Asking for a friend…
We all know the night out allowance is in the region of £26.20.
If your boss pays you less than that, can you/has anyone been able to prove and claim the difference back via the HMRC?
After all, it is a tax free allowance.
Not sure what you’re trying to claim back?
The amount paid is at the discretion of your company…
You can claim the difference but all you’ll get is the tax relief at the highest rate of tax you pay. So for example for keeping the maths simple lets say it’s £25 tax free and you get paid £20. You’d claim the £5 difference using a P87 Expenses in Employment form but you’d get that as tax relief meaning that as a basic rate tax payer paying 20% income tax you’d get refunded the tax you paid on £5 of income so you’d get £1 back. HMRC won’t send you the £5 difference, just the tax paid on £5 of income.
Where it could make a bit more difference is if you’re in receipt of means tested benefits such as working tax credits as it will allow you to lower your taxable income you declare for those benefits by the difference.
trevorking1964:
Not sure what you’re trying to claim back?
The amount paid is at the discretion of your company…
Whilst its something paid at the discretion of your company it’s an allowable tax deductible expense as are meal allowances like Stobart pay too as long as you meet the criteria such as working at the unsocial hours you need to and having a receipt to prove you paid for a meal whilst out at work. So if your company doesn’t pay you it or doesn’t pay the full allowance you can claim the difference. For someone only doing it now and again it may not add up to much but for someone doing it every day it could add up to a good few hundred quid, for someone on means tested benefits it could mean over a grand in their pocket over a year.
Don’t think there’s a rule set amount you have to be paid. All depends on company you work for .I maybe stand corrected though.
I haven’t done nights out for a few years and know most places it’s still £25 personally should be more around £30.
I used spend roughly £8 on a decent breakfast .
Then maybe another £5 in the day on drinks and a sandwich.
Then about £10 of a night on a decent pub meal if possible
That’s not taking onto account what spent on drinks . Tea bags coffe and other bits of food to keep fridge stacked up. Cleaning stuff for the truck etc.
Bet if I was to sit down work it out probably spent more some weeks than was getting.
But wouldn’t of had it any other way. Got see the country had some good.noghts out some nice pubs trips to town centres. And ate well…
I wouldn’t of lasted long tramping if I had rely on McDonald’s etc
I think it’s high time the allowance was rounded up to thirty quid. It’s been stuck at £26.20 for at least ten years now.
edd1974:
Don’t think there’s a rule set amount you have to be paid.
There isn’t a set amount you have to be paid but there is a set limit for the transport sector set by HMRC that is classed as a tax free amount. Get paid above that and it gets taxed.
On the odd one I do, I put £50 bonus on timesheet. It’s all taxed, can’t be bothered trying to get them to look at doing £26.20 tax free as I’d be worse off if they thought that was the normal amount that gets paid.
Plus it pushes up my earnings figure, so when then calculate my average holiday pay it’s in the mix too!