Can I claim a tool tax rebate for tools I bought today?

No, claiming a tool tax rebate is not something that you can do immediately after buying them.

You can only submit your tool tax rebate claim at the end of the tax year. This is because you are essentially reclaiming a tax overpayment. The way HMRC see it, you have overpaid on the total amount of tax you paid during the tax year because you stood the cost of an allowable work expense.

Your tool tax rebate is a repayment of the income tax you have paid through your salary. Of course, one of the main criteria of being eligible to claim any tax rebate is that you have earned enough during the year to pay income tax. This can only be determined at the end of a tax year.

Other expenses can be claimed with your tools

The chances are that you won’t just be claiming for tool purchased for work. So, you wait until the end of one tax year, then put all your tax allowable work expenses on the same claim form. For example, our mechanics tool tax rebate claims usually also include; uniform cleaning, replacing protective clothing, Institute of the Motor Industry membership fees, Trade Union subscription costs and sometimes for mileage and subsistence expenditure.

It makes the whole system much more efficient to have one claim with all your tax rebates included, for both HMRC and you. It means that you only have to contend with one round of paperwork and one set of tax calculations per tax year. In the UK the tax year runs from the 6^th April of the current year to the 5^th April the following year. So there’s never that long to wait to apply for your tool tax rebate.

Keep your tool receipts

Whatever tool you just bought for work today, keep your receipt or activity report safely in your filing system (either digitally or in paper form). Remember that if you are using a finance agreement, you can also claim tax back on the interest payments. Basically, keep everything for now and until your tool tax rebate claim is submitted and approved by HMRC.