Millions of Brits who wear a uniform to work could claim tax relief from the government. HMRC allows workers to claim back “work-related expenses” each tax year, and usually, this consists of things you have to pay for for your job, which can include uniforms, tools, travel and working from home costs.
With uniforms, workers can claim tax relief not just on the uniform itself but also on the expenses of washing, repairing or even replacing the clothing. This means workers such as pilots, police officers, ambulance workers and nurses can get some cash back each year. You could even claim the money if you just wear a branded company T-shirt.
The tax relief can be claimed for up to five years’ worth of expenses – so the current tax year and up to four years back. This means you can claim for costs all the way back until April 2020. However, after April 5, next month, you will only be able to claim it back until April 2021. So if you act now, you could claim back a little extra cash.
The amount you can get depends on what industry you work in, and whether you’re backdating any of your claims. For the majority of workers, the flat rate standard allowance for uniform maintenance sits at £60. This means you don’t need to record and report the amount you’re spending on uniform maintenance.
So when you claim a uniform tax refund, you will be getting back the amount of tax you would otherwise have paid on that £60. If you are a basic rate taxpayer – so you earn between £12,571 to £50,270 a year – then you will pay 20% tax on your earnings, so you’ll get back 20%. On the £60 flat rate, this will be around £12 a year.
Higher-rate taxpayers – so earning between £50,271 to £125,140 and paying 40% tax – will get back around £24. As you can backdate your claim by up to four tax years, you can get a maximum of £60 if you put in a claim for this year.
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Depending on your profession, you could also claim more relief on your uniform costs. For example, ambulance workers get a maximum annual allowance of £185 a year. This means basic-rate taxpayers could claim back £37 tax on their uniform costs. This totals £185 for five years of claims. While higher-rate taxpayers would get £74 per year, or £370 for five years.
Nurses and midwives also get a standard allowance but a little lower at £125 a year. However, this group can claim for things such as socks, shoes and tights. If you’re wanting to work out how much you will get back, you should take 20% off your standard allowance if you’re a basic-rate taxpayer and 40% off if you pay the higher rate. Martin Lewis‘ Money Saving Expert (MSE) website details some examples of how much certain professions
Here are some other examples listed on the website – and all are annual allowances:
You can find the full list of occupations on the government website here.
If you are in the armed forces, you do not need to manually claim the tax relief. That’s because the cost of maintaining your uniform will covered through your tax code, and your tax-free personal allowance will be raised to compensate. If you’re self-employed, you should claim uniform and laundry expenses when filling in your self-assessment tax return.
In order to claim the tax relief on your working uniform, all of the following must apply to you:
If you think you are eligible, you can apply online through the government’s website for free – or you can do it through the post. Your online application will require you to answer a few questions before filling out the P87 form. These questions include whether you work from home, the dates you are claiming for, and if your employer has ever paid any expenses for your claim.
After this you will be asked for your
If you have claimed before, you shouldn’t need to do anything as your tax code should have adjusted. However if you think your tax code hasn’t adjusted, you should contact HMRC over the phone on 0300 200 3310. Once the tax office processes your claim, it will send a letter telling you how much you’re eligible for and when it will come through. For expenses over £1,000, or if you changed jobs midway through a tax year, you’ll need to fill in additional forms.
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