Professional Fees
Professional subscriptions
Membership of a professional body or trade subscription can be claimable where it is relevant to the work you do.
Accountancy fees
Fees for preparing business accounts and dealing with the tax affairs of the business are normally allowable.
Bank charges & account fees
Bank charges, account fees and overdraft interest on a business bank account are allowable running costs. The charges must relate to the business account — purely personal banking costs are not deductible.
Interest on business loans
Interest on a loan taken out for business purposes is normally allowable. The loan must fund a business asset or activity, not a personal purchase. Loan repayments themselves are not deductible — only the interest element is. Under the cash basis (the default for sole traders from 2024/25), the old £500 annual cap on interest no longer applies.
Credit card fees & interest
Credit card fees and interest on a card used for business spending are allowable. If the same card is used personally as well, only the proportion of fees and interest attributable to business transactions is deductible.
Bad debts
A specific debt that has been included in turnover and that you can show is genuinely irrecoverable may be written off as a bad debt. This relief is only available under traditional (accruals) accounting — it cannot be claimed on the cash basis, where income is only recognised when received.
Legal fees
Legal fees for business purposes are allowable when they are revenue costs of running the trade. Legal costs connected with acquiring, disposing of, or modifying a capital asset — including property — are capital expenditure and are not immediately deductible as a running cost.