It is one of the most common questions every business owner asks their accountant — usually with a receipt in hand. “Can I put this through the business?” The honest answer is: sometimes yes, sometimes no, and sometimes it depends. Here are 25 of the questions we get asked most often, with a straight answer for each one.
The golden rule behind every answer below: HMRC allows business expenses that are incurred “wholly and exclusively” for the purposes of your trade. If something has a personal element that cannot be separated from the business use, it usually cannot be claimed — or only the business portion can be. When in doubt, keep the receipt and ask your accountant.
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Yes — accountancy, bookkeeping, payroll and tax advice fees are all fully allowable business expenses. This includes the fee you pay Beck Hill Ltd. Both sole traders and limited companies can claim the full cost.
💡 Sole traders claim it on their Self Assessment return. Limited companies claim it against Corporation Tax profits.If the contract is in the company’s name: the full bill is claimable, even if you make some personal calls (HMRC treats incidental personal use as acceptable).
If the contract is in your personal name: you can only claim the business proportion. If 70% of your calls are business-related, claim 70% of the bill. Keep a record to support this.
⚠ Sole traders: be consistent with whatever percentage you choose and document your reasoning.All standard business insurance premiums are fully allowable. This includes professional indemnity, public liability, employers’ liability, contents insurance for business equipment, and key person insurance where the policy pays out to the business.
💡 Keep renewal invoices every year — these are easy to miss when they renew automatically.Sole traders can use HMRC’s flat rate: £10/month for 25–50 hours worked from home per month, £18/month for 51–100 hours, £26/month for 101+ hours. Or you can calculate the actual proportion of bills used for business.
Limited company directors can claim £6 per week (£312 per year) without receipts. Alternatively, the company can pay a “use of home” fee under a formal written agreement at a fair market rate.
⚠ You cannot claim the full broadband or utility bill — only the business proportion or the flat rate.Software used for your business is a fully allowable expense — including accounting software, design tools, project management apps, antivirus, and cloud storage. Annual or monthly subscriptions both qualify.
If a subscription is partly personal (such as Adobe Creative Cloud used for both work and personal projects), only the business proportion can be claimed.
💡 This is one of the most under-claimed categories. Check your bank statements — you may have more software costs than you think.This is one of the most misunderstood expenses in UK business tax — and the answer genuinely depends on the nature of the meal.
Taking a client out for lunch or dinner — going to a restaurant to entertain, build the relationship, or celebrate a deal — is classed as business entertainment by HMRC and is not an allowable tax deduction. This applies even if business was discussed and a contract was signed as a result. Sporting events, theatre tickets, and drinks after a meeting fall into the same category.
However, a genuine working meal is different. If food is provided during a business meeting — for example, sandwiches ordered into a meeting room so that attendees can continue working through lunch rather than stopping to go out — HMRC treats this as a working meal rather than entertainment, and it can be allowable. The key test is whether the food is incidental to the meeting (i.e. it exists to keep the meeting going), rather than the meeting being an excuse for a meal out.
The practical distinction HMRC draws is this: a working lunch in your office or boardroom with a client can be claimable — going to a restaurant with a client generally is not.
⚠ You can still pay for client meals from your business account — there is no rule against that. The cost just will not reduce your tax bill if it is entertainment rather than a genuine working meal. Keep a note of the business purpose and who attended for every meal you put through the books.HMRC allows an annual staff entertainment exemption of up to £150 per head per year. This covers Christmas parties, summer parties, team days out, and similar events — as long as the event is open to all employees, not just directors.
The £150 is per person across the whole year, not per event. If your Christmas party costs £100 per head and your summer BBQ costs £60 per head, the total of £160 exceeds the limit and the entire amount becomes taxable — not just the excess.
