PAY LESS TAX IF YOU WEAR A UNIFORM
If you have
to wear a uniform or specialist clothing of any sort at work you may be able to
put in a claim to pay less tax – and get tax refunded for five past years.
A uniform
does not necessarily mean blue serge with gold braid and matching hat. It can be
anything in company colours or with a logo on it that you wouldn’t be seen dead
in anywhere unless your job depended on it. So it could be a company T-shirt or
piped trousers. Or a boiler suit or protective clothing if you need that for
your job.
If you have
to pay to wash it and keep it clean and maintained you may be able to save
between £12 and £28 on your annual tax bill. And the savings don’t stop there.
If you have worn the outfit for some years you can claim the overpaid tax back
to 2006/07 if you act by 31 March.
The
allowance was lower before 2008/09. But you could still get a cheque from HMRC
for a least £67 if you’re a basic rate taxpayer. Some in particular jobs or
trades will get more than twice as much. And you can double all those amounts if
you pay higher rate tax.
The amount
is flat rate – it does not matter how much you actually spend on washing,
ironing, and sewing your outfit. Different trades have different flat-rate fees
– for example garage workers can claim £80 tax free – worth £16 a year. And
agricultural worker can claim £100, which is worth £20 a year. Some go up to
£140 a year, worth £28 off your tax bill. Details for each trade are here
hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/eimanual/eim32712.htm. For the really fancy stuff that costs a fortune in dry cleaning you can
claim the actual cost. But that’s more complicated.
Remember,
the clothing has to be distinctive – so a suit probably won’t count even if you
never wear one except to work – and you have to be responsible for keeping it
clean and smart.
Claim by
writing to the tax office mentioned on your Coding Notice, P60 or payslip. Or
write to HMRC, PAYE, PO Box 1970, LIVERPOOL L75 1WX. Write ‘repayment claim’ on
the envelope. Send your own name address and NI number, full details of your
employer back to 2006/07, your job title, the uniform or distinctive clothes you
have to wear and why you can’t wear them outside work, and say you would like
the repayment by cheque please.
And do it
before 31 March to keep the claim back to 2006/07.
More at
www.hmrc.gov.uk/incometax/relief-tools.htm
Go back to Paul Lewis front page