Uniform laundry & maintenance

Conditions

• The upkeep claim follows the clothing: if the underlying items qualify (a genuine uniform, protective clothing, or a performer's costume), their cleaning, repair and replacement costs are claimable; if the clothing is everyday wear, they are not. Mallalieu v Drummond itself refused a barrister's laundry costs along with the clothes.
• Employees who must wear a qualifying uniform or protective clothing and bear the upkeep cost themselves can claim a deduction (EIM32480). Most use a flat rate expense agreed under section 367 ITEPA 2003 (EIM32705): where no industry-specific rate applies, the standard amount is £60 a year, which saves a basic-rate taxpayer £12 a year (verified against GOV.UK, current for 2026).
• Many trades have their own agreed flat rates (EIM32712 and GOV.UK's flat rate expenses list — verified against GOV.UK, current for 2026): for example, agriculture £100 (all workers); joiners and carpenters in building £140, building labourers £60; police officers up to and including chief inspector £140; ambulance staff on active service £185; nurses and other healthcare staff £125. The list is long and job-specific — check the GOV.UK flat rate expenses list for your own trade.
• Nurses and other healthcare workers also have separately agreed amounts beyond laundering: £12 a year for shoes and £6 a year for tights or stockings, where a particular colour or style is required (EIM67200; verified against GOV.UK, current for 2026).
• Employees can claim actual laundering costs instead of the flat rate if they can evidence them (EIM32485), and claims can cover the current tax year and the 4 previous tax years (GOV.UK's wording). Flat rate claims need no receipts and are made through Self Assessment or HMRC's online/P87 route.
• Sole traders claim actual, reasonable cleaning and repair costs for qualifying clothing as a business expense — the employee flat rate table does not apply to the self-employed.
• Limited companies: if the company launders or pays to launder exempt uniforms or protective clothing it provides, that sits within the same exempt provision; a director or employee who bears the upkeep cost personally claims like any other employee.
• No relief is due where the employer provides laundering facilities or reimburses the cost — including where the employer offers a free laundering service and you choose not to use it.

Common mistakes

• Claiming the flat rate for washing ordinary work clothes — the relief only exists where the underlying clothing is a genuine uniform or protective clothing.
• Expecting a £60 cheque — the flat rate is a deduction from taxable income, so a basic-rate taxpayer saves £12 a year, not £60. Refund-company adverts often blur this.
• Paying a claims firm a large cut for something HMRC lets you do directly, free, in minutes.
• Claiming when the employer already provides free laundering or reimburses the cost — no relief is due.

What to keep

• For the employee flat rate: none — no receipts are needed.
• For actual-cost claims: receipts or a reasonable record of laundering costs (e.g. launderette costs, or a costed basis for home washing).
• Sole traders: receipts and a note showing the cleaned items are qualifying uniform or protective clothing.

Real-world example

A supermarket employee wears a permanently branded uniform, washes it at home, and the employer provides no laundering. They claim the standard flat rate expense directly from HMRC with no receipts and backdate the claim 4 years. Their sole-trader neighbour, a builder, instead deducts the actual cost of washing and repairing overalls and hi-vis as a business expense.

Frequently asked

Related allowances