In times where there is constant pressures on low paid employees who are not getting inflation based pay rises despite government efforts to increase wages through the National Living Wage Increase it is important to squeeze every penny.
This being said there is a little known tax relief that millions of shop workers in supermarkets, retail and even key workers across the NHS and care homes are not currently receiving which can also be back dated up to 4 tax years. These expenses are known as FLAT RATE EXPENSES and can be claimed online quickly via registering an online personal tax account online.
For example if you work in grocery store such as Aldi, Morrisons, Tesco and Asda, you can claim tax relief of £60 a year, which as stated previously can be backdated up to four years. This is to allow for the cost of washing and cleaning your uniform if your employer cleans your uniform you will not be able to claim.
Airline pilots and flight deck crew can claim £1022 per year, most nurses, midwives, dental nurses etc can claim £125 plus £12 for shoes and £6 for stockings (where they are required to be worn and ambulance staff claim £185.
A full list of the industries you can claim uniform expenses are below :-
| Industry | Job | Flat rate expense amount £ |
|---|---|---|
| Agriculture | all workers | 100 |
| Airlines | pilots, co-pilots, helicopter pilots and uniformed flight deck crew | 1,022 |
| Airlines | cabin crew — stewards and stewardesses | 720 |
| Aluminium | a. continual casting operators, process operators, de-dimplers, driers, drill punchers, dross unloaders, firemen (engaged to light and maintain furnaces), furnace operators and their helpers, leaders, mould-men, pourers, remelt department labourers and roll flatteners | 140 |
| Aluminium | b. cable hands, case makers, labourers, mates, truck drivers and measurers and storekeepers | 80 |
| Aluminium | c. apprentices | 60 |
| Aluminium | d. all other workers | 120 |
| Armed forces | all ranks in the Royal Air Force, Royal Marines and the army | 100 |
| Armed forces | Royal Navy | 80 |
| Banks and building societies | uniformed doormen and messengers | 60 |
| Brass and copper | braziers, coppersmiths, finishers, fitters, moulders, turners and all other workers | 120 |
| Building | a. joiners and carpenters | 140 |
| Building | b. cement works, roofing felt and asphalt labourers | 80 |
| Building | c. labourers and navvies | 60 |
| Building | d. all other workers | 120 |
| Building materials | a. stone masons | 120 |
| Building materials | b. tilemakers and labourers | 60 |
| Building materials | c. all other worker | 80 |
| Clothing | a. lacemakers, hosiery bleachers, dyers, scourers and knitters, knitwear bleachers and dyers | 60 |
| Clothing | b. all other workers | 60 |
| Constructional engineering (includes buildings, shipyards, bridges and roads) | a. blacksmiths and their strikers, burners, caulkers, chippers, drillers, erectors, fitters, holders up, markers off, platers, riggers, riveters, rivet heaters, scaffolders, sheeters, template workers, turners and welders | 140 |
| Constructional engineering (includes buildings, shipyards, bridges and roads) | b. banksmen, labourers, shop-helpers, slewers and straighteners | 80 |
| Constructional engineering (includes buildings, shipyards, bridges and roads) | c. apprentices and storekeepers | 60 |
| Constructional engineering (includes buildings, shipyards, bridges and roads) | d. all other workers | 100 |
| Electrical and electricity supply | a. workers incurring laundry costs only | 60 |
| Electrical and electricity supply | b. all other workers | 120 |
| Trades ancillary to engineering | a. pattern makers | 140 |
| Trades ancillary to engineering | b. labourers, supervisory and unskilled workers | 80 |
| Trades ancillary to engineering | c. apprentices and storekeepers | 60 |
| Trades ancillary to engineering | d. motor mechanics in garage repair shop | 120 |
| Trades ancillary to engineering | e. all other workers | 120 |
| Fire service | uniformed fire fighters and fire officers | 80 |
| Food | all workers | 60 |
| Forestry | all workers | 100 |
| Glass | all workers | 80 |
| Health and care staff employed by the National Health Service, private hospitals, local authorities and independent care providers | a. ambulance staff on active service | 185 |
| Health and care staff employed by the National Health Service, private hospitals, local authorities and independent care providers | b. nurses, midwives, chiropodists, dental nurses, occupational, speech, physiotherapists and other therapists, healthcare assistants, domiciliary care workers, phlebotomists and radiographers shoes and stockings or tights allowance (where everyone is required to wear the same colour or style) | 125 12 shoes 6 tights or stockings |
| Health and care staff employed by the National Health Service, private hospitals, local authorities and independent care providers | c. plaster room orderlies, hospital porters, ward clerks, sterile supply workers, hospital domestics and hospital catering staff | 125 |
| Health and care staff employed by the National Health Service, private hospitals, local authorities and independent care providers | d. laboratory staff, pharmacists and pharmacy assistants | 80 |
| Health and care staff employed by the National Health Service, private hospitals, local authorities and independent care providers | e. uniformed ancillary staff — maintenance workers, grounds staff, drivers, parking attendants and security guards, receptionists and other uniformed staff | 80 |