⚠ If you are a sole director with no other employees, this exemption does not apply — the “party” must include genuine employees.A laptop used wholly for business is claimable — but not as a straightforward expense. It is treated as a capital asset and claimed through the Annual Investment Allowance (AIA), which gives 100% tax relief in the year of purchase. In practice this means you get the full deduction, just through a different mechanism on your return.
If the laptop is used partly personally, only the business proportion qualifies.
💡 For most small businesses, the AIA means you get the same cash benefit as if it were a regular expense — just make sure your accountant records it correctly.This one surprises many people. Everyday clothing — suits, shirts, trousers, shoes — cannot be claimed as a business expense, even if you only wear them for work. HMRC’s position (established in case law going back to Mallalieu v Drummond) is that clothing also provides “warmth and decency” — a personal benefit — and therefore fails the wholly and exclusively test.
What you can claim: uniforms with a company logo, branded workwear, and protective clothing required by the nature of the job (high-vis vests, safety boots, hard hats).
✗ Even if you buy a suit specifically for a client meeting and never wear it socially — you still cannot claim it.Travel to client meetings, conferences, supplier visits, and any other temporary business location is fully claimable. This includes train, bus, taxi, tube, and plane fares, as well as parking costs and congestion charges directly related to the business journey.
Hotels and overnight accommodation for genuine business trips are also claimable, as are reasonable subsistence costs (meals) when staying away from home overnight on business.
⚠ Your regular commute from home to your main place of work is never claimable — only travel to temporary or client locations qualifies.You cannot claim your actual fuel and running costs if the car is in your personal name. Instead you claim the HMRC Approved Mileage Allowance Payment (AMAP) rate — which from 6 April 2026 is 55p per mile for the first 10,000 business miles, and 25p per mile above that.
Keep a mileage log recording the date, start and end location, purpose, and miles for every business journey. HMRC expects to see this in any enquiry.
💡 At 55p per mile, 5,000 business miles = £2,750 in deductible costs — often more than many people’s actual fuel spend, because the rate also covers wear and tear, insurance, and servicing.Day-to-day food and drink while working is generally not claimable — HMRC’s view is that everyone has to eat regardless of whether they are working, so it is not “wholly and exclusively” for business.
The exception is subsistence on an overnight business trip away from your normal area. If you travel to London for a two-day conference and buy lunch both days, those costs are claimable.
⚠ Your daily coffee on the way to the office or while working from a cafe does not qualify — even if you’re answering emails while you drink it.Training costs that update or improve skills you already use in your business are fully claimable. CPD courses, software training, industry conferences, and professional subscriptions all qualify.
The caveat: training that helps you enter a new profession or trade — rather than improving existing skills — is not claimable. A bookkeeper training to become a chartered accountant: potentially not claimable. A bookkeeper attending a QuickBooks refresher course: claimable.
💡 Books, trade journals, and relevant professional memberships (such as AAT or ICAEW subscriptions) are also claimable under this category.All costs of promoting your business are allowable expenses. This includes Google Ads and Facebook Ads spend, website hosting and maintenance, domain name renewals, graphic design, print advertising, business cards, and flyers.
Your website is claimable — the initial build cost may be treated as a capital asset (claimed via AIA), while ongoing hosting, maintenance, and content costs are revenue expenses claimable in full.
💡 Social media management fees and PR costs also fall into this category.Sole traders working from home can claim a proportion of household costs (see expense #4) or the flat rate. Crucially, you cannot claim the capital repayment of a mortgage — only a proportion of the mortgage interest.
Limited company directors: be cautious. If the company pays rent to you personally for use of your home office, this creates a rental income stream you need to declare. A “use of home” allowance of £6/week is simpler and HMRC does not usually question it.
⚠ Claiming a large proportion of your home costs through a limited company can also affect your Capital Gains Tax position if you ever sell the property. Get advice first.Bank charges, monthly account fees, overdraft interest, and merchant payment processing fees (such as Stripe or PayPal transaction fees) are all fully allowable business expenses.
