Running a small business is no small feat. With the constant juggle of managing clients, delivering services and keeping on top of cash flow, it’s easy to overlook some of the allowable expenses that could reduce your tax bill. At Coplow Business Support, we work with SMEs every day, and one of the first areas we help optimise is business expenses.
Here’s a breakdown of 10 common but often-missed business expenses that UK small business owners might be eligible to claim:
1. Use of Home as Office
If you work from home, even just part-time, you can claim a portion of your household expenses as business costs. This includes heating, electricity, internet, and council tax. HMRC allows either a flat rate based on hours worked or a more detailed calculation using actual costs.
2. Mobile Phone and Internet
Do you use your mobile or broadband for business purposes? If it’s a mixed-use situation, you can still claim a proportion of the bills that relate to business use. This is particularly important for sole traders who may not have separate business accounts.
3. Professional Subscriptions and Memberships
Fees paid to professional bodies or trade associations (like the FSB or ICAEW) are tax-deductible, provided they are relevant to your trade or profession.
4. Training and Development
Courses and training that maintain or improve the skills you use in your current business role are allowable expenses. While new qualifications usually aren’t claimable, refresher courses, CPD events, or software training all count.
5. Bank Charges and Interest on Business Loans
Charges related to your business bank account, including overdraft fees and interest on loans taken out for business purposes, are all legitimate expenses.
6. Software Subscriptions
From Xero and QuickBooks to Canva and Microsoft 365, any software you use for running your business can be claimed, provided it is wholly and exclusively for business use.
7. Mileage and Travel Expenses
If you travel for business (excluding your usual commute), you can claim mileage at HMRC’s approved rates (45p per mile for the first 10,000 miles). Train fares, parking, and even subsistence (like meals on a long workday) can also be included.
8. Marketing and Advertising
Many small businesses forget that their website hosting, design fees, business cards, social media ads, and printed materials are all claimable expenses. If you’re paying to promote your services, it counts.
9. Bad Debts
If you’ve invoiced a client and genuinely won’t get paid (despite trying to recover the debt), that amount can be written off and claimed as a business expense.
10. Business Insurance
Insurance such as professional indemnity, public liability and even business contents insurance are deductible. Not only are they essential for peace of mind, but they also reduce your tax bill.
Bonus Tip: Keep Those Records!
To claim these expenses, accurate record-keeping is essential. Keep digital or paper copies of all receipts, invoices, bank statements, and mileage logs. Tools like Dext or Hubdoc (which we support here at Coplow) can make this process easy and efficient.
Let Coplow Help You Claim What You’re Owed
Missing out on allowable expenses means you could be overpaying tax. At Coplow Business Support Ltd, based right here in Clitheroe, we work with small businesses across Lancashire and beyond to make sure you’re not missing a trick. Our friendly, proactive bookkeeping service ensures your finances are in order, your claims are maximised, and your business is future-ready.
Want to know what you could be claiming? Let’s chat.
Get in touch with Coplow Business Support today – we’re the approachable, knowledgeable support team you didn’t know you needed.
01200 407100
