body by HMRC).

Training

Training of employees is tax deductible providing the training is ‘wholly and exclusively’ for the purpose of the company’s business.