The financial reality of being a UK influencer
As a content creator in the UK, your income streams are diverse—brand deals, affiliate marketing, platform payouts, and product sales. But so are your costs. Understanding what you can claim as business expenses is the difference between a healthy profit margin and an unexpected tax bill. Many influencers overlook legitimate deductions or, conversely, claim incorrectly and risk HMRC enquiries. The key is knowing which expenses are 'wholly and exclusively' for business purposes, a fundamental principle in UK tax law. This guide breaks down exactly what you can claim, complete with 2024/25 tax year figures, to help you optimize your tax position.
Navigating these rules manually is complex and time-consuming. This is where dedicated tax planning software becomes invaluable. A platform like TaxPlan automates the tracking and categorisation of your deductible costs, ensuring you claim everything you're entitled to while staying fully compliant with HMRC. Let's explore the specific expenses that can reduce your Self Assessment tax bill.
Equipment and technology: Your essential toolkit
The tools of your trade are typically fully deductible. This includes cameras, lenses, lighting equipment, microphones, and gimbals. You can also claim for computers, laptops, tablets, and smartphones used for creating content, editing, managing your business, and communicating with brands. If an item is used for both business and personal purposes, you can only claim the business portion of the cost.
For expensive equipment, you might use the Annual Investment Allowance (AIA). The AIA for 2024/25 is £1 million, allowing you to deduct the full value of qualifying equipment from your profits before tax. For lower-cost items, you can often claim the full cost in the year of purchase under the 'cash basis' accounting rules for small businesses. Using the tax calculator on our platform can help you model the most tax-efficient way to claim for capital purchases, showing the immediate impact on your tax liability.
- Cameras, lenses, drones, and lighting rigs
- Computers, laptops, and tablets for editing and admin
- Smartphones used for business communication and content
- Software subscriptions (Adobe Creative Cloud, video editing apps, planning tools)
- Website hosting, domain names, and premium theme costs
Home office and utility costs
If you work from home, you can claim a proportion of your household running costs. HMRC allows you to use a simplified method, claiming a flat rate based on the number of hours you work from home each month. Alternatively, you can calculate the actual costs based on the number of rooms used for business and the time spent working.
The simplified expenses flat rates for 2024/25 are:
- £10 per month if you work between 25 and 50 hours from home
- £18 per month for 51 to 100 hours
- £26 per month for 101 or more hours
If your home office usage is significant, calculating the actual proportion of rent, mortgage interest (not capital repayment), council tax, energy bills, and internet costs may yield a higher claim. This is a perfect example of where tax scenario planning is useful, allowing you to compare both methods to see which is most beneficial for your specific circumstances.
Travel, subsistence, and event expenses
Travel costs for business purposes are deductible. This includes journeys to meet with brands, attend industry events, or travel to specific locations for content creation (e.g., a city for street style photos or a national park for travel content). You cannot claim for ordinary commuting from your home to a 'permanent workplace', but as an influencer, your home is likely your permanent workplace, making travel to external locations potentially claimable.
You can claim mileage using HMRC's approved mileage rates: 45p per mile for the first 10,000 business miles in a tax year, and 25p per mile thereafter. Alternatively, you can claim the actual costs of fuel, insurance, road tax, and maintenance. You can also claim for train, bus, and plane tickets, as well as reasonable subsistence costs (meals and accommodation) when working away from your home base overnight.
- Mileage for business journeys (45p/mile for first 10,000 miles)
- Public transport fares for business trips
- Hotel accommodation for work-related overnight stays
- Meals during business travel (reasonable costs)
- Entry fees for events you attend for business purposes
Marketing, samples, and professional services
Building your brand incurs costs that are fully deductible. This includes paid social media promotions, influencer marketing collaborations (paying other creators), costs of running competitions, and business cards. Products sent to you for review are generally not considered a taxable benefit if you are expected to provide a review; their cost is a business expense for the brand, not you. However, money you spend to purchase products specifically for content is claimable.
Professional fees are also deductible. This includes accountant's fees, legal costs for business contracts, and fees for banking services. If you use a manager or agent, their commission is a valid business expense. Subscriptions to industry publications, online courses to improve your skills, and membership fees for professional bodies are also allowable. Keeping track of these diverse costs is simpler with a dedicated tax planning platform that can categorise transactions automatically.
Clothing, props, and appearance costs
This is a complex area where many influencers make mistakes. Standard clothing is not deductible, even if you wear it in a video, as it is considered suitable for everyday wear. However, you can claim for costumes or specialised clothing that is not suitable for everyday wear and is used exclusively for your content. For example, a specific costume for a skit or a branded uniform you are required to wear.
Make-up, haircuts, and general grooming are considered personal expenses and are not deductible, even if they help you look presentable on camera. The key test from HMRC is whether the expense is incurred exclusively for the business. Props purchased specifically for a video or photo shoot, however, are generally allowable. Keeping detailed records and receipts for these items is crucial to substantiate your claim if HMRC ever enquires.
Staying compliant and maximising your claims
To successfully claim these expenses, you must keep accurate records. HMRC requires you to keep receipts and records for at least 5 years after the 31 January submission deadline of the relevant tax year. This includes digital receipts, bank statements, and invoices. The question of what you can claim as business expenses is answered by maintaining a clear audit trail.
Using tax planning software transforms this administrative burden. Instead of a shoebox full of receipts, you can use apps to scan and categorise expenses on the go. The software links to your bank accounts, automatically suggesting categories for transactions based on your business type. It provides real-time tax calculations, so you always know your projected tax liability, and ensures you never miss a claim or a deadline. This proactive approach to understanding what you can claim as business expenses turns tax planning from a yearly headache into an ongoing strategy to retain more of your hard-earned income.
By systematically tracking all allowable costs, you significantly reduce your taxable profit. For a higher-rate taxpayer (paying 40% income tax), every £100 of legitimate expenses claimed saves you £40 in tax, plus potential National Insurance savings. For additional-rate taxpayers (45%), the saving is £45. This makes understanding what you can claim as business expenses one of the most impactful financial skills an influencer can master.
