Can you roll-over on daily subsistence?

[d000hg]

Looking at a potential work-away-during-the-week contract; i have never done this and I was wondering - if you're allowed £5/day (or whatever it is) can you make one claim for £20 each week? In other words do a shopping run on Monday and make lunches each day.

[pmeswani]

Looking at a potential work-away-during-the-week contract; i have never done this and I was wondering - if you're allowed £5/day (or whatever it is) can you make one claim for £20 each week? In other words do a shopping run on Monday and make lunches each day.

Logically, I can't see why not. As long as you state in your subsistence accounting that is what you have done. But I don't know for certain.

[Greg@CapitalCity]

Not really

So long as the travel qualifies as a business expense (which from the brief info you have supplied it probably does) then associated subsistence costs can also be claimed. You might be talking about two things here though;
(1) HMRC Benchmark scale rates - these are not really designed for one-person companies, though a few contractors use them. Claim either £5 or £10 per day depending on circumstances. Must keep receipts though, and you must apply to use this scheme by filing a P11DX with your tax office. Much better I think to just claim your actual costs. If you do apply to use the HMRC benchmark scale rates, and it gets approved, and then you claim £25 a week for lunch while spending just £10 at the supermarket, the HMRC would take a strong dislike to this - for the sake of a few pounds saved in tax, I suggest you avoid the scale rates, and just claim actual costs;
(2) Personal incidental expenses - if you are staying away from home overnight on business and incur additional expenses such as include newspapers, laundry and home telephone calls, you can claim £5 per night. No taxable benefit arises on this £5 per night payment.

[northernladuk]

I don't know the answer but reading the question I just can't see this being allowed. A per day allowance is per day... for example...

If you don't claim anything for 4 days and then have a slamp up meal on the Friday for £25 quid the HMRC isn't going accept a £25 quid meal when they stipulate £5 a day.

Just doesn't sound right to me. You have £5 a day to eat and thats that. Use it or lose it sounds much more sensible.

How you would go about buying food that would last a week doesn't sound unfeasible and does leave a big hole in my assumption though

[PAH]

if you're allowed £5/day (or whatever it is) can you make one claim for £20 each week?

You can claim £5 per day without need of receipts as Personal Incidental Expenses. I've been doing this for many years when working away from home and had no problem or enquiry at all.

To account for it I just have an expenses spreadsheet that breaks down my expenses by month. I roll up the number of days worked away (which may include sunday evening if travelling down on the sunday) and multiply by £5 at the end of each month.

Very simple way of making sure you get those fivers and no need to faff about with receipts.

[matzie]

Speaking solely about the £5 per night Overnight Incidental Expenses payment - it can definitely be "rolled-over" in that the maximum exempt amount is (£5 (or £10 if staying overnight outside the UK) x number of nights away) , even if on a specific night the amount exceeded that £5 or £10 figure. This is demonstrated in the worked example at EIM02770. Notice though that it's still the actual expenditure that is exempt, not an automatic entitlement to the maximum.

Finally note that the parent page to that article, EIM02710 makes it clear that this is an exemption, not a deduction. That means (if I interpret Section 9.3 of Booklet 490 correctly) that these payments shouldn't go on a P11D (unlike travel/subsistence payments, for which relief is available as a deduction, not an exemption).