Expenses can be claimed for by your company employees when they make a business purchase using their own money. They can keep their receipt and make a claim on this business expense so that they can be reimbursed. Keeping receipts means that as a business owner, you can claim tax relief from HMRC. You can deduct these expenses to reduce your taxable income and the overall tax you have to pay. In this blog, we will explain what expense claims are, what staff can claim expenses for, and how to fill out a staff expenses claim form.
What are expense claims?
Your business employees can make an expenses claim on purchases made that have supported them in doing their job. Whether this is for travel, or food as part of their work day. Every company will have its own regulations and policies in place regarding employee expenses and for what can be claimed.
Most business owners will usually reimburse their employees for any reasonable expenses as part of their job, but they can only reimburse expenses that have been incurred solely for business purposes.
For what can staff claim expenses?
Your staff can claim expenses for a variety of business-related tasks that have involved them spending their own money. These business tasks can include:
Travel
It is likely that employees will have to travel for work purposes, whether this is to go from job to job, or to meet clients. Whether they are travelling by car or public transport, expenses can be claimed for fuel costs or train tickets that have allowed them to reach the specified destination.
Accommodation
When travelling to a job or client meeting that is a long distance away, employees may have to book overnight accommodation. If this is likely to take multiple days to complete, or it is too late for an employee to travel back safely, the business owner may have to reimburse accommodation costs.
Supplies
Any supplies that have been provided directly by the business can be claimed for by employees. This could include stationery, batteries, or other essentials that employees may need to carry out their day-to-day responsibilities.
Corporate entertainment
Rules vary on corporate entertainment reimbursement. Paying for meals and drinks to entertain clients or for meeting refreshments may be reimbursed, however, it is sometimes the case that alcohol is not covered so employees should be aware of this.
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Staff expenses forms
In order to complete a staff expense claim form, an employee must take multiple steps. This includes keeping all the receipts of the purchases which they intend to claim back as expenses. At the end of the month, they should complete a claim form. The employee must give details including the date and time, location of the expense, and the purpose of the purchase. They must include the receipt or invoice with this. As the business owner, you must then approve this, and the member of your team in charge of finances ensures all information is included before scheduling reimbursement. Your employee should be reimbursed during the next payroll. You can make the most of our free staff expenses claim form on our resources page.
As a small business owner, it can often be difficult to keep track of expenses claims and reduce taxable income. If you require support, rely on our experts at Bells Accountants. We provide our support with bookkeeping and tax returns so that you can minimise your tax bill. To speak to us, give us a call on 020 8468 1087 or email .