Note: the capital repayment on a business loan is not deductible — but the interest on a business loan is.
💡 This is another one people forget to claim. Check your business bank statement every month for charges and fees.This one is more nuanced than most guides suggest — especially for limited companies. The answer differs depending on who owns the car, who receives the fine, and whether it comes from a council or a private operator. Here is how each scenario plays out:
Council or government fine, company car, company pays as registered keeper
The fine is not deductible against Corporation Tax. This was confirmed by a First Tier Tax Tribunal ruling involving G4S Cash Solutions, which HMRC said established a clear precedent. Fines arising from a breach of the law cannot be claimed, regardless of the business context. However, there is no benefit in kind for the director or employee — because the fine was the company’s liability as registered keeper, not the individual’s.
Speeding ticket issued personally to the director or employee
The fine is the individual’s personal liability. If the company pays or reimburses it, HMRC’s own manual (BIM42515) states that a Corporation Tax deduction may be allowed to the employer — but the reimbursement becomes taxable earnings for the director or employee, meaning they pay Income Tax and National Insurance on it. In most cases this makes reimbursement more trouble than it is worth.
Private car park charge (not a council fine)
Charges issued by private parking operators are civil charges rather than statutory penalties. These sit in a grey area — they are not subject to the same clear rule as council fines, and some accountants treat them as allowable where they arise wholly in the course of a business journey. This is not guaranteed and you should take specific advice before claiming.
The important distinction: the parking charge itself — pay and display tickets, NCP car parks, meter charges — incurred on a genuine business journey is fully allowable for both sole traders and limited companies. Only the penalty for overstaying, parking illegally, or failing to pay is disallowed.
⚠ The rationale behind disallowing fines is clear: allowing a tax deduction would reduce the deterrent effect of the penalty, which HMRC considers contrary to public policy. No matter how legitimately the fine was incurred, breaking the law — even accidentally — is the reason the fine exists, and HMRC will not subsidise it.Paying a family member a salary for work they actually do in the business is allowable — and can be a tax-efficient way to use their personal allowance. The salary must be commercially reasonable for the work performed, and you must actually pay it (not just record it on paper).
HMRC scrutinises this closely. Paying a spouse £30,000 a year to occasionally answer emails will be challenged. Paying them £12,000 a year to do genuine bookkeeping, admin, or customer service work is far easier to defend.
⚠ If you do this, run it through payroll properly, issue payslips, and keep records of what work was actually done.All consumable office supplies used for the business are fully allowable — printer ink, paper, pens, notebooks, stamps, envelopes, sticky notes, filing folders. These are straightforward day-to-day business costs and HMRC expects you to claim them.
💡 Keep your receipts — even for small amounts. These add up significantly over a year and are easy wins on your tax return.Client gifts are generally not deductible — HMRC treats them as entertainment. However, there is a very specific exemption: gifts costing up to £50 per person per year are allowable, provided the gift carries a conspicuous advertisement for your business (such as branded merchandise), and is not food, drink, tobacco, or a voucher exchangeable for goods.
A branded pen: potentially claimable. A bottle of wine: not claimable. A hamper of food: not claimable.
⚠ In practice, most client gifts fail the test. If in doubt, treat them as entertainment and don’t claim the deduction.Payments to subcontractors and freelancers for genuine work are fully deductible. This includes designers, copywriters, IT consultants, cleaners, tradespeople, and any other third party you pay to carry out services for your business.
If you operate in the construction industry, be aware of the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) — you may have a legal obligation to deduct tax at source from subcontractor payments before you pay them.
💡 Always get an invoice and keep it. Paying subcontractors in cash without records is a red flag for HMRC.Subscriptions to professional bodies relevant to your trade are allowable — but only if HMRC has approved that specific body for tax relief. HMRC publishes and maintains an approved list of professional organisations and learned societies.
Examples of approved bodies include the AAT, ICAEW, ACCA, CIPD, Law Society, and many others. If your industry body is on the list, your subscription fee is deductible in full.
