Freelancers miss out on millions in unclaimed expenses

Freelancers in the UK may be missing out on £24 million a year in everyday business expenses they could be claiming for on their self-assessment tax returns.

Almost four-fifths of self-employed professionals may be overlooking costs incurred from running their business that could be offset against their annual earnings via self-assessment.

Meanwhile around two-thirds of freelancers admit failing to bother claiming back expenses of less than £10. One-third of freelancers don’t realise they can deduct the cost of food in certain situations when travelling for work, while a fifth forget to claim accommodation expenses when travelling.

That’s according to new research from Freeagent, who compiled the data and warned freelancers that monitoring their spending is vital to avoid millions of pounds heading straight to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) unnecessarily.

Taking records of business expenses as a self-employed professional doesn’t have to be time-consuming either.

At TaxAssist Accountants, we’ve partnered with Dext, a revolutionary piece of software that makes it easy for freelancers to record their expenses receipts quickly and accurately, before sending them electronically to their accountants for self-assessment tax return preparations.

Earlier this year, HMRC revealed that almost two-thirds (65%) of finance decision-makers in businesses lost paper VAT receipts.

Using Dext, freelancers and small businesses can photograph their expenses receipts and regular supplier invoices on their smartphone using the Dext mobile app.

This ensures homes and offices are kept free from cluttered paperwork, giving accountants online access to accurate expense data about businesses.

If you would like professional guidance on what you can and can’t claim for as a business expense when working as a freelancer, we can steer you in the right direction so that you can claim every penny you are owed.

For a free initial consultation on your business expenses, please don’t hesitate to contact our friendly, experienced team today on 0203 457 3737 or drop us a line using our online enquiry form.

Date published 13 Dec 2019 | Last updated 14 Feb 2023