Paying for Parking but No Receipts Available

[Jessica@WhiteFieldTax]

People can get hung up about receipts for small items.

If you don't have a receipt, as long as you have a contemporaneous record you are generally fine for tax deduction / expense claim. Record could be a diary, a echel sheet, or get some petty cash dockets and fill them out.

That's not a carte blanch to say receipts aren't important when you can get them, just not having one isn't the end of the world.

[bathingape]

Yes, I knew what you meant. YourCo can reimburse you for the parking charges irrespective of you having a receipt. It can reimburse you for pretty much whatever it wants. However, these payments need to be reported on your P11D unless you have a dispensation (the only exemptions are things that are completely exempt from tax, like mileage payments, or things you've paid for on YourCo's behalf).

These expense payments are treated as taxable unless you claim tax relief for business expenses on your personal tax return. It's the claim for relief that would require supporting evidence if queried by HMRC, not the actual reimbursement.

In the absence of tax relief, you would pay tax at your marginal rate on the expense payments, which at the basic rate would be 60p on a £3 parking charge. So tax relief only saves you 60p. It's still cost YourCo £3 (although it too gets CT relief on the expense payment). This is what you would be required to pay back if you claimed for it and relief was subsequently denied (plus interest).

With me?

Brilliant - Thanks for clearing that up dude

[TheCyclingProgrammer]

I've just realised I didn't explain properly (?)

When I said claim - I meant claiming expenses from my Ltd company for the £3 parking. Not a VAT claim, as I'm Flat Rate so can't claim that anyway

Yes, I knew what you meant. YourCo can reimburse you for the parking charges irrespective of you having a receipt. It can reimburse you for pretty much whatever it wants. However, these payments need to be reported on your P11D unless you have a dispensation (the only exemptions are things that are completely exempt from tax, like mileage payments, or things you've paid for on YourCo's behalf).

These expense payments are treated as taxable unless you claim tax relief for business expenses on your personal tax return. It's the claim for relief that would require supporting evidence if queried by HMRC, not the actual reimbursement.

In the absence of tax relief, you would pay tax at your marginal rate on the expense payments, which at the basic rate would be 60p on a £3 parking charge. So tax relief only saves you 60p. It's still cost YourCo £3 (although it too gets CT relief on the expense payment). This is what you would be required to pay back if you claimed for it and relief was subsequently denied (plus interest).

With me?

[bathingape]

Two simple options:

1) Dont bother claiming. It's only a saving of 60p a day assuming you're a basic rate payer.

2) Keep your own records, claim it and be prepared to argue your case in the event of a tax investigation/tax return check and repay any tax owed if you can't convince HMIT (they might not even argue over a relatively trivial amount).

I've just realised I didn't explain properly (?)

When I said claim - I meant claiming expenses from my Ltd company for the £3 parking. Not a VAT claim, as I'm Flat Rate so can't claim that anyway

[TheCyclingProgrammer]

Two simple options:

1) Dont bother claiming. It's only a saving of 60p a day assuming you're a basic rate payer.

2) Keep your own records, claim it and be prepared to argue your case in the event of a tax investigation/tax return check and repay any tax owed if you can't convince HMIT (they might not even argue over a relatively trivial amount).

[bathingape]

Could I just clarify here:
People park their car on bit of wasteland.
A bloke takes cash off them but provides no form of receipt etc.

Sounds like someone has worked out a nice little earner

yep you're right and yep - someone is making around £300 per day easily. The bit of land is on the grounds of an old church. Not sure who owns though but yes - no receipt.

[Dactylion]

Yeah cash only. You park your car and you have to walk past his portacabin to get out , which is when you pay. If you're there before he arrives then he takes a note of reg and just collects the cash when you're on you're way out after work.

Could I just clarify here:
People park their car on bit of wasteland.
A bloke takes cash off them but provides no form of receipt etc.

Sounds like someone has worked out a nice little earner

[bathingape]

Write your own.

Not sure if being serious? Lol

Is it cash only?

How do they tell who has paid and who hasn't?

Yeah cash only. You park your car and you have to walk past his portacabin to get out , which is when you pay. If you're there before he arrives then he takes a note of reg and just collects the cash when you're on you're way out after work.

[Contreras]

My new place of work doesn't have a car park and is placed in the centre of town. Most people park in a bit of land (belonging to a church I think) and pay £3 per day So far I've been claiming my mileage by recording into a mileage spreadsheet and for the first 2 weeks so far I've claimed the £3 per day parking. The only problem with this bit of land is that there is absolutely no receipt available. The attendant said they use to give out handwritten receipts but stopped that a while ago however they may reintroduce them again.

Where do I stand with claiming for the parking? Is it 'safe' for me to claim? Would it even be safe for me to claim if they reintroduced their handwritten piece of paper with £3 written on it?

Is it cash only?

How do they tell who has paid and who hasn't?

[BolshieBastard]

Write your own.

[bathingape]

My new place of work doesn't have a car park and is placed in the centre of town. Most people park in a bit of land (belonging to a church I think) and pay £3 per day So far I've been claiming my mileage by recording into a mileage spreadsheet and for the first 2 weeks so far I've claimed the £3 per day parking. The only problem with this bit of land is that there is absolutely no receipt available. The attendant said they use to give out handwritten receipts but stopped that a while ago however they may reintroduce them again.

Where do I stand with claiming for the parking? Is it 'safe' for me to claim? Would it even be safe for me to claim if they reintroduced their handwritten piece of paper with £3 written on it?