| Heating | a. pipe fitters and plumbers | 120 |
| Heating | b. coverers, laggers, domestic glaziers, heating engineers and all their mates | 120 |
| Heating | c. all gas workers and all other workers | 100 |
| Iron mining | a. fillers, miners and underground workers | 120 |
| Iron mining | b. all other workers | 100 |
| Iron and steel | a. day labourers, general labourers, stockmen, timekeepers, warehouse staff and weighmen | 80 |
| Iron and steel | b. apprentices | 60 |
| Iron and steel | c. all other workers | 140 |
| Leather | a. curriers (wet workers), fellmongering workers and tanning operatives (wet) | 80 |
| Leather | b. all other workers | 60 |
| Particular engineering (work on commercial basis in a factory or workshop producing components such as wire, springs, nails and locks) | a. pattern makers | 140 |
| Particular engineering (work on commercial basis in a factory or workshop producing components such as wire, springs, nails and locks) | b. chainmakers, cleaners, galvanisers, tinners and wire drawers in the wire drawing industry and toolmakers in the lock making industry | 120 |
| Particular engineering (work on commercial basis in a factory or workshop producing components such as wire, springs, nails and locks) | c. apprentices and storekeepers | 60 |
| Particular engineering (work on commercial basis in a factory or workshop producing components such as wire, springs, nails and locks) | d. all other workers | 80 |
| Police force | a. ranks of police officers up to and including chief inspector | 140 |
| Police force | b. community support officers including Metropolitan Police | 140 |
| Police force | c. other police employees (but not special constables) | 60 |
| Precious metals | all workers | 100 |
| Printing | a. letterpress section — electrical engineers (rotary presses), electrotypers, ink and roller makers, machine minders (rotary), maintenance engineers (rotary presses) and stereotypers | 140 |
| Printing | b. bench hands (periodical and bookbinding section), compositors (letterpress section), readers (letterpress section) telecommunications and electronic section wire room operators, warehousemen (paper box making section) | 60 |
| Printing | c. all other workers | 100 |
| Prisons | uniformed prison officers | 80 |
| Public service — docks and inland waterways | a. dockers, dredger drivers and hopper steerers | 80 |
| Public service — docks and inland waterways | b. all other workers | 60 |
| Public service — public transport | a. garage hands including cleaners | 80 |
| Public service — public transport | b. conductors and drivers | 60 |
| Quarrying | all workers | 100 |
| Railways | See the appropriate category for craftsmen (for example engineers, vehicles) all other workers | 100 |
| Seamen | carpenters a. passenger liners | 165 |
| Seamen | b. cargo vessels, tankers, coasters and ferries | 140 |
| Shipyards | a. blacksmiths and their strikers, boilermakers, burners, carpenters, caulkers, drillers, furnacemen (platers) holders up, fitters, platers, plumbers, riveters, sheet iron workers, shipwrights, tubers and welders | 140 |
| Shipyards | b. labourers | 80 |
| Shipyards | c. apprentices and storekeepers | 60 |
| Shipyards | d. all other workers | 100 |
| Textiles and textile printing | a. carders, carding engineers, overlookers and technicians in spinning mills | 120 |
| Textiles and textile printing | b. all other workers | 80 |
| Vehicles | a. builders, railway vehicle repairers and railway wagon lifters | 140 |
| Vehicles | b. railway vehicle painters, letterers, and builders’ and repairers’ assistants | 80 |
| Vehicles | c. all other workers | 60 |
| Wood and furniture | a. carpenters, cabinetmakers, joiners, wood carvers and woodcutting machinists | 140 |
| Wood and furniture | b. artificial limb makers (other than in wood), organ builders and packaging case makers | 120 |
| Wood and furniture | c. coopers not providing their own tools, labourers, polishers and upholsterers | 60 |
| Wood and furniture | d. all other workers | 100 |
Its important to remember that tax relief will not reimburse you for the full amount and rather at the rate of tax you pay, basic rate tax payers will get any expenses at 20% and higher rate tax payers at 40% so a basic rate tax payer would get £12 for £60 tax relief.
All claims will continue until you finish working in your current job role and once claimed will automatically continue to be given via your tax code, you can check if you are receiving flat expenses via your online personal tax account.
If you complete a self assessment tax return these can claimed via your return at the end of each year, this needs to be included on your tax return even if you are currently claiming via your tax code as any missing information regarding flat expenses will result in a recalculation of the tax liability on these.
More information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/job-expenses-for-uniforms-work-clothing-and-tools#check-how-much-you-can-claim-based-on-your-job
Its quick and easy to register a personal tax account online via https://www.gov.uk/personal-tax-account which will also give you access to any tax credit claims, child benefit, national insurance contributions, self assessment and PAYE tax records.
Never use an external company to claim this tax relief as they will take a percentage of any refund you claim before sending you the funds.
Lads, its important to squeeze every penny you can so even though its not a great deal of cash this worth while doing if you wear a uniform.
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