Company Secretary - mobile phone charge

[happydays]

Hi all

Quick question

Can you charge the Company Secretary's mobile phone against the company's profit and loss?



Cheers
HD

[ChimpMaster]

Hi all

Quick question

Can you charge the Company Secretary's mobile phone against the company's profit and loss?



Cheers
HD

Of course, assuming that it is mostly used for the purposes of the company's business.

[SimonMac]

Hi all

Quick question

Can you charge the Company Secretary's mobile phone against the company's profit and loss?



Cheers
HD

Are they wholly and exclusively business related?

[FiveTimes]

Hi all

Quick question

Can you charge the Company Secretary's mobile phone against the company's profit and loss?



Cheers
HD

I thought you were only allowed one handset per employee/director.

[Jessica@WhiteFieldTax]

Yes, you can. In my experience mobiles are very seldom queried.

However technically:

~ if contract in company name, claim calls +rental
~ if contract in private name, claim calls only, otherwise there is a benefit in kind on the rental

Its seldom if ever picked up though.

[northernladuk]

Well I am sure you know it has to be on a business tariff paid for by the LTD directly and the contract must be in the LTD name. Most business tariffs are more than 20% more than personal ones so in the long run it just isn't worth it for say a £36 a month mobile.

I know everyone else will say just stick it through but to be pedantic they will be looking at the co. secs role if you get investigated and in most cases the sec just doesn't do enough work to justify the money spent on them in most cases. I would argue many of these are just tax dodges so you have that to deal with so adding phones to it just makes the problem worse.

Bearing in mind there is no savings to be made above personal ownership and the risk attached I would say this just isn't worth it. You might be able to convince yourself it is justified but that is a different matter to justifying it to HMRC.

Buy a handset and put that through the LTD and get a personal SIM only contract if anything at all otherwise it really isn't worth it.

[FiveTimes]

Yes, you can. In my experience mobiles are very seldom queried.

However technically:

~ if contract in company name, claim calls +rental
~ if contract in private name, claim calls only, otherwise there is a benefit in kind on the rental

Its seldom if ever picked up though.

Seldom queried - not exactly hard and fast rules.

As the requirement for a company sec went a couple of years ago then I would be very careful about supply them with a phone.
If the company sec was also get a salary then you are on better grounds, but just having the title doesn't entitle you to a phone

[Jessica@WhiteFieldTax]

Alas, there are quite a lot of things that aren't hard and fast in the tax world, it all comes down to "wholly, exclusively and necessarily", which is in the end a debate between you / your accountant and the tax man.

In practice - there are always exceptions - its not something HMRC tend to pick up on - that I can tell you from having looked after 2500 or so clients.

IME is low risk.

[FiveTimes]

Alas, there are quite a lot of things that aren't hard and fast in the tax world, it all comes down to "wholly, exclusively and necessarily", which is in the end a debate between you / your accountant and the tax man.

In practice - there are always exceptions - its not something HMRC tend to pick up on - that I can tell you from having looked after 2500 or so clients.

IME is low risk.

Mobile phones
Section 319
The provision of one mobile phone provided by an employer to an employee (but not if
provided to a family or household member) including any line rental and calls for that phone paid
directly by an employer, unless any of these can be converted into money by the employee. Money
an employer pays to an employee to use their own mobile phone is taxable. See Chapter 22
for details.

The company sec has to be an employee not just some superficial title.

[Ignis Fatuus]

Hi all

Quick question

Can you charge the Company Secretary's mobile phone against the company's profit and loss?



Cheers
HD

The company can give one phone to any employee, provided that the contract is in the company's name. This phone can then be used freely for personal use.

It is available for an employee, not a secretary or director or shareholder per se: an employee.

There is no requirement for exclusive or even majority business use.

It's all there plain and simple on HMRC's own pages. I CBA googling it again, DYOR.