💡 Check HMRC’s approved professional organisations list at gov.uk to confirm your body qualifies.Cars are treated differently from other business assets — you cannot claim the purchase cost as a regular expense, and you cannot use the Annual Investment Allowance (AIA) on a car. Instead, you claim Writing Down Allowances (WDA), which give you a percentage of the car’s value as a deduction each year — the rate depends on the car’s CO2 emissions.
Zero-emission electric cars: 100% first-year allowance. Low-emission cars (1–50g/km CO2): 18% WDA per year. Higher-emission cars: 6% WDA per year.
For limited companies, there are also benefit-in-kind considerations if the car is used personally by a director or employee.
⚠ This is one of the most complex areas of business tax. If you’re considering buying a car through the business, talk to Beck Hill Ltd first — the answer changes significantly depending on whether you’re a sole trader or a limited company, and what the car’s emissions are.Limited companies with employees: the cost of an eye test for an employee who uses a computer screen for work is an allowable expense under health and safety regulations. Glasses or contact lenses are claimable only if they are specifically prescribed for display screen equipment (DSE) use — not for general day-to-day vision correction.
Sole traders: HMRC’s position is that glasses are a personal expense (you would need them regardless of your job), so they are generally not claimable even if you use screens all day.
⚠ In practice, many sole traders do claim a proportion of glasses costs on the basis of screen use — but this is a grey area and could be challenged.These come up more than you might think — usually with a creative justification (“I listen to Spotify while I work”, “the gym keeps me sharp for client meetings”). The honest answer is almost always no.
HMRC would view these as providing personal benefit regardless of any business use. A Netflix subscription is not wholly and exclusively for business, even if you occasionally watch industry-relevant documentaries on it.
The exception would be a very specific, narrowly business-related subscription — for example, a music licensing subscription for a business that creates content requiring background music.
✗ If you’re putting these through the books, take them out. The tax saving is minimal and the risk of an HMRC query is not worth it.A Few Things Worth Remembering
Keep every receipt
HMRC can open an enquiry into any tax return for up to four years after the filing date — and up to 20 years in cases of deliberate non-compliance. You are legally required to keep records for at least five years (sole traders) or six years (limited companies) after the relevant tax year. Under Making Tax Digital, which went live for businesses above £50,000 in April 2026, digital record-keeping is now a legal requirement — not just good practice.
The “wholly and exclusively” rule is not as strict as it sounds
HMRC’s guidance acknowledges that some expenses have a minor personal element and still qualify. The key question is whether the purpose of the expense was business-related — not whether a secondary personal benefit accidentally arose. Your business mobile phone is deductible even if you make the occasional personal call. What you cannot do is claim something where the primary purpose is personal and the business element is a convenient add-on.
When in doubt, ask before you claim — not after
A common mistake is to claim everything, assume it will all be accepted, and then deal with any HMRC queries if they arise. A better approach is to ask your accountant first if something is unclear. Getting it right first time is far less stressful — and cheaper — than responding to an HMRC enquiry.
“The most expensive words in accountancy are ‘I assumed I could claim that.’ A quick question to your accountant saves far more than the time it takes to ask it.” — Beck Hill Ltd
Sole trader or limited company? The rules above apply broadly to both, but the way expenses are claimed — and the tax relief you receive — differs depending on your business structure. Sole traders claim expenses to reduce their taxable profit on their Self Assessment return. Limited companies claim expenses against Corporation Tax profits. If you are unsure which structure is right for you, Beck Hill Ltd can help.
Not Sure If You Can Claim Something?
Beck Hill Ltd handles bookkeeping, tax returns and expense advice for sole traders and limited companies across Neath, Port Talbot, Swansea and throughout the UK. We’ll make sure you claim everything you’re entitled to — and nothing you’re not.
Ask Beata Today Call: 07588 603827
